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How does a girl become a pirate? Infamous 18 th -century pirate Mary Read tells the story of her childhood in this compelling novel by award-winning author Ros Barber. At the gallows in Port Royal, Jamaica, the crew of Calico Jack is about to be hanged. One of them holds a secret that will delay her execution. But how did she get there? Twenty-five years earlier in Devon, England, a child known as ‘Tyke’ is plotting with her eight-year-old brother to kill the Dutch sailor who raped their mother. When the plan goes wrong, Tyke is knocked unconscious, and her brother disappears. In London, disguised as a boy, she soon discovers deceit is her only path to freedom. The origin story of Mary Read
is the powerful tale of one girl’s quest for independence.

About the author
Winner of the Desmond Elliott Prize and the Author’s Club Best First Novel Award, Ros Barber has been a computer programmer, a waitress, a nightclub bookkeeper, and a beekeeper. The mother of four fully-grown humans, she enjoys carpentry, power-tools, and open-top sports cars. She is a Director of Research at the Shakespearean Authorship Trust and Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Goldsmiths, University of London. Born in Washington D.C., she lives in Brighton, England.

Praise for The Marlowe Papers
“Themes of identity and self-esteem, of truth and loyalty, give substance to Barber’s enthralling plot in a work that combines historical erudition with a sharply satisfying read.” – The Independent
“This is a remarkable book.” – New York Times

Praise for Devotion
“Intelligent, poetic writing … Barber weaves together the struggles of these complex characters with taut, high-stakes encounters in episodic chapters, making this a pacy novel in spite of the weighty subject matter.” – TLS
“Compelling… a novel so animated with fascinating, troubling ideas.” – Guardian