The Silver Oar Author:Howard Breslin The silver oar - the sight of it drained the blood from the cheek of the hardiest buccanneer. For it was behind such an oar that the condemned pirate was marched to his execution place. — And Cormac O'Shaugnessey Doyle was no exception, in spite of his Irish daring and reskless ways. It was the year of our Lord 1689, a year that will be long re... more »membered in New England's history, and Cormac sat in the dank Boston gaol with the fear of death upon him. The shining oar propped in the corner of his dungeon cell was a constant reminder that each tide drew him closer to the hour of his hanging.
From the moment he had been cast up by the sea upon the Long Island coast, Cormac had been branded as a pirate and Papist by the god-fearing Puritans who inhabited the shore. They were a stern folk, with little laughter in them, except for Jill Murdoch, a saucy wench with flame-colored hair that caught a man's eye and held a man's heart. Through romance and danger, she was by Cormac's side as he fled his relentless pursuers over land and by sea. With a wit and spirit that matched Cormac's own, she encountered the highwaymen, noble ladies, pirates, and King's men who barred the way.« less