Justin Taylor has dreamed of adventure on the high seas ever since he was a youngster. Now eighteen, he has fled an unhappy home to stow away on a beautiful ship – a pirate ship, even though he doesn’t initially know that. Once discovered, he is dragged in front of the captain and eventually put to work as the lowliest member of the crew. Justin has a fresh-faced beauty and innocence that captures the attention and lust of the crewmembers, who are a rough and dirty lot. To keep the young man safe from molestation, the captain keeps Justin close, and being young and naďve Justin falls headlong in love, worshipping the man like a god.

Captain Richard Cornell Jones is on the last campaign of his career as a pirate. He yearns for a wife and sons and has a woman waiting for him back at home. Although he gives in to Justin’s adoration and takes the boy as a lover, Richard has every intention of settling down in a few months and never looking back at either the sea or his young lover.

As the ship and her crew sail in search of rich ships full of booty, Justin wins the affection of the crew. That is well and good, but the only person he really wants is just out of his grasp. Justin knows he can have his captain’s affection and his body, but he will never have the man’s entire heart.

G. A. Hauser’s novel Pirates is a tale of love, lust, and danger on the high seas. This is a very enjoyable and smoothly written story populated by a score of extremely colorful characters, and it will sweep the reader right onto the deck of an eighteenth century pirate corvette sloop.

This story does not romanticize pirates. No pretty Johnny Depp types, they are filthy, diseased, and missing limbs and teeth. They are hardened criminals, “no quarter given” bandits who are willing and even eager to kill in cold blood. At first, I had a hard time accepting that the hero of this story would be such a criminal, but Ms. Hauser is able to pull it off and to make Richard a likeable fellow regardless. Justin is too sweet and clueless to ever be mistaken for an outlaw.

I have not researched pirates myself, so I don’t know if the way they speak in this story is realistic, but it is indeed very “pirate.” It may feel a little stereotypical in an “arrrgh matey, avast there me hearty” way, but it is quite effective in generating atmosphere. Pirates is a dark tale with an air of despair that runs through the narration. Yet for all the gloomy atmosphere, there are occasional bursts of humor that are very typical of Ms. Hauser’s writing. These are very welcome and keep the tale from being overly depressing.

Pirates is a little different from what we usually expect from Ms. Hauser. However, it is still quite well done and entertaining.

Reviewed by: Whitney