Freedom's Pilgrim

1568. The world is a vast and dangerous place.

Miles Phillips is thirteen when he sails from England with the famous Francis Drake on his third slaving expedition to Africa and the West Indies.

Miles is escaping an unhappy childhood in Devon. He has no way of knowing what lies ahead of him.

Things bode ill from the start. When the ship reaches San Juan, a battle with the Spaniards erupts.

…The effects of which will plague his dreams for a long time.

From Africa Miles travels to the West Indies. Here he discovers the beauty of the women and the rum.

But life is about to throw young Miles off course.

There is not room for all the sailors and the slaves to sail back to England. Many sailors are left behind, including Miles.

Marooned on an island, he is taken prisoner and becomes a servant to a Mexican man who owns a silver mine.

The Spanish language skills Miles has learned leads him to become an overseer in the mine, with a girlfriend named Moll.

But then he is taken prisoner by the Inquisition. For self-preservation he claims to be related to the infamous privateer, Sir Francis Drake. Condemned to a hundred lashes on horseback and ten years as a slave in the Indies, he escapes when a local man takes an interest in him, and he ends up a gardener.

Here he meets Juanita, the niece of the man he is working for.

She is quite fascinated with him, but Miles, now known as John Drake, and a slave, knows death could come for him if they are even seen together.

That doesn’t stop them… although once again the Inquisition will.

In the sixteen years that he is away from England, Miles’ journey will take him through war, the Armada, the Inquisition, through love and loss. He will change names, religions, and learn new languages and customs, all in an effort to simply stay alive.

His is a story of survival.

Part fiction, part fact, Freedom’s Pilgrim is a look at the life of one extraordinary boy who survived despite the odds being squarely against him.

Praise for Freedom’s Pilgrim

‘An epic tale of survival’ - Richard Foreman

Edward James is an historical fiction writer from Gloucestershire