Books with author Gary L. Blackwood

Picking up where Around the World in Eighty Days left off, Harry Fogg, the son of Phileas Fogg, has just made a wager of his own. Harry bets that he can drive a steam-powered motorcar all the way around the world in only 100 days. Racing off with three companions, Harry undertakes a grueling journey that will pit him against flash fires, marauders, and even sabotage from within. In the tradition of the Jules Verne classic, this is one historical adventure that will have you racing to the finish!

Noted author Gary L. Blackwood grew up intrigued by crime fighters. In Bad Guys, the two-time Smithsonian Notable Book Award winner takes a look at the other side. A motley crew of villians, their chronicles are, indeed, fascinating. Yet, Blackwood goes far beyond storytelling. Placing the shenanigans of highwaymen, outlaws, swindlers, gangsters, and pirates against the backdrop of history, he considers them each in terms of the places and times in which the culprits operated. Were they evil cutthroats? Or, were they driven to their deeds out of desperation? In general, readers will find very few Robin Hoods. They will also discover that the reality of many of these men and women lies somewhere between utter scoundrel and social casualty.

High jinks and high adventure fill every page of this exciting, panoramic novel set in Shakespeare's time. Widge, our hero, is a young orphan indentured to a cold, unscrupulous master because the young boy has a special talent--the ability to write a secret shorthand. The master is bent on getting hold of the script of Hamlet at any cost, so it becomes Widge's task to transcribe it--or else. This picaresque tale follows Widge as he hightails his way into the very heart of the Globe Theatre and Shakespeare's company of players. As full of twists as a London alleyway, this entertaining novel is rich in period details, colorful characters, villainy, drama, and chuckles. Swordplay and wordplay share the stage with pure fun, all of which will keep readers rapt to the final scene.

Intrigue, betrayal, and romance surround Widge as we find him back in London and at the center of things, as usual. Queen Elizabeth, Shakespeare's patron, has died, but the new king and his queen love drama-on stage and off. Shakespeare has begun a new play about political intrigue, but real intrigue is close at hand. Someone is stealing from the company, and Shakespeare's scripts must be guarded at all costs-including the one he has given up on and turned over to Widge to finish. Widge finds the glory of being a playwright appealing, especially when there's a pretty girl to impress. But spying is even more exciting! Readers swept up in the first two adventures about Widge and Shakespeare's players will be enthralled yet again by this third tale with its dramatic twists and turns and an ending worthy of the Bard himself.