East Indiaman Saga Books
When a man escapes alive, he has a chance to survive. In the unforgiving docklands of east London, young orphan William must do all he can to survive. Like the other ‘wharf rats’, his life of petty crime is not a choice; it’s a necessity. But William’s misdeeds won’t remain hidden for long. When the boy unknowingly steals from a murderous pirate captain, escape is his only option. He is forced to stow away and begin a life that will take him to the far side of the world; a life as a soldier of the East India Company. “The last thing I needed was to stay in London where a bloodthirsty pirate captain hunted me. I was pragmatic. I could start a new life at whatever port she docked. Who knew? If I did not know where I was going to land then how would those who wished me harm? This might be the chance I had been seeking. It had been forced upon me but I was beholden to no one… I needed no one.” Brimming with adventure and peril, East Indiaman is a story about self-discovery and a relentless pursuit of freedom. Through the use of evocative prose, Hosker immerses the reader into the seafaring world of the late 1700s where an opportunistic youth transforms from a hunted thief into an unexpected soldier. The enthralling first instalment in the best-selling East Indiaman series by Griff Hosker. Perfect for fans of Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe books, C.S Forester and Colin Falconer.
Although now hidden in a company of East India soldiers, Bill ‘Smudger’ Smith still harbours an intention to escape. These plans are put on hold however when his former life as a wharf rat comes back to haunt him. Bill is a skilled thief with a sharp talent for deception. When the Company needs one of their men to infiltrate the fortress of Seringapatam, it falls to Smudger to gather the necessary intel to take down Tipu Sultan, the Tiger of Mysore. Will he succeed in his mission? And what will it mean for his ultimate plans for freedom? Finding himself increasingly tied to his fellow soldiers, the Devil’s Dozen, will Bill be able to part from his new-found family? Or are his adventures with the East India Company destined to continue?