About the Book
Welcome to the world of Joshua Smoot-the bastard son of Treasure Island's John Flint. From the first page of John Flint's Bastard to the last, you will experience the full spectrum of love versus hate, loyalty versus betrayal, freedom versus slavery, and the extremes of mankind's goodness and evil toward one another.
The old pirate Captain John Flint-the evil benefactor of Savannah-finally spawns a manchild by one of his concubines. To fulfill the last wish of the lad's mother, Flint promises to raise Joshua as a gentleman rather than make him a pirate, and to accomplish this task, he delivers the eight-year-old lad to the Wakehurst Place Estate in southern England where Joshua's stubborn spirit forces him into an ultimatum that tests his will and eventually earns him two King's warrants for his head.
During his run from the King, Joshua meets and falls in love with Rebecca Keyes-a young girl with a stronger will than his own. Their rocky relationship culminates with Rebecca being forced to make a life-and-death decision that will affect Joshua's course for the rest of his life.
If you like fast-paced, white-knuckled, edge-of-seat pirate adventure novels, then take your seat at the literary dining table, pick up your knife and fork, and open to chapter one of this delicious banquet called John Flint's Bastard. And when you finish, you'll want to go back to that same bookseller and buy the second in the Of Chains and Slavery trilogy, Slavery and Revenge.
About the Author :
Commander Roger L Johnson was born in Los Angeles, California on January 29, 1944. At age nineteen, he was chosen for pilot trainingat the prestigious Naval Air Training Command where he graduated as the top student from his 57-man class. After three cruises to Vietnamaboard the aircraft carriers Ticonderoga, Enterprise, and Midway, Roger joined the fire service while remaining in the Naval Air Reserves. In 2001, he completed a 28-year career as a Crew Captain with Cal Fire at Klamath, California. Along with his extensive writing endeavors, Roger worked as a cartoonist for three separate magazine publishers. He is now known as the "Turtleman of Gig Harbor," having made and given away nearly a thousand turtles made from stones found on the beach. He and his wife Elizabeth live in Gig Harbor, Washington where he continues to write and create.
Review :
"Commander Johnson has given us an intriguing and fast-paced adventure pageturner that should be on every high schooler's required reading list; weaving together the warp of pre-revolution history with the woof of classic pirate fiction to fashion a master tapestry describing the complicated and brutal life of this new swashbuckling hero, Joshua Smoot. This novel cries out to become a major motion picture."
Doug Hawley, Owner of "Ye Landmark Collectibles" of Poulsbo, WA
"Master storyteller Roger Johnson takes us on an incredible adventure as we follow Joshua Smoot from his kidnapping from Savannah to his ultimate life as a pirate in search of
the legendary Treasure of Dead Man's Chest. "John Flint's Bastard" has it all; high adventure, treachery, honor, gasping emotion, white-knuckled drama, all wrapped in a suspenseful storyline that will not let you go. Well done, Commander Johnson!"
Robert Ceccarini, NYPD Detective Lieutenant
"An exciting adventure that transports you to another time and place. Well researched and explained. I look forward to reading more by Commander Johnson."
Joe Marek, Merrick's Privateers
"It was a genuine pleasure reading "John Flint's Bastard." It is an exciting blend of history and fiction during the end of the Age of Piracy and the beginning of the Age of Liberty.
Make room Blackbeard, Billy the Kid, and Captain Hook, because there's a new Swashbuckler named Joshua Smoot riding the high seas."
Wade John Taylor, editor, The Pamphlet
"If you love America, you will love "John Flint's Bastard, Slavery and Revenge," and the third book in this pirate adventure trilogy, "Treasure and Redemption." Commander Johnson
spins a compelling yarn that takes place just before the American founding, and introduces us to a new swashbuckler named Joshua Smoot. A true page-turner that I could not put
down. I look forward to part three."
Corey Millard, avid reader of pirate adventure
"A brilliantly painted canvas of the by-gone Golden Age of Piracy and the introduction of Joshua Smoot! Filled with intrigue, suspense, and both joyful and bitter raw emotion;
Commander Johnson weaves a tale of the destiny of souls that will stir the hearts of all that read their way into this epic story! I highly recommend the trilogy!"
Penny Caldwell, author, "The God of the Mountain."
"As a child, I read and re-read Treasure Island and have hungered all these decades to learn the ultimate destination of Long John Silver and the rest of that famous treasure. That hunger has now been satisfied in Commander Johnson's trilogy, "Of Chains and Slavery." Written in the classic style of Robert Louis Stevenson, this fast-moving pirate novel follows
the complicated life and adventures of John Flint's bastard-Joshua Smoot-from his kidnapping at Savannah, through his years as a slave, and finally to his quest for the Treasure of Dead Man's Chest. A must read for those who share my hunger."
Scott C. Kuesel, Wisconsin Maritime Historical Society
"How important is a man's identity, and what is he willing to sacrifice to keep it? These are the life-changing decisions young Joshua Smoot-the bastard son of the notorious
pirate John Flint-must make. Will his odyssey break him or will he find the courage, strength, and faith to survive and conquer the life he's been forced into? The "Of Chains and
Slavery" trilogy is a wild ride and a must read."
Michael Carver, Historical Interpreter and Reenactor
