There hasn’t been a better-timed book signing than Jack Scott’s.
For the author of seafaring and piracy novel Cayman Cross will be at Books & Books on Tuesday, 15 November – smack bang in the middle of Pirates Week.
The swashbuckling adventure is based on the real-life journey of the Cuban trading schooner, Juana Mercedes, in October, 1922. That adventure was full of treachery, bloodshed and deckhands unwittingly at the centre of the intrigue.
“I grew up the son of a sea captain in a long line of Caymanian sea captains,” says Jack.
“So my youth was steeped in great old stories and legends of seafaring and adventure on the sea. As a young man, I went to sea myself and sailing has been an avocation my whole life.
“One day a number of years ago I was reading a Cayman Islands history book and happened upon just a few lines about “the last piracy” in the Cayman Islands. Right then and there I knew I had to research the incident and write about it – the story was just that captivating. Countless hours of historical research and a fair dash of imagination later, the Cayman Cross piracy turned into an historical novel. It became my personal contribution to my Cayman heritage.”
Family line
Jack is the first-born American son in a long line of Caymanians, and his family line dates back several centuries in the Sister Islands. His father was born on the Brac and his grandfather’s line Little Cayman, but before that it was Grand Cayman all the way.
“I grew up in northeast Florida and now reside with my wife and family in St. Augustine, but my wife and I and our family spend much time visiting the Cayman Islands. I love it there, and I think you’ll see that love reflected in my novel. I like to think that I still have Cayman salt in my blood,” reveals the author.
The book took four to five years to research with another three to complete the writing process. There were obvious difficulties in its research – many records were lost during various catastrophies but British and Jamaican archives plus the Cayman Islands National Archives’ excellent work helped Cayman Cross come to fruition. Jack says that yes, it is based on a true story.
“On October 30, 1922, the Cuban trading schooner Juana Mercedes left Cienfuegos, Cuba, with eight people on board. Two of these people were Caymanian sailors. When the ship reached her next stop, George Town, only three people were on board. As it turned out, this voyage of the Juana Mercedes involved a web of conspiracy, piracy and multiple murders off the Cayman Islands.
“From the arrival of the Juana Mercedes in George Town, my novel tracks the turmoil and intrigue surrounding the lives of the pirate-mutineers — two Caymanians and one Spaniard — who committed the crimes. The mystery and suspense of the story plays itself out over the following 15 years to a startling, last page conclusion,” Jack tells us.
New project
Next up – aside from the Grand Cayman homecoming – is another pirate-themed project set during the Prohibition era.
“Most people don’t know it (I didn’t), but piracy off the American coast was rampant during Prohibition. You could almost liken it to the modern day Mexican drug wars. Since liquor was illegal during Prohibition, smuggling and rumrunning became instantly popular occupations.
“At the same time, a lot of folks figured out that there were lots of ships full of liquor and money off our coasts that were ripe for picking. Even better, American law enforcement didn’t care if pirates were robbing and killing rumrunners – after all, the rumrunners were criminals too.”
Jack Scott will be at Books & Books from 7pm on Tuesday, 15 November. Free entry.
Related Videos
