Pirate Latitudes is the first book which was published posthumously
after the death of the author, Michael Crichton. Crichton is known for his astounding
work in science fiction and thriller genres. Generally his novels are marked by
the presence of technology and how human interaction with it fails, causing chaos.
Compared to this, Pirate Latitudes is an adventure novel which is set around 17th
century Caribbean.
It has been said that Crichton was working on this novel
since the 1970s or 1980s. Apparently his assistant discovered it on his
computer after his sad demise in 2008, along with Micro.
To the readers expecting intensity like in Disney’s much
famous Pirates of Caribbean movie series, this book will be a surprise. Unlike
Pirates of Caribbean, Pirate Latitudes is more established in reality. One of
the features that separate them both is that the latter does not bestow its
characters with extraordinary abilities.
Pirate Latitudes, in short, is set in the 17th
century Port Royal, a town which was actually under the control of British
power. In the novel, Captain Charles Hunter plans to do the impossible by
attacking on Matanceros, an island guarded by the Spanish fleet and looting one
of their ships. If Charles Hunter and his crew accomplish to do so then they
will make history.
The reader would not probably fail to notice that the novel
needed much work. It would be better to say that it needed more polishing. The plot
of the novel was engaging but something feels amiss. Crichton had a way of
injecting fear in his book through his books. The language reflected the
darkness that the plot required in most of his books. Still, the intensity of
that is less in Pirate Latitudes.
When writing a novel surrounding piracy, the author is
allowed to instill various characters. And Crichton has used that in this book.
Pirate Latitudes had amazing characters; every one of them is interesting. These
characters won’t fail to capture the readers. Crichton provides the background
on each character eventually. He does not reveal everything about them right
when he introduces them. The ladies stand out significantly a lot in this
novel. Lazue, who becomes a member of the team led by Charles Hunter, is a
woman cross-dressing as a man which she uses to her advantage. Compared to the
other female characters Lazue is the only one who doesn’t manipulate the men
and is strong and independent. Sanson is a Frenchman who is part of the same
crew, is famous for being a ruthless killer and his methods will certainly keep
the reader interested in what he does. Don Diego aka the Jew aka Black Eye is
also interesting to read.
These characters will keep the reader occupied for most part
of the story. Like it was said before, this book is established in reality. This
can be felt by the reader. The book gives off that human feel and the third
person narrative helps the reader take peek in this world quite clearly. Yet the
fact that it was a manuscript that needed to be polished can’t be thrown away. Thus
it would be better to say that the book was interesting enough but the way it
presented it wasn’t and should have been in a better way. Therefore the book
also gave off the ‘work in progress’ feeling.
Pirate Latitudes altogether was a satisfactory read.
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