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The Adventures of Natalie Brennan #2
Isle of Lost Souls: The Treasure of Jacques LeTessierre
The world of 18th century sailing ships and the men who work them is a dangerous place for the average girl of only seventeen years, but Natalie Brennan is no average girl. Having faced bloodthirsty savages, challenged the limitless and deadly power of the sea, and tested her mettle in the brutality and violence of battle, Natalie has earned the right to sail. With the treasure map of Jacques LeTessierre in hand, Natalie and her crew set canvas to the wind in her search for the late pirate captain's horde of gold and silver. The crew of the Natalie's Good Fortune are not alone in their quest, and soon find themselves in a perilous race for the prize. In the absence of her mentor Black John Hayes, Natalie alone must lead her crew. Through her own ingenuity and determination, Natalie must remain one-step ahead of those who would steal her treasure and proves herself a fearless and cunning leader.
278 pages, Paperback
First published December 23, 2009
29 people want to read
About the author
Anthony R. Fanning
19 books9 followersI write books featuring women with strength, fortitude, and conviction. Not bodice rippers or tales about women who manipulate men into doing their work for them. I write about women I know, and have known all my life.
Well, I didn't choose writing as a profession, writing sort of chose me. I worked in an office for years, and then got a late start as a firefighter/paramedic on the busiest department in the area. I may be getting a little old for dragging a hose into a burning building, but I can lead a crew in saving a gunshot victim with the best of them. As for the writing: the whole thing snuck up one day.
I was standing on the beach on Ocracoke Island and looking out over the ocean and considering that Edward Teach, aka Blackbeard, once sailed along those very shores. A series of stories came into my head as if on the wind - The Adventures of Natalie Brennan. Tales of a young girl during the Golden Age of Piracy with an ample supply of swash-swash-buckle-buckle, starting with "Natalie's Good Fortune."
Another time I happened upon a video of a man out firing a Lewis machine gun, holding it up like a rifle. I wondered if a woman could handle that thing as well, and thought she woud have to be strong. The next thing I knew I was writing a futuristic sci-fi dystopian adventure entitled "The Cyclone Wars."
One of hobbies is photography, and my favorite thing to do is outfit people and photograph them. Recently, I've been doing a lot of 'old west' style photos. However, one day I saw a photo of a young woman in a summer dress and cowboy boots sitting in an old truck. I thought I'd do a similar shoot, and so wrangled one of my favorite subjects to throw on a beat up bull rider hat, some cowboy boots, cut-off jeans, and a plaid shirt to sit in my old truck. I added a bottle of bourbon and a pistol and we had fun with the shoot. My sister saw some of the photos and asked me, "Is that a prelude to another book?" All of a sudden I was writing "The Thin Gray Line."
And so it goes. Being an Indie author, I'll not be quitting my regular job anytime soon since the book sales are just enough that I can justify to my wife that I spend the time writing and not painting the house. I also tend to like to leave copies of my books here and there when I travel, especially when we go back to the OBX, which is almost every year. If you happen to vacation at the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and stay in a house on the oceanside beach, check the book shelves for copies of my books. It'll give you something to do if it's raining
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 7, 2019
I fell in love with Natalie with the first book. With this story I started wishing she was my girlfriend. There are plenty of surprises as Natalie goes looking for the treasure of Jaques LeTessierre. She gets to show her smarts and her courage , and she also gets to rescue an old friend! I love the way Mr. Fanning tells the story. The dialogue and imagery just kind of hits me in the face. I wish I'd have found the series before, but knowing there are more books about Natalie and Black John is enough to keep my attention.
P.S. It doesn't look good for the getting together.
P.S. It doesn't look good for the getting together.
July 30, 2021
This is what a pirate yarn should be! With buccaneers and maps and X marks the spot! This story takes up where Natalie's Good Fortune left off, and puts Natalie square in the captain's chair a she and her little crew go adventuring in search of a legendary treasure marked on a map. I don't want to spoil the whole plot, but this book tied in very well with the first, with Natalie growing stronger and more adventurous. This is the kind of story I'd love to see made into a movie!
January 9, 2018
Second book in a wonderful 5 star series. Not your usual pirate tale! I highly recommend this series starting with Book #1, Natalie's Good Fortune!
March 30, 2014
Natalie Brennan is on a grand adventure in search of the pirate Jacque LeTessierre's treasure.
After being kicked off his Majesty's royal navy ship after being attacked by some of the crew, Natalie decides that it is now time to go in search of the dead pirate's treasure. She enlists the help of her good friend Bill, and off they go sailing the Caribbean, meeting all sorts of pirates intent on finding the gold first.
The first scene that you are met with is Natalie being attacked by a bunch of dirty filthy sailors in the bowels of this giant ship. Her potential rape was quite detailed, and it made me feel a twinge of discomfort. Which was a bit of a theme throughout the book. I don't mind near fatal attacks, I don't mind a flash here, a flash there. But there was always, always a man leering at her. It had such a constant presence within the book, and it was written in such DETAIL, there were moments it felt like the novel was veering into erotica. Now, I understand that this is a male dominated world. And that these men are rough, hardened specimens who are not used to the company of women.
But when you have characters who are really emotionally attached to our lead character, men who are like uncles and brothers, best friends among friends.....and they're trying to catch a peek of T&A on every other page, it just made me feel a little dirty.
But this book is about adventure. And that is what you are going to get. Mad mad mad doses of adventure. Never ever a dull moment. But there were times where I felt that the book was fit too cleanly. As in, it just went from crucial scene to crucial scene to crucial scene, just one running on adventure. It felt like there was a list of what needed to be written, and the author was just checking things off, with no real developement between prominent scenes. Because of this, when it ended and everything was wrapped up, I felt like there should have been more, in regards to the story telling. There was no journey. Whereas in Natalie's Good Fortune, she had these flashbacks to childhood memories, which could have been a nice edition to the sequel as well. Or just some pondering, a hobby, a side quest, a new dilemma to go along with the original quest....just something.
The book was also extremely purple in prose. We're talking violet, here. It was a bit too dramatic for saying something as simply as, "Natalie got a cup of coffee and decided to go home."
For example. Page 12, Natalie was being kicked off the ship.
"As she strode past the last stack of crates the tears which had slipped from her eyes began to dry, leaving glistening trails on her soft cheeks."
Thats alot of words for simply saying: "As she passed the crates, her tears began to dry."
This happened constantly, to where it was exhausting. The characters would fall into strange conversations between each other, with awkward endings (like the conversation between Lindsay and Natalie. They were talking about Lindsay's rape, and how she was going to give Natalie up to the dogs to save herself.....that conversation then ended a few lines later with Natalie grinning. I had to take a pause to reflect) Or the conversation between Maynard Parrish and John Hayes. They were discussing how hard a man can fall in love with her.
Why are they talking about her marrying qualities, when doom was headed their way. There was odd wonky points through out the book.
The book needs to be edited. There were spelling errors (page 217, "Swaré". Like, as in the rapper?) But I will say this.
I love Natalie. She's a true warrior, and I really appreciated the author's deep intent when it came to her character. She's this chick who just hungers for that thrill and that excitement, but stays true to self and is not afraid to fight and scream for what she believes to be right. This is a girl that I wouldn't mind being best besties with. With some polishing, this book can become an all time fav for many.
After being kicked off his Majesty's royal navy ship after being attacked by some of the crew, Natalie decides that it is now time to go in search of the dead pirate's treasure. She enlists the help of her good friend Bill, and off they go sailing the Caribbean, meeting all sorts of pirates intent on finding the gold first.
The first scene that you are met with is Natalie being attacked by a bunch of dirty filthy sailors in the bowels of this giant ship. Her potential rape was quite detailed, and it made me feel a twinge of discomfort. Which was a bit of a theme throughout the book. I don't mind near fatal attacks, I don't mind a flash here, a flash there. But there was always, always a man leering at her. It had such a constant presence within the book, and it was written in such DETAIL, there were moments it felt like the novel was veering into erotica. Now, I understand that this is a male dominated world. And that these men are rough, hardened specimens who are not used to the company of women.
But when you have characters who are really emotionally attached to our lead character, men who are like uncles and brothers, best friends among friends.....and they're trying to catch a peek of T&A on every other page, it just made me feel a little dirty.
But this book is about adventure. And that is what you are going to get. Mad mad mad doses of adventure. Never ever a dull moment. But there were times where I felt that the book was fit too cleanly. As in, it just went from crucial scene to crucial scene to crucial scene, just one running on adventure. It felt like there was a list of what needed to be written, and the author was just checking things off, with no real developement between prominent scenes. Because of this, when it ended and everything was wrapped up, I felt like there should have been more, in regards to the story telling. There was no journey. Whereas in Natalie's Good Fortune, she had these flashbacks to childhood memories, which could have been a nice edition to the sequel as well. Or just some pondering, a hobby, a side quest, a new dilemma to go along with the original quest....just something.
The book was also extremely purple in prose. We're talking violet, here. It was a bit too dramatic for saying something as simply as, "Natalie got a cup of coffee and decided to go home."
For example. Page 12, Natalie was being kicked off the ship.
"As she strode past the last stack of crates the tears which had slipped from her eyes began to dry, leaving glistening trails on her soft cheeks."
Thats alot of words for simply saying: "As she passed the crates, her tears began to dry."
This happened constantly, to where it was exhausting. The characters would fall into strange conversations between each other, with awkward endings (like the conversation between Lindsay and Natalie. They were talking about Lindsay's rape, and how she was going to give Natalie up to the dogs to save herself.....that conversation then ended a few lines later with Natalie grinning. I had to take a pause to reflect) Or the conversation between Maynard Parrish and John Hayes. They were discussing how hard a man can fall in love with her.
Why are they talking about her marrying qualities, when doom was headed their way. There was odd wonky points through out the book.
The book needs to be edited. There were spelling errors (page 217, "Swaré". Like, as in the rapper?) But I will say this.
I love Natalie. She's a true warrior, and I really appreciated the author's deep intent when it came to her character. She's this chick who just hungers for that thrill and that excitement, but stays true to self and is not afraid to fight and scream for what she believes to be right. This is a girl that I wouldn't mind being best besties with. With some polishing, this book can become an all time fav for many.
September 30, 2015
A very fun read and a much bawdier sequel to "Natalie's Good Fortune". At first glance this would be appear to be book for teens but it's themes are far more mature. A pleasant bonus is this is a borderline historical novel; filled with very interesting nautical and piratical lore of the early 18th century. It was a nice coincidence that many of the facts that I read about the piracy of that period that were cited in "The Republic of Pirates" were also referenced in this novel.
The cast of characters, both good and bad, make a return appearance, and more background on the individual characters is developed. As one would expect of seafaring adventure, there were sea battles, pirates, sword play, intrigue and buried treasure!
The cast of characters, both good and bad, make a return appearance, and more background on the individual characters is developed. As one would expect of seafaring adventure, there were sea battles, pirates, sword play, intrigue and buried treasure!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews