Author: Daphne Palmer Geanacopoulos
Title: The Pirate’s Wife: The Remarkable True Story of Sarah Kidd
Narrator: Courtney Patterson
Publication Info: Harlequin Audio, 2022 
Summary/Review:
There’s a trend of fictional works titled The [name of man’s trade] [female relative], but The Pirate’s Wife is a history of a woman who was the spouse of an actual pirate. Or a privateer, depending on your point of view. Sarah Bradley was only 14 when she settled in New York City with her parents and seven years later when she married Captain William Kidd, she had already been married and widowed twice. Geanacopoulos surmises that while the first marriage was arranged by her father, and the second marriage was out of necessity, Sarah and Kidd shared a passionate love.
But they didn’t get to spend much time together as Kidd was commissioned to sail the Adventure Galley as a privateer with the support of New York Governor Bellomont. When the rumor that Kidd had turned pirate was spread, his investors turned against him and he was captured in Boston in 1699. Sarah went to support him and was arrested as well. Sarah is shown to work to protect her family name and try to prevent the execution of her husband. However, Kidd would be brought to England and hung in 1701, leaving Sarah a widow yet again. The rest of her life would require rebuilding her reputation and for their children as well, a difficult task that she achieved.
This is an interesting glimpse of the actions of historical figure who accomplished a lot despite the prejudices against her for being a woman at the time. Geanacopoulos addresses gaps in the historical record by frequently writing “Sarah may have…” which is a good hedge against being historically inaccurate, but becomes a bit of an irritant in her writing style. Definitely a book worth checking out if you’re interested in women’s history, pirates, and Colonial America.
Recommended books:
- Under the Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates by David Cordingly
- Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin by Jill Lepore
- The Invisible Hook: The Hidden Economics of Pirates by Peter T. Leeson
Rating: ***
Panorama of the Mountains 