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​book reviews

PLUNDERING THE PAST                                             A Tide of Times Novel                                               By Robert A. Tayler

8/30/2019

18 Comments

 
Debut author, Robert A. Tayler, introduces us to his first volume in the “A Tide of Times” series:
MR. PETRIE, HAVE YOU EVER BEEN A PIRATE?


Before December 2, 2002, Roger Petrie would have laughed off such a question as absurd. Although he and his older brother Tom were sea-faring men, their experiences in the Navy and Merchant Marine were a far cry from the stuff of pirate legends.

That was before their cargo ship MV Belvedere floundered during a violent eastern Caribbean storm that fateful winter night. Before they woke up the following morning and a ship commanded by a bloodthirsty rogue that had no business being there, in that time, appeared and changed their lives forever. The brothers had to rely on their twenty-first century wits and technology to escape death, both at the hands of their new, sadistic captain and crewmates and the governmental authorities' intent on their destruction.

To their friends and family, the brothers had been lost at sea, the Belvedere disappeared without a trace. People were shocked when, through a bizarre set of circumstances, the brothers were found and rescued from an uncharted island, close to where the Belvedere had disappeared two years prior. Not wanting to recount what had happened to them in those lost years, the brothers returned home. Roger resolved to forget the past and build a normal life, marrying Rebekah, moving to Sarasota, FL, and raising two children. Tom moved to Sarasota as well, to be near Roger's family, and to start a new chapter in their lives.

The past proved more difficult to ignore than Roger imagined. His new wife and her friends were mystified as evidence—ancient weapons, valuable coins, names of ships and captains long since vanished—keeps surfacing. As the evidence mounts, Rebekah is left to wonder; did something unbelievable happen to her husband and his brother after their ship was lost?

And can Roger deflect her suspicions without destroying his family and driving himself insane?


Picture
I dreamed of being a pirate when I was a young boy, also a cowboy, fighter pilot and an astronaut. Reading this book was a little like returning to that dream, but not nearly as romantic and far more deadly.
Stories about time travel are some of my favorite and this story exemplifies that category so well!
I love the tension of revealing the truth to his wife and friends that Roger is slowly floundering in. The question of what people will think is a biggie. The author plays that song so well. I enjoyed reading this story so much. It’s quite well written, the dialogue shines, the scene-setting is delightful and the action is vigorous without being too detailed. The balance was perfect for me.
I award 4.8 stars to “Plundering the Past”. 
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You can buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Plundering-Past-Tide-Times-1-ebook 
https://www.goodreads.com/-plundering-the-past 
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/plundering-the-past-robert-a-tayler 
 
You can follow the author:
twitter.com/robertatayler17 
https://robertataylerauthor.com 
facebook.com/robertataylerauthor 
https://www.instagram.com/robertatayler 
mail to: [email protected] 
 
Tags: sea adventures, historical fiction, time travel, Caribbean, Florida, pirate, sailing
 
Copyright © 2023 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction 
18 Comments
Robert A Tayler link
4/11/2023 12:32:16 pm

I have used an editor and editing software in the past, but Mark is the best. His comments are always pertinent, and I have some new projects that I'll use him for. It always pays to have a professional proofread your work, and Mark is unparalleled.

Reply
Mark
4/11/2023 01:42:14 pm

Thank you, Robert. I appreciate the nice things you said about me. You are quite correct, it does pay to have a manuscript proofread when an author thinks it is ready for publishing. A good proofreader will find lots of things that no spellchecker can measure up to. As complicated as the English language is I am not worried about AI taking my job anytime soon. The fact that many tens of thousands of books have been read by artificial intelligence includes all of the errors in those books. I read 40 to 60 published books a year and they have spelling and punctuation errors in them. Except once a year I find a book without spelling errors. That average has held for over 8 years now.

First question.

Please, tell us more about yourself. Perhaps something a little bit beyond your bio.

Reply
Robert A Tayler link
4/12/2023 03:15:29 pm

My background is actually in business, which is what my degree is in, but I also have minors in Political Science and History. I have a fairly vivid imagination and have always loved telling stories - in the third grade, I told my class that my dad was fighting in Vietnam but came home on weekends. I was bitten by a friend's dog when I was six, but told my friehds I had been injured by a lion while on safari. So storytelling has been a part of my life since the beginning.

Reply
Mark
4/12/2023 03:31:32 pm

A business degree can be very handy regardless of what else you do. I wish every independent author had a degree in business because they are in business though many fight against the idea. Truly, the book is merely a product for the business to produce and sell.

New question.

Where did the inspiration for this story come from?

Reply
Robert A Tayler link
4/12/2023 05:35:14 pm

The genesis of Plundering the Past is quite comical. Our family visited Disney World in 2017, and one of our favorite rides is Pirates of the Caribbean (which shows up in the book, incidentally.). There was a shop by it called the Pirate League, where makeup artists could paint your face to resemble a pirate, zombie, or mermaid. My wife surprised my children by signing them up for this, and my daughter was so excited at the prospect other artists came into the lobby just to see her reaction.
Well, the idea percolated in my mind that it would be fun to write a pirate story involving our family as a Christmas present to her. The story was originally called Raise the Jolly Roger, and I used our real names, which ended up freaking her out a little bit. So, I started reworking the story with fictional names, and it kept growing until a full-length novel was born. It was so large, in fact, that I split it into two parts, the first of which was Plundering the Past. I am currently working on the sequel, which is titled The Penitent Pirate. I hope to have it ready to publish this summer.

Reply
Mark
4/12/2023 06:41:11 pm

We live a few minutes away from Disney World in Orlando. It is one of our favorite rides.

That is a cute story. I love it.

New question.

Does your work have any influence on your writing?

Reply
Robert A Tayler link
4/13/2023 08:57:32 am

Not really. I retired on Social Security Disability last year, and before that I worked in the transportation industry for thirty years. My writing is more informed by experiences I've had outside of work, and people I've known or come into contact with.

Reply
Mark
4/13/2023 09:03:55 am

That makes sense. Writers draw upon their life experiences whether big or small, important or minor. Everything becomes grist for the mill. Inspiration can come from almost anywhere.

New question.

How many drafts did your book go through before publishing?

Reply
Robert A Tayler link
4/13/2023 09:22:52 am

A lot!
I first published the raw eBook on Draft2Digital back in 2019, with a very unpolished manuscript and cover. In 2020, I revised the manuscript and had a more professional cover developed, which I published myself on Amazon. It was a far better book, but readers did not like the ending.
Then, in 2021, I painstakingly ran the manuscript through Grammarly, moved some text around, rewrote the ending, and published the book again, this time with Booklocker.com, who also produced a new, professional cover. This new edition is the one currently available on Amazon and other retailers like Kobo, iBooks, Google Play, and Barnes & Noble.

So, Plundering the Past had five drafts and three different publishing launches, mainly due to my impatience and inexperience with the market.

Reply
Mark
4/13/2023 10:04:12 am

A lot of authors want to get their book out there as soon as possible. Your impatience is very understandable. You have also learned a great deal about writing and publishing so your next book will be better and the one after that more so.

Keep in mind that as good as Grammarly is it is no substitute for a good proofreader. Even with the AI assistance, it still falls short because the English language is so convoluted.

I think you are very smart going wide, beyond Amazon, with your books. It's never wise to put all of your eggs into one basket.

New questions.

Is there anything unconventional about your writing technique? Why is that?

How has writing changed your life?

Reply
Robert A Tayler link
4/14/2023 10:37:08 am

I'm not sure there's anything unconventional about my technique. I tend to word vomit then go back and edit what I've written. I know some authors just write until their first draft is done and then start editing, but I do it on the fly. I do tend to get ideas when I'm doing unconventional things like taking a shower; I'll shout at my phone to text myself the ideas so I remember them.

During the summer, I take my laptop onto my back deck and write for hours at a time. In the winter, I stay up late after my wife goes to bed. I think it's very important to establish a few areas where you feel comfortable writing; otherwise, it will seem more like a chore, and productivity will probably suffer.

How has writing changed my life? Well, my life changed in 2015 when I was diagnosed with cancer, so writing has been a cathartic release for me to think about other things for a while. Doing research and imagining plot lines and twists helps to keep my mind sharp and focused, and it is a thrill to see a project through to fruition. I used to be the sort of person who started things but never finished them, but this season of life has changed me in that I now can keep motivated to get stories done. I am gratified when readers enjoy my work, it's a real inspiration for me to keep going.

Reply
Mark
4/14/2023 11:30:41 am

Your style of writing sounds quite conventional. It works for you and a lot of other writers.

I agree that having more than one place to write in is useful.

A cancer diagnosis can completely change a person's perspective on many things. Writing and publishing can be very satisfying. Having a reason to continue and work is vital to coping and recovery.

New question.

Was it hard to come up with the title? What was the process?

Reply
Robert A Tayler link
4/14/2023 11:05:48 pm

About the title. As I stated earlier, it began as Raise the Jolly Roger, but that kind of left me cold. In talking with other authors, many of them suggested using strong, descriptive words in the title. Since my book involved pirates, Plundering seemed a natural fit. And the nature of Roger and Tom’s adventures led to the Past. Thus, Plundering the Past was born.

Reply
Mark
4/15/2023 08:12:31 am

Those authors gave you good advice.

We hear the adage, 'don't judge a book by its cover' many times in our life. I think it applies well to everything except books. A gripping cover and a snappy title are what draw a potential reader to at least read the blurb before they buy the book. The title and the cover are very important and equally so in my mind.

New questions.

Were the character names difficult to develop?

How did you choose them?

Reply
Robert A Tayler link
4/15/2023 03:51:12 pm

I know some authors really struggle with character names, but that's one thing that came easily to me. Some are an amalgamation of names I know, and some I made up, like Benjamin Craven. I chose names that I thought sounded good saying them out loud; readers I've talked to say they won't read or finish books that have names they can't readily pronounce. I've taken that advice to heart.

So, while my character names may not be the most exotic around, they work for me and fit the story. Plus, they're easier to spell lol.

Reply
Mark
4/15/2023 04:08:10 pm

I understand the comment about unpronounceable names. I have struggled with strange names in the past.

Some authors do struggle with names particularly authors who write historical fiction. Fortunately for those authors there are websites devoted to names from different countries and different eras. Those authors are able to find names that will be authentic for the period they are writing in.

New question.

Have you written other books?

Reply
Robert A Tayler link
4/15/2023 11:54:01 pm

Yes, I have one other book published called The Spartan Initiative, which is also historical fiction. Other projects I'm working on are sequels to Plundering the Past and The Spartan Initiative as well as additional books in each series, a children's book, and some unrelated projects.

Reply
Mark
4/20/2023 09:29:39 am

Historical fiction is my third favorite genre after science fiction and fantasy. The Spartan Initiative sounds very interesting.

Children's books can be quite different in many ways from other forms of fiction. I think that shows versatility as a writer.

Robert, I want to thank you for being a fabulous guest on the Word Refiner channel. I loved your book and am anxious for the sequel.
I have another promotion so this one must come to an end. Until next time, keep on writing.

Reply



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"I'm very pleased with all your efforts. Twitter promotion and proofreading were beyond what I expected with a book review. Your suggestions throughout the process of refining both books helped me immensely. I look forward to working with you again."   A.E.H Veenman “Dial QR for Murder” and “Prepped for the Kill”