Dudley Pope’s Buccaneer shows promise on the surface, but doesn’t really deliver as a novel. Set in the 17th century, it tells the story of a royalist plantation owner in Barbados who finds that he will have to flee the island or face the Roundheads whose fleet is coming over from England to subdue the Caribbean settlements. The protagonist, Ned Yorke, snatches his neighbour’s wife and makes his escape only to find that it is not so easy to decide what to do afterwards.
Although the novel is set in my favourite era (c. 17th century) I got my hands on this book mainly because of the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie that was "suggested" by this book. Admittedly, I was intrigued when I learned that "On Stranger Tides" also likely inspired the "The Secret of Monkey Island" and other Monkey Island adventure games in the 1990's, which, in turn, inspired the original Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Quite a circuitous path of inspiration and influence, if you ask me, but the important thing is that they are all stories about pirates mixed with a bit of magic and voodoo.
Thomas Hoover’s Caribbee is a historical fiction novel set mainly in 1640’s Barbados. It presents an in-depth look at the island’s society, the introduction of sugar industry and the move away from indentured servants to slavery. There are many characters from different layers of society, including two strong female characters and the aim is clearly to show the reader what life in the Caribbean was like in the early 17th century.