Doubloon

by Jay Amberg

Nick Gallagher was a farmer in a small Iowa town for many years, but all the while, as he and his wife raised their son, Nick dreamed of treasure-sunken treasure that lay at the bottom of the sea off the Florida coast, millions of dollars in gold and silver, waiting to be discovered. His dreams focused on a rumored trove of gold and silver lost when the Spanish silver fleet's flagship, Santa Maria Magdalena, sank in the Florida Straits in 1642.

Unable to resist the lure of treasure any longer, he finally abandoned his wife and left Iowa for Key West, where he founded Doubloon, Inc., and began a twenty-year obsession with a mysterious Gobernador Carga on the Magadalena's . . . he knew he would ultimately find the cargo out beyond the sites where all other treasure hunters were convinced it lay.

Through good times and bad, finding small fortunes and losing them, he kept searching for what he called the "mother lode." He was so close he could taste it . . . and then he was killed.

Now Jack, his estranged son, will have to redeem the promise that the sea offered, to yield up the riches of the Santa Maria Magdalena's treasure chests. If Jack can survive whoever-or whatever-killed his father before him . . .

Passion, greed, and the allure of sunken treasure fuel this masterful thriller set in the Florida Keys. In 1642, the galleon Santa Maria Magdalena, flagship of the Spanish silver fleet, set sail from the Americans to Seville loaded with a trove of gold, sliver and an unidentified Gobernador Carga. It never reached Spain. Caught in a hurricane, Magdalena sank off the southern Florida Coast, its vast treasure lost in the depths of the sea.

Now, more than three hundred years later, the treasure has become Nick Gallagher's obsession. But one night when Nick is sleeping on one of Doubloon, Inc.'s boats, it sinks. His last thoughts before water fills his lungs are of the treasure-the mother lode he is sure is within his grasp.

Enter Nick's estranged son, Jack, a recently retired Navy fighter pilot. After his father's funeral, Jack suspects that this father may have been murdered. With a pivotal inherited stake in Doubloon, Jack teams up with his father's second wife, his half-brother, and Doubloon partners to begin his search for the truth the only way he knows how—to pick up his father's quest where he left off.

But as Jack enters his father's world, he discovers the corrupting lure of sunken treasure and uncovers a dangerous maze of treachery and greed. A beautiful reporter seems to have a personal vendetta against Doubloon; a former partner is trying to beat them to the prize; a government official seems bent on putting them out of business. Jack nearly perishes on a dive when someone tampers with his air tank. When the Doubloon, Inc., office is broken into and ransacked, Jack is slashed by the fleeing burglar. Determined to learn the truth about his father's death, Jack continues his search, knowing the closer he gets to the treasure, the more deadly his mission becomes. And just when he thinks he's found the object of his father's quest, the sea itself rises to challenge his claim . . . testing his courage and endurance to the limit.

Genres: Fiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 4, 2003

About the author

Jay Amberg is the author of twelve books. He received a BA from Georgetown University and a PhD from Northwestern University. He has taught high school and college students since 1972.

His latest book, The Healer’s Daughters, is now available from Amika Press. Amberg has also published Bone Box, Cycle, America’s Fool, Whale Song, and compiled 52 Poems for Men.

Prior to Amika Press, Amberg published thriller novels Doubloon (Forge), Blackbird Singing (Forge) and Deep Gold (Warner Books).

Among his books on teaching are School Smarts and The Study Skills Handbook, published by Good Year. Amberg wrote The Creative Writing Handbook (Good Year) with Mark Henry Larson and Verbal Review and Workbook for the SAT (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich) with Robert S Boone.

Reviews

[Rich · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jay Amberg’s book the Doubloon is a thrilling adventure about locating sunken treasure.
A Spanish flagship laden with treasure goes down off the southern Florida coast some 350 years ago. The prologue of the book refers to the ship going down in a storm. From chapter 1 on, the story takes place in the present time. The book was without a doubt, one that I had a hard time putting down. I will put Jay Amberg on my list of enjoyable authors

[Ruth Chatlien · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're looking for a fun adventure, I recommend DOUBLOON by Jay Amberg. The premise is intriguing: A pilot must travel to Key West after his father, a professional salvager and treasure hunter, dies suddenly. Once there he discovers that his father's company might be on the verge of discovering the mother lode of all sunken treasure--and that his father unexpectedly left him a stake in the business. The setting is capture in all its steamy, colorful detail, and I didn't see the end coming.

[Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had to stop reading this book mid-way. It was too predictable and I got bored with everyone smoking through the story and the detailed descriptions of cigarettes and ashtrays. Give me a break.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall I ended up enjoying this story. I found the beginning to be ponderous and overly descriptive. The author spent way too much time describing people, places and things that simply weren't important. I will give him credit for painting a vivid picture of Key West but there was too much description of nonessential characters. When the story finally kicked into high gear towards the end it was a decent read. The last quarter or third of the book was almost worthy of Clive Cussler but the first part was simply disappointing. Stick with it until the end and you'll be pleasantly but only mildly satisfied.

[Victoria Allman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doubloon is a fun Florida mystery set under the sea. Everybody dreams of finding treasure but reading about it is as close as many of us will come. This is a fun look at treasure-hunting in the Keys

[Michael Snow · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book more than I can express. The setting was perfect, I love treasure hunting and boats; it really met my requirements for being an excellent book.
I would love to read the other paperback book Jay has written, "Deep Gold."