Intense and turbulent, this is a book about war, love and the human capacity for both violence and empathy. It asks very profound questions about human nature and the role of the artists, but it also has the intensity of a psychological thriller as the painter trades stories with the man who has come to kill him.

Alatriste is back - this time on the high seas Accompanied by his faithful companion Inigo, the captain joins a Spanish galleon and sets sail from Naples towards the east on a journey that will take them to Melilla, Oran, and finally Malta where they must struggle against the Turks."