MORE REVIEWS
Laura Miller Edwards, The US Review of Books
"'Do you believe she's a ghost?' Rick countered. 'As you know from history, and I'm sure our history expert... JD... can back this up, most legends have some basis in fact. I'm just saying the possibility exists that there is some truth in this ghost business.'"
A historical novel with elements of the supernatural, Pirate Queen: The Curse explores what might have happened to the infamous pirate Lai Choi San said to have "her hand on the throat of China" from the 1920s until 1939, when she mysteriously disappeared. When the curiously resurrected Lai hijacks a Chinese Nationalist yacht carrying six million dollars in gold and an encoded microfilm, British intelligence in Hong Kong hire paranormal agents Loo Tao-hua and Rick Reilly to track her down and recover the film. Along with trusted friends who also possess supernatural gifts, the two hatch a plan to lure the pirate queen to them. This dangerous ruse results in a bloody and horrific battle between the forces of living and those long dead.
This supernatural thriller will appeal to a wide range of readers, combining the elements of a ghost story with historical fiction. It is a mystery at its heart. Downey has done the background work to ensure that the tale is told with accurate detail to the history of Asia and the outlandish pirate Lai Choi San. Downey's use of detailed description will engross the reader, bringing him right into the story to fight alongside Reilly and Loo to its surprising conclusion. -- Laura Miller Edwards, The US Review of Books
Rebecca Roberts, Historical Novels Review Online
In 1954, when bloodthirsty pirate queen of the South China Sea, Lai Choi San, mysteriously returns after vanishing in 1939, unspeakable crimes and inexplicable horrors return. It’s up to two clairvoyant MI6 agents—former American Rick and Ricki, of Chinese descent—to discover the pirate’s identity and stop her crimes. The couple (who are also engaged), develop a complex con to capture Lai and get a stolen microfilm back. They enlist some of their other equally gifted friends to help. Using both their paranormal and sleuthing skills, they enter a world of danger, violence, and intrigue and are determined to succeed in their mission. Even with the team’s combined powers, Rick and Ricki are not sure it’s enough to outwit the vicious pirate and avoid a merciless curse.
Downey’s vibrant characters, tension-ridden plot, and chilling scenes create drama on the high seas. The banter between Rick and Ricki is entertaining and the action, memorable. The book has plenty of fantasy, action, and mystery.
Although it took me a while to get into it, Pirate Queen is well worth the read, but it is by no means lighthearted reading. The coarse tale requires a strong stomach and a huge imagination. --Rebecca Roberts, Historical Novels Review Online
Norm Goldman, Publisher & Editor Bookpleasures (5 Stars)
R. Allen Downey once again reminds his readers what an unexpected bombshell a book can turn out to be. In Pirate Queen: The Curse Downey uses all kinds of "goodies" such as pirates, British M16 secret agents possessing telekinetic powers, Jewish ghosts or dybbuks, a ghastly torture chamber used at the time of the Spanish Inquisition, ghouls, and voodoo curses. All of these and a host of other props stream together on the pages of this spellbinding novel to create a mesmerizing yarn that seems to live and breathe on its own. In fact, this is one work of fiction you won't just put down and forget about it once you have completed its reading for you will certainly want to hash it over with your friends.
The tale opens up in 1954 when an infamous pirate, Lai Choi San known as The Dragon Lady and her band of bloodcurdling pirates highjack a yacht on the South China Sea that was on its way from Macao to Taipei. Hidden on the yacht they find millions of dollars of gold bars that may have been stolen from the Bank of England in Singapore. What becomes even more intriguing is that the passengers of the yacht were apparently all diplomats of the Republic of China or the Nationalist Chinese Government on Formosa and one of them may be Chiang Kai-shek's top foreign minister who is seen clutching a locked briefcase. Lai's chief and sadistic enforcer, Captain Chen, informs her that the gentleman with the briefcase became very agitated and desperate when they tried to take him off the yacht without the briefcase claiming that it contained very important documents for Chiang that he had to personally deliver to him. In the next instance Chen grabs the briefcase from the diplomat and brings it to Lai who in turn forces it open with her dagger. After rummaging through the briefcase's contents she comes across a sealed envelope where she discovers a roll of microfilm containing some kind of a secret code. Chen is next ordered by Lai to use his capable persuasion to find out what is on the film. Unfortunately, the poor chap is brutally tortured and claims he doesn't know what is on the microfilm. He confesses to Lai that his mission was only to contact a courier in Macao who was to hand him an envelope and he was instructed to personally deliver the envelope to Chiang without opening it. All he knows is that the courier, code-named Julius came from Peking and crossed the border by sampan at Hong Kong. He then traveled by ferry to Macao. The diplomat and the courier met at a bar in New Lisbon.
Just to digress, the author informs us that there actually a woman known as Lai Choi San who during the 1920s to 1939 was the most well-known and feared pirate along the coastal waters of the South China Sea. As Downey states, "She was both ruthless and elusive. Her reputation was based more on the results of her deeds rather than unreliable, and rare, first hand accounts." In 1939 our legendary lady pirate disappeared without a trace and Pirate Queen: The Curse is the author's speculation on what might have happened and her ultimate fate. Could this be a re-emergence of Lai Choi San?
Back in Hong Kong, the notorious British spy agency, M16 under the leadership of Sir Reginald Truscott-Smythe (Reggie) receives information of the hijacking and in no time summons to his office two of his top agents, an American ex-sailor, Rick Reilly (alias Rick Blaine) and his girl friend and part-time actress Loo Tao-hua (alias Ricki Loo) both of whom possess supernatural powers.
Ordinarily the hijacking would not be a matter for M16, however, Reggie tells his two agents that apart from the gold that was stolen, he had learned from one of his Singapore agents that a spy had infiltrated the highest level of the Peking government and stole a top secret file that would be damaging to their future war plans, defense, and security, not to mention their already murky international reputation. As we are to discover, the file known as the Mao File turns out to be of outmost significance. The task assigned to Rick and Ricki is to find the legendary Lai Choi San and retrieve this file no matter what it takes and how much it costs. To help them resolve the mystery, the two agents are given the code words Red Garter that will assure them of the full co-operation within M16 and the British Navy.
To find Lai and retrieve the Mao microfilm, the two agents waste no time in assembling a very competent team including Reggie's wife, a former M16 agent, who comes out of retirement. However, they also realize what a daunting task they have for they don't have a clue as to where Lai is hiding, whether she has discovered what she has in her possession and when she does discover the importance of her booty, how soon she will peddle it to the Reds or the highest bidder.
With relative restraint, Downey dabbles in the use of curses and ghosts and by the time these visitors make their appearance, they are but one more possibility for the mystery in a lodge full of the unanticipated. There are also other threads that create suspense. Can the rag tag team smoothly work together to pull off an unbelievable scam that will trap Lai and prevent a catastrophe from happening?
After reading Pirate Queen: The Curse you will have to concur that this is a superior and well-crafted piece of fiction with a great deal of imagination, vibrant characters, plenty of tension and more than enough of ghoulish scenes. Moreover, it is one of those novels that take over as you read it, occupying your daydreams, forcing its claws into your brain and beckoning you back to the page. -- Norm Goldman, Publisher & Editor Bookpleasures
If you have any questions or wish to pass on comments or feedback, contact the author at skyfyre6@hotmail.com.
