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A virtual talk with Vanessa Riley
VIRTUAL | After the event date, watch the talk any time through Library Speakers Consortium
Vanessa Riley discusses her newest book, Fire Sword and Sea, based on the folk story of the female pirate Jacquotte Delahaye, born mixed-race to a wealthy tavern in Tortuga. Jacquotte dreams of joining the seafarers and smugglers whose tall-masted ships cluster in the turquoise waters. In Haiti she becomes Jacques and for the next twenty years raids the Caribbean, making enemies and amassing a fortune in stolen gold. When her fellow pirates decide to increase their profits by entering the slave trade, Jacquotte turns away from piracy and the pursuit of riches. Risking her life in one deadly skirmish after another, she instead begins to plot a war of liberation.
Vanessa Riley is an award-winning author and proud recipient of the 2024 Georgia Mystery/Detective Fiction Author of the Year. She writes Sagas and Book Club Fiction that brings to life the hidden narratives of Black women and women of color in novels like Island Queen and Queen of Exiles. Her stories celebrate strong sisterhoods, diverse communities, and resilience across historical fiction, romance, and mystery genres.
Explore Vanessa Riley in our collection
This live, virtual event is presented by BPL's digital resource, Library Speakers Consortium, which curates virtual presentations with top authors from around the world.
Register to attend this virtual talk live and submit questions in advance for the author.
