Magellan and the treasure of the Moluccas

It's the 16th century. An imaginary line divides the world into two: Spain in the west, Portugal in the east. Half-way, in the middle of the Indian Ocean, the Moluccas can be glimpsed, islands full of wonders. To reach them, the King of Spain needs to cross Portuguese territory. There's no other route. Or... perhaps he could trust the intuition of a daring explorer, Magellan, and find a secret passage that, from the Americas, could take them straight to the East. Amidst mutinies, storms, frozen seas and warlike tribes, the captain will reach the Spice Islands, demonstrating once and for all that the world is round. However, just one sailing ship comes back to Spain out of the huge fleet with which Magellan had left and, unexpectedly, on board is a scribe who's already chronicling this extraordinary adventure, whose pages can already be glimpsed on the horizon. Maritime explorations, treasures, sailing ships and surprises. Magellano e il tesoro della Molucche interweaves history, adventure and hugely fascinating wild landscapes. At a time when boarding a ship meant – most probably – to experience the adventure of a lifetime, discover unknown lands and (why not?) also find some treasure, Spain and Portugal were unrivalled in their desire to possess gold, spices, precious fabrics, gems, as well as local plants and animals that they could trade at a great profit. The feat is narrated by Pigafetta, geographer, chronicler and logbook keeper, in the style of Emilio Salgari's great sea adventures. A clear, coherent novel that easily echoes the atmosphere evoked by the books of Stevenson, Salgari, London, Conrad and even Melville, depicting images that etch themselves in the mind of the readers, or bring back childhood memories. The characters are elegantly described, so that readers easily identify with them and experience breath-taking adventures at sea, amidst tribes and places that seem to have been especially created as settings for memorable events.  

Magellano e il tesoro delle Molucche (Magellan and the treasure of the Moluccas)
by Gianluca Barbera
Rizzoli, 2022