The Pilot - A Novel of Africa — Jerold Richert

It is 962 BC and the dawn of the golden years for King Solomon who is at the pinnacle of power. He has few enemies other than the exiled Prince Hadad of Edom, whose men harass Solomon's tax inspectors on the silk road and plunder the caravans. With Phoenician pilots provided by his friend King Hiram of Tyre, Solomon's ships and agents ply the coasts of the Narrow Sea, trading from Egypt to Saba and around the horn of Africa, hugging the treacherous coast as far as Opone and Serapio. Solomon's promise to his father to build a temple in his honour is about to be realised, although he is still unaware that it will be constructed of gold. Then, on a small island across a narrow stretch of sea from Tyre, the son of a local potter stumbles, naked, into the presence of the niece of King Hiram and the course of history is changed. It is a meeting that sets the participants onto a forbidden path, risking dishonour and death. But other forces are at work that will forge their lives, and the lives of many others at the farthest reaches of the known world... The Pilot is a page-turning, action-filled epic of sailing and exploration in the intriguing time of the Phoenicians, based on historical facts and archaeological controversy. It will appeal to fans of historical fiction.