The Fortunes of Captain Blood

Yet more thrilling adventures of the bold and bolshy Captain Blood

An avenging angel, his oppressor's worst nightmare, the modern avatar of the Count of Monte Cristo. In the wake of Sabatini's dashing buccaneer come C.S. Forester and Patrick O'Brian, but also James Bond and Dick Francis

Captain Blood is a Dick Turpin of the High Seas, a seafaring version of The Scarlet Pimpernel, a Caribbean Zorro

from the introduction to the Vintage edition of 'Captain Blood'

I liked the idea that the hero was also the villain. He was a pirate with a conscience and that idea was to be very strong in my books

Rafael Sabatini was born in Jesi, Italy in 1875 to an English mother and Italian father, both renowned opera singers. At a young age, Rafael travelled frequently, and could speak six languages fluently by the age of seventeen. After a brief stint in the business world, Sabatini turned to writing. He worked prolifically, writing short stories in the 1890s, with his first novel published in 1902. Scaramouche was published in 1921 to widespread acclaim, and was soon followed by the equally successful Captain Blood and The Sea Hawk. He died on February 13, 1950 in Switzerland.

Ready of wit and skilled of blade, the elegant surgeon-buccaneer Captain Blood is ever a jump ahead of his foes. Time and again, he falls headlong into deep peril, and his own motley crew are happy to sail to hell and back at his command. Yet when everything is stacked against him, can he keep his honour until the bitter end?

Raphael Sabatini

Mr. Sabatini is both a wonderfully fertile creator of exciting fiction and a stylist of distinction

One-time doctor and fugitive from the Monmouth rebellion, Peter Blood escaped from slavery to become the terror of the Caribbean. Winning invaluable treasures, rescuing his crew from almost certain death and saving an English settlement are all in a day's work for fiction's boldest adventurer.

The Chronicles of Captain Blood

About us

About Us (Header 4)

Kate-Atkinson

James-Baldwin

Marian-Keyes

haruki-murakami-320×320-1

Richard-Osman

Malorie Blackman

Lisa-Jewell

Charlie-Mackesy

Authors (Header 3)

Children&#039;s

Company

Discover

Fiction

Non-fiction

Penguin Classics

Penguin Shop (Header 5)

Useful links

Work with us

prhuk-authors

Penguin Shop: 3 Clothbound Classics for £33

Raphael Sabatini

Praise for The Chronicles of Captain Blood

Mr. Sabatini is both a wonderfully fertile creator of exciting fiction and a stylist of distinction

Books by Raphael Sabatini

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter