The Smuggler's Gambit
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4.2 • 267 Ratings
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Publisher Description
Port Beaufort, North Carolina - May 1765
Seventeen-year-old Adam Fletcher is no stranger to fist fights, but when he bloodies the nose of the obnoxious son of Port Beaufort's customs agent, the local magistrate offers Adam two choices: jail or an apprenticeship.
Choosing the latter, he soon finds himself bound apprentice to a reclusive old man with a secret, colorful past. Although Adam is less than thrilled about his new situation, when he is asked to spy on his master as a suspected smuggler, he has to decide where his loyalties lie. Will he perform his civic duty to the Crown, or will he do whatever is necessary to protect the old man, possibly putting even his own family in danger?
Secrets will be revealed, loyalties will be questioned, betrayals will be uncovered, and a young man's character will be put to the test in The Smuggler's Gambit.
The Smuggler's Gambit is the first book in the Adam Fletcher Adventure Series of historical fiction novels. If you like fast-moving adventures, impetuous young heroes, suspense-filled plots, and a dash of romance, then you'll love Sara Whitford's entertaining, family-friendly series!
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this historical coming-of-age novel, a 17-year-old boy becomes caught up in mercantile intrigue in coastal 18th-century North Carolina. After getting into one too many fights, Adam Fletcher is given a choice: find an apprenticeship or go to prison. Electing to serve with a shipping merchant, he signs on with the reclusive Emmanuel Rogers, who proves to be a hard but fair master. Nevertheless discontent, Adam speaks with Rogers's rival, the popular Richard Rasquelle, only to discover that Rasquelle wants him to spy on Rogers on suspicion of smuggling. A pawn caught between two powerful men, Adam must decide where his loyalties lie and what he's willing to do to keep out of trouble. First-time novelist Whitford delivers an enjoyable tale, though the dialogue occasionally comes off as stiff and the conversations repetitious. There's a wealth of detail about life in Colonial America, which sometimes threatens to overwhelm the flow of the narrative of this pleasant, low-key story. A sequel, Captured in the Caribbean, is also available. Ages 12 up. (BookLife)
Customer Reviews
Hooked
This book kept me entertained and wanting to read the other books in the series
Young Adult Read?
Simplistic language, didn’t pull me in, weak character development
Smugglers Gambit
A real page turner! Difficult to put down! Intriguing!