By Force of Circumstance
Book three in The Chosen Man TrilogyLUDO DA PORTOVENERE, ONE TIME CORSAIR, SOMETIME MERCHANT, SECRET AGENT OF MONARCHS, SERVANT OF NONE.
"For sale: the English Crown Jewels"
Ludo da Portovenere, now a settled merchant is thrust back into his former profiteering ways when the Queen of England commissions him to sell priceless gems to raise money for the Royalist cause during the Civil War.
Will Ludo keep, or sell on the English Crown Jewels? There are many who would like to prevent him from doing either by removing him permanently from the stage.
Ludo plans to make a very significant profit - mostly for himself - but these plans are set awry when Alina, Baroness Metherall, becomes involved. Meanwhile, Marcos Alonso Almendro now a successful merchant in Plymouth is charged with acquiring the jewels to prevent them being sold at all. What none of them know is that the evil-minded Vatican agent Rogelio, who is pursuing a personal vendetta against Ludo, has been commissioned to acquire the very same jewels by the Vatican. Events move into perilous territory as it comes time for old scores to be settled, one way or the other.
Caught up in the violence of conflicts not of their own choosing,
Ludo, Alina and Marcos have to decide where their loyalties lie,
where they want to be, and ultimately, with whom.
Reviews
Richly detailed with a riveting story, 'By
Force of Circumstance' is a glittering tale of stolen jewels, broken
hearts, and an irresistible rogue. Once you enter Ludo da Portovenere's
world, you never want to leave.
Elizabeth St John, author of The Lydiard Chronicles.
'By Force of Circumstance', Book III of The Chosen Man Trilogy, takes us deeper into the world of Ludo Da Portovenere, who is best described as a cocktail of corsair, merchant, secret agent of both monarchies and the church, and servant to no one. Ludo, as he is called, is tasked by the Queen of England to sell the Crown jewels to raise money for the Royalist cause during the Civil War. A task which seems easy enough, but Ludo soon discovers that others have different plans for the treasure he carries, and the blood trail ensues. Moreover, Rogelio - an agent of the Vatican with a mission to destroy Ludo and everything he loves, picks up on his trail. This is a beautiful piece of writing, both intelligent and colorful, as are the other two books in this series. J.G. Harlond has mastered capturing 17th century Europe with such historical lucidity, that we are not only captivated by a story of intrigue, skullduggery, murder and romance, but also find ourselves cast back in time when monarchies vied for power, wars waged between empires, and the Vatican played both sides like pawns in their sordid game. No spoilers, but we hope to see Ludo Da Portovenere back again. Highly recommended read. - International Writers Inspiring Change
The novel is published by Penmore Press Ltd.