THE EMERALD STORM

Nineteenth-century swashbuckler Ethan Gage, now married with a child, finds himself neck-deep in danger in the Caribbean as he searches for Montezuma's treasure. Performed with gusto and good-natured insouciance by John Pruden, characters are exactly right: larger than life and sizzling with passion. But for all his bawdy behavior and lustful longings, Gage is a technological conservative. Pruden makes Gage's scorn palpable whenever a new invention is mentioned. (He dismisses air travel as improbable—even after a hair-raising escape in a glider.) Gage switches allegiances as needed, alternately working for British agents, French criminals, and greedy Americans, AND assisting a black slave revolt. Pruden's stellar performance and Gage's offhand references to previous spine-tingling escapades will have new fans scrambling to find the earlier books in the series. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2012]