Magellans Wake - Peter Hodges

Magellan’s Wake is a tale of intrigue, murder, and romance set against the glamour of London, Venice, Spain’s Andalusia Province and Rio de Janeiro. It brings together a cast of rich and influential suspects. Among them is the Italian financier, Canio Grassi, and his partner, fashion designer Gina Barcelli, computer entrepreneur Ron Hunter, and legendary catamaran sailor Emile Boisard. All of them are passionately involved in winning the longest and most challenging race in yachting history, THE MAGELLAN AROUND-THE-WORLD competition. Two pre-race incidents with deadly consequences reveal a ruthless determination of someone to kill or cripple potential rivals. Race Director of Operations, Nina de Recalde, and her ad hoc security consultant, Francis Bacon, are charged with untangling the mystery and warding off further attacks. As Nina and Bacon probe for answers, they soon find themselves targets as well. Several attempts on their lives come uncomfortably close to success. The murder of one of the boat owners nearly postpones the start, as the yachts set off on the first leg to Rio, battling a late season tropical storm. Waiting for the competitors to arrive at an elegant Brazilian resort, Nina and Bacon’s friendship turns into a love affair. Their romance is mirrored by another between an American skipper and a crewmember on the Italian entry, La Dolce Vita. Human malevolence and the violence of nature dog the race across the Pacific and through the Indian Ocean. The racers fend off the attack of modern pirates in the Spice Islands, and one of the leading competitors is lost off South Africa. Nina and Bacon finally come to believe they know who is behind the series of crimes. Their certainty is shaken when their chief suspect is found dead in Cape Town. A final act of sabotage destroys another of the ocean racers in the Atlantic on the way home to Spain. Who wins the race? And who are the villains? Hopefully the reader will be surprised by who finally captures the coveted Magellan trophy.