The Mad Ship - Robin Hobb

THE MAD SHIP begins almost exactly where the previous novel left off; Captain Kennit has managed to capture himself the Liveship-turned-slaver, Vivacia after a turblent storm and a paticulary bloody uprising by her cargo of slaves which has left all but a handful of the original crew dead. Unfortunately for him, a previous wound (where a sea serpent took off a large part of his leg) has turned grangeous and oozes hot pus leaving him very close to death and extremely weak. In desperation he strikes a deal with the former priest-acolyte become sailor, Wintrow; Kennit will allow both he and his father (Vivacia's former owner) to live provided Wintrow can save Kennit in ...

At the start of this story, Kyle has lost the liveship Ophelia to Captain Kennit, who dreams of becoming a pirate king. This is a tragedy for the Vestrit family fortunes, though not necessarily for Ophelia or Wintrow who are both treated with more respect by the pirate than by Kyle. Malta is becoming increasingly involved in the mysteries of the Rain Wild Traders and we now find out what Maulkin and his tangle have to do with the story. The main emphasis of this book concerns the relaunching of Paragon, the mad liveship who has killed his crews previously. We learn more about this remarkable ship and see him launched in an effort to pursue and save Ophelia ...