Fatal Treasure - by Jedwin Smith (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

"In real life-especially off the Florida coast-things can have fatal consequences. Fatal Treasure is a truly compelling read."
-Aphrodite Jones, New York Times bestselling author of Cruel Sacrifice and All She Wanted>

In 1622, hundreds of people lost their lives to the curse of the Spanish galleon Atocha-and they would not be the last. Fatal Treasure combines the rousing adventure of Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea with the compelling characters and local color of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. It tells the powerful true story of the relentless quest to find the Atocha and reclaim her priceless treasures from the sea. You'll follow Mel Fisher, his family, and their intrepid team of treasure hunters as they dive beneath the treacherous waters of the Florida Straits and scour the ocean floor in search of gold, silver, and emeralds. And you'll discover that nearly four centuries after the shipwreck, the curse of the Atocha is still a deadly force.

"On this day, the sea once again relinquished its hold on the riches and glory of seventeenth-century Spain. And by the grace of God, I would share the moment of glory . . . . I was reaching for my eighth emerald, another big one, when the invisible hands squeezed my trachea. In desperation, I clutched at my throat to pry away the enemy's fingers. But no one had hold of me." --From the Prologue

From the Back Cover

"In real life-especially off the Florida coast-things can have fatal consequences. Fatal Treasure is a truly compelling read."
-Aphrodite Jones, New York Times bestselling author of Cruel Sacrifice and All She Wanted

When the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha sank off the coast of Florida during a hurricane in 1622, it went down with forty tons of treasure-thousands of silver and gold ingots, enormous grass-green emeralds, thirty-five treasure chests, and other smuggled booty. Three and a half centuries later, the legendary Mel Fisher set out to find it.

In Fatal Treasure, Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist Jedwin Smith tells the true untold story of the Fisher family's relentless quest to find the Atocha and reclaim her priceless cargo. Combining the rousing adventure of Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea with the compelling personal drama of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, Smith captures, as no writer ever has, the romance and suspense of big-time treasure hunting-and the enormous price in lives that the Atocha has exacted from those who would disturb her undersea grave. Drawing on more than fifteen years of exclusive and intimate access to the Fisher family and the divers, Smith tells an unforgettable tale of courage, obsession, loyalty, heartbreak-and a mysterious, demanding ship that still calls to us from the sea.

About the Author

JEDWIN SMITH is a journalist for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution who has twice been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. He has been working with the Fisher family since the 1980s. Smith has found emeralds and pieces of eight while hunting with the crew, and his brother also worked for the Fishers on the treasure hunt.