Synopses & Reviews
What if the Nautilus and its famous captain wasnt fiction?Every legend has a beginning. Every man has a name. But none as dark and mysterious as the depths of the seas he stalked. The world in time would come to know him as Captain Nemo and his fabulous submarine the Nautilus. Here, for the first time, the tale is told in his own words of how he came to be: I, Nemo
Born Jonathan de Chevalier Mason, he had it all: a prestigious position as chief naval engineer to Queen Victoria, a beautiful wife and children, and a bright future, but he was betrayed by the very people he served and loved because he would not divulge the secret of a weapon so terrible that whoever possessed it would rule the world. Thus begins a sordid and shocking ordeal unsurpassed in history. Arrested on false charges and tried in the Star Chamber, a secret court, he is convicted and sent to Belial Island to toil endlessly in its steaming tropical jungles. Then fortune smiles on him in the guise of a frail elderly French priest and his little band of followers. Together the two men hatch a plot to escape and forever be free of tyrannical governments that cast them aside like trash. But Jonathan has a score to settle and soon his betrayers will feel his wrath.
I, Nemo is a steampunk novel written in Dharma and Deanna's signature style, historical fact blending seamlessly with fiction, it is an action packed, gut wrenching roller coaster ride of torrential proportions. Starting with 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, J. Dharma and Deanna Windham have added greater depth and vibrancy to this time honored classic, creating something altogether unique and different.
Review
Although Nemo, of Jules Vernes classic
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, has been narrative fodder for decades, this engaging debut novel from Dharma and Deanna Windham puts a new spin on his mythos.
Set in the near future, the story begins as a group of oceanographic researchers fortuitously stumble across a sunken vessel in the South Pacific. After investigating the wreck, they realize that their find is historic, a myth brought to life”: Nemos legendary submersible, the Nautilus. This ship is laden with treasure, but researchers discover the most valuable item inside an iron chestCapt. Nemos journal. The partially destroyed record chronicles Nemos heart-rending transformation from an up-and-coming British naval architect named Jonathan de Chevalier Mason to the captain of the most advancedand fearedvessel in the world. After being betrayed by his best friend, Nemo was convicted of high treason in a secret court and sent to a penal colony on a remote island, where he was expected to die in short order. But, fueled by revenge, he escaped and becomes a legend. Masterfully constructed (the missing or destroyed pages allow the authors to skip over slow spots and focus only on action or significant events), breakneck paced and adeptly characterized, this reimagining of one of literatures most enigmatic characters is a supreme page turner, with a dash of steampunk thrown in for good measure
- Kirkus Indie
[the author] "swiftly carries readers through countless twists and turns of fortune,"
- Midwest Book Review
"Watch out Clive Cussler! There are new kids on the block!"
- John Pye of John William Pye Rare Books
What readers are saying about the authors:
"The author accomplishes that rare feat of using historical research and weaving it with nonstop panoramic action."
"Be prepared for anything and everything to happen."
"...explodes with action, mystery, and intrigue, leaving the reader wide-eyed and breathless."