The King's Buccaneer

Infobox Book |
name = The King's Buccaneer
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption = "The King's Buccaneer" first edition cover.
author = Raymond E. Feist
illustrator =
cover_artist = Don Maitz
country = United States
language = English
series = "Krondor's Sons"
subject =
genre = Fantasy novel
publisher = Doubleday
pub_date = October 18, 1992
english_pub_date =
media_type = Print (Hardback & Paperback)
pages = 465 pp "(first edition)"
isbn = ISBN 0385236255
oclc =
preceded_by = Prince of the Blood
followed_by =

"The King's Buccaneer" is a fantasy novel by Raymond E. Feist. It is the second book of the "Krondor's Sons" series and was published in 1992. It was preceded by "Prince of the Blood" which was published in 1989.

Plot introduction

Nicholas, third son of Prince Arutha of Krondor and his squire Harry are sent north to Crydee to learn more about life outside the palace walls.

Not long after their arrival in Crydee it is attacked by unknown forces. The castle is ruined, people slaughtered and two noblewomen have been abducted. Soon they discover that the invaders have come from the Sunset Islands, a stronghold of cut-throats and have gathered to make war on the Kingdom of the Isles. But this is more than simple raids with the cut-throuts serving a dark force threatening to end the entire world of Midkemia, something which Nicholas must confront.

Plot summary

Nicholas, as third son, was third in the line of succession. However, due to his gentle nature and his deformity, an underdeveloped left foot, his father, Prince Arutha, decided that Nicholas would benefit from a rougher lifestyle than he was used to in Krondor. Arutha sent Nicholas to stay with Martin, Duke of Crydee, Warden of the West, and brother to Arutha and King Lyam. Nicholas is to learn what it means to not be the son of the Prince of Krondor, and Arutha deems that Crydee, though twice the size of when he was a prince in the keep there, is rough enough living to make Nicholas learn to think for himself. Nicholas is accompanied by his faithful squire Harry on the Royal Eagle, captained by Admiral Amos Trask to the small town of Crydee. However, about a month, the towns of Crydee, Carse, and Tulan are attacked by pirates, Tsuranni mercenaries, and Durbin slavers. All three towns are destroyed. After the attack and kidnapping of Margaret, daughter of Martin, Abigail, daughter of the Baron of Carse, and many others, Nicholas, Trask, and Harry are accompanied by Marcus, the son of Martin, Calis, son of Tomas and elf queen Aglaranna, the magicians Nakor and Anthony, and Ghuda the mercenary to the island city of Freeport, where Nicholas kills his first man, a pirate named Render. Through the death of Render, and with the help of a girl thief named Brisa, they learn that the captives were taken on a giant ship to the southwest.

The crew of the Royal Eagle, now named the Raptor, follows the captives across the Endless Sea with the help of Anthony, who can sense the whereabouts of Margaret. After about two months at sea, they spot the slave ship, and through magic, are first becalmed, and then sunk. The survivors wash up on the shore of the continent of Novindus.

The crew first must find a way up the cliffs that surround the northeastern edge of Novindus. After a few days, Calis, Marcus, and Nicholas are able to climb the cliffs. At the top is an oasis, and the last water to be seen for miles. After some deliberation, Nicholas decides to head southeast.

After crossing the Hotlands, Nicholas and company stumble upon a plot that appears to attempt to overthrow the Overlord of the City of the Serpent River. However, it turns out that the Overlord is a pawn of the wizard Dahakon and the Lady Clovis, who in turn take their orders from the Pantathian Serpent Priests. After some time, Nicholas makes contact with the clans of the City, Calis learns of the whereabouts of the prisoners, and Nakor discovers the truth of the Overlord, Dahakon, and Lady Clovis.

Anthony makes a discovery in the compound where the prisoners were held: the Pantathians had devised a magic plague that would kill over half of the people in the Kingdom in an effort to reach the Lifestone below Sethanon. The plague would be spread by copies of the prisoners taken from the Far Coast. The prisoners were freed, an exact copy of the Raptor was captured, and the journey home began.

In the Bitter Sea, the sister ship to the Royal Eagle, the Royal Gull, was overtaken and sunk. The Gull had copies of prisoners still aboard. After the sinking of the Gull, a bireme driven by the wizard Dahakon appeared, and Anthony summoned the magician Pug and the dragon Rianna to deal with the evil necromancer.

Publication history

Since its release Prince of the Blood has been published in over 15 countries. cite web | url = http://www.crydee.com/raymond-feist/publication-information | title = Publication info | publisher = Crydee.com | date = | accessdate = 2008-03-12]

Note: Australia, New Zealand and South Africa have the same release dates as the UK.

*1992, USA, Doubleday ISBN 0385236255, Pub date November 1992, Hardback
*1992, USA, Bantam ISBN 0553563734, Pub date January 1994, Paperback

*1992, UK, HarperCollins ISBN 0246133287 Pub date December 1992, Hardback
*1992, UK, Grafton ISBN 0246133295 Pub date June 1993, Trade paperback
*1993, UK, HarperCollins ISBN 0586203222 Pub date December 13, 1993, Paperback

*1995, DEU, Goldman Wilhelm ISBN 3442246512 Pub date October 1995, Paperback
*1996, JPN, Hayakawa ISBN 415020215X Pub date January 31, 1996, Paperback (Part 1)
*1996, JPN, Hayakawa ISBN 4150202168 Pub date January 31, 1996, Paperback (Part 2)
*1998, CZE, Poutnik ISBN 8086129179 Pub date 1998, Paperback
*1998, POL, Zysk i S-ka Wydawnictwo sc ISBN 8371505019 Pub date 1998, Trade paperback
*1998, RUS, Azbuka ISBN 576840564X Pub date 1998, Hardback
*1999, HUN, Beholder ISBN 9639047419 Pub date 1999, Paperback
*1999, NLD, J.M. Meulenhoff ISBN 9029068299 Pub date 1999, Hardback
*1999, NLD, Meulenhoff M ISBN 9029059168 Pub date April, 1999, Trade paperback
*2003, CHN, ISBN 9867531175 Pub date February 4, 2003, Paperback (Part 1)
*2003, CHN, ISBN 9867531167 Pub date February 4, 2003, Paperback (Part 2)
*2003, FRA, Bragelonne Pub date November 26 2003, Paperback
*2005, TUR, Ithaki Yayinlari ISBN 9752731422 Pub date 2005, Paperback
*2006, SWE, Wahlstroms Fantasy ISBN 9132332173 Pub date May 9, 2006, Hardback
*2007, SWE, Wahlstroms Fantasy ISBN 9132436017 Pub date March 9, 2007, Paperback
*BGR, ISBN 9545851546, "Krondors Sons" omnibus

References