Synopses & Reviews
Born a penniless Yorkshire lad seemingly destined for the mills, Keith Jessop instead became a salvage diver, teaching himself the trade in the treacherous wreck-strewn waters off Scotland and England. Only through unyielding determination, extraordinary physical prowess, and keen intelligence would he build himself, dive by dive, into the world's most successful treasure finder. Now with Neil Hanson, the critically acclaimed author of
The Custom of the Sea, Jessop tells his marvelous rags-to-riches story and the tremendous saga at its center: his lifelong quest for the warship HMS
Edinburgh, sunk in the Arctic Sea with ten tons of Russian gold.
Finding the wreck would test the limits of technology as well as Jessop's imagination and perseverance. Protecting that knowledge and securing the rights to salvage the Edinburgh would prove just as difficult. At every turn, Jessop's small operation had to battle giant salvage monopolies, traitorous partners, lawyers, and ruthless representatives from both Britain and the Soviet Union, all bent on crushing him and taking the gold for themselves. But it was Jessop who persevered, Jessop who finally led his divers into the cold, dark heart of the north and pulled from it the light of gold. Then the battle over who would keep the recovered millions really heated up as the lawyers moved in.
One part Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea, one part A Civil Action, one part David and Goliath story, Goldfinder as a whole is
underwater adventure of the highest order.
Review
"[T]horoughly detailed....For all armchair treasure hunters." Library Journal
Review
"Jessop's energetic rags to riches to rags saga more resembles a Dickens novel than the introspective, spiritual or ironic efforts that glut the adventure-book market." Publishers Weekly
Review
"Outstanding, inspiring, and beautifully told. No true tale of the sea makes better reading." Clive Cussler
Review
"[A] useful primer for anyone seeking to find a fortune beneath the waves." Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
The True Story of $100 Million in Lost Russian Gold -and One Man's Lifelong Quest to Recover It
Keith Jessop and Neil Hanson
"Outstanding, inspiring, and beautifully told. No true tale of the sea makes better reading."-Clive Cussler
Here is the true tale of a small-time salvage diver, the crushing depths of the sea, and the richest prize ever found-$100 million in pure gold. Follow salvage diver Keith Jessop as he battles nature, governments, traitors, salvage monopolies, and, of course, lawyers to claim the grand prize of wrecks-the HMS Edinburgh. Filled with ten tons of Russian gold, the ship had been sought by many, but never found. Through unyielding determination, extraordinary physical prowess, and keen intelligence, Keith Jessop risks all to reach his final destination, and keeps readers on the edge of their seats.
Synopsis
The True Story of $100 Million in Lost Russian Gold -and One Man's Lifelong Quest to Recover It
Keith Jessop and Neil Hanson
"Outstanding, inspiring, and beautifully told. No true tale of the sea makes better reading."-Clive Cussler
Here is the true tale of a small-time salvage diver, the crushing depths of the sea, and the richest prize ever found-$100 million in pure gold. Follow salvage diver Keith Jessop as he battles nature, governments, traitors, salvage monopolies, and, of course, lawyers to claim the grand prize of wrecks-the HMS Edinburgh. Filled with ten tons of Russian gold, the ship had been sought by many, but never found. Through unyielding determination, extraordinary physical prowess, and keen intelligence, Keith Jessop risks all to reach his final destination, and keeps readers on the edge of their seats.
About the Author
Keith Jessop continues to be a full-time underwater salvage operator. He has searched for Columbus's ship the
Pinta off the Turks and Caicos Islands, found the silver-laden wreck of the USS
John Barry off the coast of Oman, and pulled treasure from the deeps under the noses of pirates, Colombian cocaine barons, Japanese
yakuza, and African warlords. He acts as a consultant advising the relatives of the crew of the
MFV Gaul, a British trawler lost with all hands under very suspicious circumstances at the height of the Cold War, and he has provided expert opinion to the British government's Marine Accident Investigation Board. His son, Graham, continues the family tradition, having found the wreck of the
Lusitania and working now as head of salvage operations for RMS Titanic Inc.
Neil Hanson is a full-time writer and the author of the critically acclaimed The Custom of the Sea. He has thirty published nonfiction works and a half-dozen novels to his name. He is currently at work on his next book.
Table of Contents
Prologue: We Have a Problem.
1. The Jay Street Gang.
2. Devil's Bridge.
3. The Black Pig.
4. The Zaffaris.
5. The Otranto.
6. Yellow Submarine.
7. Tarf's Tail.
8. The Copper Kings.
9. The Golden West.
10. Ultima Thule.
11. Pushing at the Frontiers.
12. Spitzbergen.
13. The South Cape.
14. Bear Island.
15. U-456.
16. Seaway Hawk.
17. The Royal Connection.
18. War Grave.
19. The Kremlin.
20. The Hunt for the Edinburgh.
21. The First Dive.
22. The Bomb Room.
23. Gold!
24. Murmansk.
25. The Old Bailey.
Author's Note.
Acknowledgements.
Appendix.
Permissions.