The Black Gold Corsair

Nigeria, pirates, jihad and oil

(Federico Supervielle Bergés)

«The privateers of black gold» is the second installment of the adventures of the Albatros, of the Lieutenant of the Spanish Navy Federico Supervielle Bergés, who has self-published a book that will undoubtedly surpass the previous one in success, which is no small thing.

On this occasion, the book begins in a very intelligent way, reintroducing the main protagonists of the first novel, which is titled "The Albatros and Galguduud's nonsense and it does so without boring, without seeming like a forced introduction and allowing those who have not read the first book to read this one without problems. Thus, for example, when reviewing the state of the ship, which has been moored in port for some time, it almost inadvertently allows laymen to become familiar with its layout and equipment, which many will appreciate.

Once again Pablo, Gabi, Paco and the rest of the group, with some casualties that as a Basque I regret, but also with some interesting additions, are required by the Swiss magnate owner of Alps Tankers to provide security for his ships and, incidentally, live a few adventures this time in the Gulf of Guinea, more specifically on the coast of Nigeria.

Naturally, after some time relaxing, enjoying the gains from their first sailing, the team's situation has changed. Some have personal problems, others have started new stages and the majority are dedicated to enjoying life while missing the action. Pablo and Gabi's first task will be, therefore, to once again assemble a team capable of handling a ship the size of a BAM and also carrying out all the tasks that may be entrusted to them and that always end up surprising the reader.

From there, the protagonists must face everything from boats to pirates and betrayals - this has been a success, once again - to jihadist attacks, which will lead to a series of battles that are narrated with the precision that only a naval officer is capable of offering. Naturally we will not reveal anything more about the plot out of respect for the reader, who must discover the unexpected twists of it for himself.

Without place to doubts «The privateer of black gold» It is a book that has advanced compared to the first, which was already a notable work in a genre of which we hardly have authors in Spain. The characters are more mature and deeper, the situations are even more dangerous and each fight is more even, with factors such as luck coming into play. In this way, more tension is achieved for the reader and also sows doubts about the fate of some characters, doubts that will not be cleared up until the last lines.

Of course, the book does not aspire to be a masterpiece of literature - although the author leaves some hints of his quality as a writer, by the way - but it is a sincere novel that aims to entertain, that seeks to make the reader fall in love with a type of life and characters and who wants more and gets it in spades.

In fact, we are already waiting for the third part, which will undoubtedly arrive and for which both Southeast Asia and especially the Caribbean coasts could be a great setting, designed almost on purpose for "our" Albatros...

As always, a book that you can -and should- acquire through the following link or by clicking on the cover image.