On Stranger Tides
Encyclopedia
On Stranger Tides is a 1987 historical fantasy
novel
written by Tim Powers
. It was nominated for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel
, and placed second in the annual Locus poll
for best fantasy novel.
The story was also the inspiration for the Monkey Island video game series by LucasArts
and for the fourth installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean
film series, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
.
, and Blackbeard
. Chandagnac, now known as "Jack Shandy", must put a stop to these plans and save Beth Hurwood.
, declaring that the novel "is as good as storytelling ever gets," reported that "Powers writes in a clean, elegant style that illuminates without slowing down the tale. The story promises marvels and horrors, and delivers them all." David Langford
wrote that On Stranger Tides "immediately hooks you and drags you along in sympathy with one central character's appalling misfortunes on the Spanish Main, [and] escalates from there to closing mega-thrills so determinedly spiced that your palate is left almost jaded."
Jack Adrian, saying that "Tim Powers has further refertilized the Sabatini
swashbuckler," described the novel as a skillful blend of "high seas adventure with sorcery and black magic."
based the name of a vampire
in his Anno Dracula series
on the main character of On Stranger Tides.
Although Ron Gilbert
has been widely quoted that the Monkey Island series
of adventure games was inspired by Disneyland's Pirates of the Caribbean ride
, he stated in a blog that the ride was mainly his inspiration for the ambience of the series, while his true inspiration was On Stranger Tides.
announced that the fourth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean
series would be titled Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
. The announcement had fueled speculation that the film would follow the plot of the novel, since Powers sold the film rights for the novel to Disney. It was also speculated that Jack Sparrow would replace Jack Shandy as the story's protagonist. Powers stated that the Fountain of Youth would definitely be in the film, but Sparrow and Shandy are "totally different characters", and that Hector Barbossa
and Blackbeard might overlap.
In January 2010, Disney
announced that the film would be released on May 20, 2011. On March 22, 2010, Jerry Bruckheimer
confirmed that both Barbossa and Blackbeard would be in the film, with Blackbeard as the villain. Ian McShane
portrayed Blackbeard and Penélope Cruz
played his daughter, Angelica, a character that is loosely based on Beth Hurwood from the novel.
Historical fantasy
Historical fantasy is a sub-genre of fantasy and related to historical fiction, which makes use of specific elements of real world history. It is used as an umbrella term for the sword and sorcery genre and sometimes, if fantasy is involved, the sword-and-sandal genre too...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
written by Tim Powers
Tim Powers
Timothy Thomas "Tim" Powers is an American science fiction and fantasy author. Powers has won the World Fantasy Award twice for his critically acclaimed novels Last Call and Declare...
. It was nominated for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel
World Fantasy Award for Best Novel
This World Fantasy Award is given to the fantasy novel or novels voted best by a panel of judges, and presented each year at the World Fantasy Convention.-1975:...
, and placed second in the annual Locus poll
Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel
Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel is one of the awards given by Locus Magazine.-External links:* * *...
for best fantasy novel.
The story was also the inspiration for the Monkey Island video game series by LucasArts
LucasArts
LucasArts Entertainment Company, LLC is an American video game developer and publisher. The company was once famous for its innovative line of graphic adventure games, the critical and commercial success of which peaked in the mid 1990s...
and for the fourth installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean
Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)
Pirates of the Caribbean is a series of fantasy-adventure films directed by Gore Verbinski and Rob Marshall , written by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
film series, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is a 2011 adventure fantasy film and the fourth installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean series...
.
Plot summary
This book follows the exploits of John "Jack Shandy" Chandagnac, who travels to the new world after the death of his puppeteer father to confront his uncle, who apparently has made off with the family inheritance. During the voyage, he gets to know a woman named Beth Hurwood and her father Benjamin Hurwood, an Oxford professor. Before they arrive, their ship is waylaid by pirates and, with the help of the professor and his assistant, the captain is killed and Chandagnac is forced to join the pirate crew. The reader discovers a sinister plot being concocted by the professor involving his dead wife, his living daughter, the Fountain of YouthFountain of Youth
The Fountain of Youth is a legendary spring that reputedly restores the youth of anyone who drinks of its waters. Tales of such a fountain have been recounted across the world for thousands of years, appearing in writings by Herodotus, the Alexander romance, and the stories of Prester John...
, and Blackbeard
Blackbeard
Edward Teach , better known as Blackbeard, was a notorious English pirate who operated around the West Indies and the eastern coast of the American colonies....
. Chandagnac, now known as "Jack Shandy", must put a stop to these plans and save Beth Hurwood.
Reception
Orson Scott CardOrson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...
, declaring that the novel "is as good as storytelling ever gets," reported that "Powers writes in a clean, elegant style that illuminates without slowing down the tale. The story promises marvels and horrors, and delivers them all." David Langford
David Langford
David Rowland Langford is a British author, editor and critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science fiction fanzine and newsletter Ansible.-Personal background:...
wrote that On Stranger Tides "immediately hooks you and drags you along in sympathy with one central character's appalling misfortunes on the Spanish Main, [and] escalates from there to closing mega-thrills so determinedly spiced that your palate is left almost jaded."
Jack Adrian, saying that "Tim Powers has further refertilized the Sabatini
Rafael Sabatini
Rafael Sabatini was an Italian/British writer of novels of romance and adventure.-Life:Rafael Sabatini was born in Iesi, Italy, to an English mother and Italian father...
swashbuckler," described the novel as a skillful blend of "high seas adventure with sorcery and black magic."
Influence on other works
Kim NewmanKim Newman
Kim Newman is an English journalist, film critic, and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's Dracula at the age of eleven—and alternate fictional versions of history...
based the name of a vampire
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
in his Anno Dracula series
Anno Dracula series
The Anno Dracula series by Kim Newman—named after Anno Dracula , the series' first novel—is a work of fantasy depicting an alternate history in which the heroes of Bram Stoker's novel Dracula fail to stop Count Dracula's conquest of Great Britain, resulting in a world where vampires are common and...
on the main character of On Stranger Tides.
Although Ron Gilbert
Ron Gilbert
Ron Gilbert is an American computer game designer, programmer, and producer, best known for his work on several classic LucasArts adventure games, including Maniac Mansion and the first two Monkey Island games. Gilbert was also co-founder of Humongous Entertainment and its sister company Cavedog...
has been widely quoted that the Monkey Island series
Monkey Island series
Monkey Island is the collective name given to a series of five graphical adventure games produced and published by LucasArts, originally known as LucasFilm Games through the development of the first game in the series; the games have produced a significiant cult following. The fifth installment of...
of adventure games was inspired by Disneyland's Pirates of the Caribbean ride
Pirates of the Caribbean (theme park ride)
Pirates of the Caribbean is a log flume type of dark ride at the Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris theme parks....
, he stated in a blog that the ride was mainly his inspiration for the ambience of the series, while his true inspiration was On Stranger Tides.
Film adaptation
On September 11, 2009, Walt Disney PicturesWalt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...
announced that the fourth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean
Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)
Pirates of the Caribbean is a series of fantasy-adventure films directed by Gore Verbinski and Rob Marshall , written by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
series would be titled Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is a 2011 adventure fantasy film and the fourth installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean series...
. The announcement had fueled speculation that the film would follow the plot of the novel, since Powers sold the film rights for the novel to Disney. It was also speculated that Jack Sparrow would replace Jack Shandy as the story's protagonist. Powers stated that the Fountain of Youth would definitely be in the film, but Sparrow and Shandy are "totally different characters", and that Hector Barbossa
Hector Barbossa
Hector Barbossa is a fictional character and pirate in the Disney film series Pirates of the Caribbean. Barbossa was first introduced in the series as the main antagonist of the first film, and pirate captain of the Black Pearl after committing mutiny against the ship's former captain, Jack...
and Blackbeard might overlap.
In January 2010, Disney
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
announced that the film would be released on May 20, 2011. On March 22, 2010, Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...
confirmed that both Barbossa and Blackbeard would be in the film, with Blackbeard as the villain. Ian McShane
Ian McShane
Ian David McShane is an English actor, director, producer, voice artist, and comedian.Despite appearing in numerous films, McShane is best known for his television roles, particularly the BBC's Lovejoy and HBO's Western drama Deadwood...
portrayed Blackbeard and Penélope Cruz
Penélope Cruz
Penélope Cruz Sánchez is a Spanish actress. Signed by an agent at age 15, she made her acting debut at 16 on television and her feature film debut the following year in Jamón, jamón , to critical acclaim...
played his daughter, Angelica, a character that is loosely based on Beth Hurwood from the novel.
External links
- On Stranger Tides at Worlds Without End
- On Stranger Tides at the Pirates of the Caribbean wikia