Corsair

Seems like I'm the only person in the world who read this novel...

Targeted at a young adult readership, Corsair can sometimes be a bit predictable, where most plot twists are solved too easily. Or with the help of limitless magic. However, bearing these small shortcomings, it was a fantastic read all along.

The story's about Gareth Radnor and his feud with the Linyati, raiders who attack cities and enslave their people. With the author's witty humor and smooth narrative, I found myself devouring this book from cover to cover. An excellent light read you'll no doubt find entertaining...

Recommended.

Bunch, Chris. Corsair. 2001. Orbit, 2002.
Chris Bunch was a prolific science fiction novelist and journalist. Corsair seems to have been meant as a series of maritime fantasies, but he died before he finished more than the first volume before his death in 2005. The hero, Gareth Radner, is a young man who dreams of leaving his fishing village and going to sea. When his village is attacked by slavers, his parents are killed, and he goes to live with his uncle who runs a trading company. He soon finds himself at sea working for his uncle, first as a ship’s purser, and ultimately as an independent corsair fighting the slave trade. There are magicians in this world, but they play a secondary role to what is otherwise a straightforward show more pirate adventure story, more in the tradition of Treasure Island than Horatio Hornblower. Readable. 3.5 stars. show less