Welcome to the Golden Age of piracy, where daring devils sail the Caribbean, waging war against fat merchants, corrupt officers, and the whole strictures of European society. Where renegades like Phil Davies and Edward Teach (AKA Blackbeard) rule the waves, combining brutal combat skills with a sorcerers edge in the quest for immortality and ultimate power!

Wait, give me that last bit again? This is Tim Powers, so the world is recognizably our own, with the twist that magic works and is real. In this case, former puppeteer John Chandagnac is on his way to Haiti to reclaim a plantation from his evil uncle, when his ship is captured by pirates and he is given the choice of joining up or dying. It turns out that one of the Chandagnac's fellow passengers, Hurwood, orchestrated the whole thing in an effort to bring his wife back from the dead and put her in the body of his daughter, and he's teamed up with Blackbeard (the most powerful white sorcerer in the Caribbean) to do it.

What follows is a rousing picaresque through the Caribbean, to the Fountain of Youth and back, where Chandagnac learns how to fight and sail and sorcerer, as he defeats increasingly powerful bad guys to get the girl and save the day. It's a quick and fun light entertainment, and while I wish Beth Hurwood had a little more agency, this book is eminently enjoyable.