Will Shakespeare and the Pirate's Fire

Harris has used real figures in this swashbuckling historical adventure which capitalises on the fact that little is known of Shakespeare’s early life. Young Will, nearly caught poaching, is found a safe haven by his father in a company of players. He meets Walter Raleigh and then Dr John Dee, both of whom are involved in the search for the North West Passage. Grace O’Malley, the Irish pirate queen, then appears and the four of them save Elizabeth I’s suitor, The Duc D’Anjou, from assassination.

The problem with this story is that too much is happening which stretches the reader’s credibility and the prose is at times quite purple. Although the author’s notes reveal he has some historical basis for the convoluted plot, less would have been better than more. One has to ask the question – why use a young Shakespeare, why not a fictitious boy who then encounters real figures from the past. There is a good feel for the period but the badly reproduced letters home are very difficult to read. The young Will is a spunky character and there are guided references pointing to his future career. This could have been a much better book.