The Sapphire Sea: A Gemstone Thriller (The Gemstone Thrillers)

243 Pages·2008·0.7 MB·English

by  John B. Robinson

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Fiction $15.95 US —$17.95 CAN rec
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John B.
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“Robinson ignites the senses in a mad charge through
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the underbelly of sweltering, perilous Madagascar . . . a
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briskly paced and gripping read.” o
—Publishers Weekly h
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“Rich in exotic local color and gem lore . . . an action-

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packed tale.” —Library Journal
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“A masterpiece worthy of the highest praise.” O
—Winston-Salem Journal
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Gem expert Lonny Cushman flees to the lawless
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sapphire fields of Madagascar to escape a bitter divorce and an
overbearing father. Homesick and lonely, he dreams of the per- N
fect stone that will fuel an independent career as a gem dealer
back in New York. But when he finally unearths the greatest sap-
phire discovered in the last hundred years, the power brokers of t
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Diego Suarez want the stone for themselves, and Lonny must e
call on all his ingenuity and cunning to escape with his life. S
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John B. Robinson graduated from Harvard University
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and headed straight to Africa to pursue writing. Along the way the sea
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he worked as a guide on Mount Kilimanjaro; bought, sold, and
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traded rare gems; and taught English in out-of-the-way places. s
He lives in Portland, Maine. e
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ISBN: 978-1-59013-149-7
McBooks Press 51595
a
www.mcbooks.com gemstone
thriller
a gemstone thriller
9 781590 131497
The Sapphire Sea

a gemstone thriller
also by John B. Robinson
A Fistful of Diamonds
The Sapphire Sea
a gemstone thriller
John B. Robinson
McBooks Press, Inc.
www.mcbooks.com
Ithaca, NY
Published by McBooks Press, Inc. 2008
Copyright © 2003 by John B. Robinson
First published in the U.S.A. by William Morrow, New York
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or any portion thereof
in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without the written permission
of the publisher. Requests for such permissions should be addressed to:
McBooks Press, Inc., ID Booth Building, 520 North Meadow St., Ithaca, NY 14850.
Cover and book design by Panda Musgrove.
Cover illustration composited by Panda Musgrove.
The following images used under license of Shutterstock.com:
Cover images copyright 2007, Cheryl Casey, Charles Taylor, Thomas Pozzo Di Borgo, and
Ovidiu Iordachi. Page 10, map of Africa and Madagascar copyright 2007, Mirec.
ISBN: 978-1-59013-149-7
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Robinson, John B., 1968-
The sapphire sea : a gemstone thriller / by John B. Robinson.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-1-59013-149-7 (trade pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Sapphire mines and mining—Fiction. 2. Madagascar—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3618.O327S27 2008
813’.6—dc22
2007047472
All McBooks Press titles can be ordered by calling toll-free 1-888-BOOKS11
(1-888-266-5711). Please call to request a free catalog.
Visit the McBooks Press website at www.mcbooks.com.
Printed in the United States of America
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is dedicated to Narcisse Randriamirado, for his courage, and
Jean Phillippe François Truong Huu Khâ (aka Mamy Kha), for his warm
heart, beautiful music and wandering spirit

Sapphires—The gem of the soul and autumn, the natal stone
for September, was said to preserve the wearer from envy and
attract divine favour. Fraud was banished from its presence and
necromancers honoured it more than any other stone, for it en-
abled them to hear and understand the most obscure oracles.
The ancients thought sapphire to be endowed with the power to
influence spirits, to be a charm against carnality, to be capable
of making peace between foes and to protect its owner against
captivity. The Sinhalese respect the star sapphire as a protection
against witchcraft.
—Gems: Their Sources, Descriptions and Identification, Fifth Edition,
Robert Webster

1 Happy Bull
15
2 Diego, Mon Amour
27
3 Angel from Antananarivo
37
4 Friends
47
5 Ramena Beach
59
6 Paradise North
73
7 Last Conversations
89
8 The Great Gatsby
99
9 The King, the Colonel,
the Consul and the Knave
113
10 At the Vo Vo
129
11 The Docks
137
12 The Ocean Like a River
141
13 The Further Dark
149
14 Into the Desert
159
15 Donia
175
16 Beyond the Lighthouse
193
17 The Swahili
199
18 Off Madagascar
207
19 Rounding the Cape
219