On a Sunday morning in July 1625, Barbary pirates sail into a quiet Cornish bay and storm the church. Their loot: 60 men, women and children, kidnapped and bound for northern Morocco, where they are to be sold in the thronging slave market of the Souq el Ghezel. Amongst them is Catherine Anne Tregenna, a feisty and talented young embroiderer. But as her diary reveals, Cat is anything but the subservient and complaint slave that her captors were expecting - and as the coast of England fades from sight, adventure beckons in the East...
In an expensive London restaurant, a gift is given that will change Julia Lovat's life. The weathered little book of Jacobean embroidery delights her, but when she settles down to read it more closely, she unexpectedly discovers within its foxed and faded pages the extraordinary diary of a young Cornish girl, calling to her from across the centuries...
Industry Reviews
"A remarkable view of Barbary pirates and their times, and an engrossing romance of clashing cultures and wonderful characters."--Diana Gabaldon, #1 "New York Times" bestselling author """This is such a lush book! It transported me to another time and other places, enticing me into an exotic, turbulent world in which past and present are seamlessly woven into a mesmerizing story."--India Edghill, author of "Wisdom's Daughter" "What a tangled web Jane Johnson weaves with the opening of a book of old embroidery patterns! Two heroines cross paths across centuries. Unworthy lovers, treachery, ghosts, and pirates march through the streets and seas of modern day England, 17th century Cornwall, and Morocco as each woman tries to find what is most important to her. Discovering one's authenticity is a story in which time doesn't matter, and Johnson stitches the threads of both stories into a lovely, enticing whole." --Karleen Koen," New York Times" bestselling author of" Dark Angels ""I was totally enthralled from the first page to the last by this dramatic, exotic, and passionate tale that slips seamlessly through time. Jane Johnson's wonderfully researched book leaves the fragrance of spices and the rustle of beautiful silks lingering in the mind with images of two exceptional women and the men in their lives." --Rosalind Laker, author of" The Golden Tulip ""A gripping historical mystery based on historical fact. A sensuous, richly-textured novel." --Rebecca Stott, author of "Ghostwalk" "Exciting, intriguing, fascinating and also illuminating." --Rosalind Miles, bestselling author of" I, Elizabeth" "Brings to life a forgotten part ofEngland's past: the capture of inhabitants of the southern coast by Barbary corsairs in the early sixteen hundreds. Rich with detail, wonderfully researched, this is a novel that will surprise and delight."--Gerri Brightwell, author of "The Dark Lantern"