Beijing, China, 1421: It is a momentous time for the Ming Dynasty.
Honoring the completion of the Forbidden City, a fleet of unprecedented
size sets sail under Admiral Zheng He. Zheng's mission is to chart the
globe, trading for riches and bringing glory to China's emperor. Among
the crew is the talented cartographer and navigator Ma Zhi, whose work
will lead to the first true map of the world - but whose accomplishment
will vanish when the fleet returns to a very different China than the
one it left.
Lisbon, Portugal, 1496: At the height of Portugal's maritime domination
during the Age of Discovery, the legendary explorer Vasco da Gama
embarks on a quest to find a sea route to India. On board is navigator
Antonio Coehlo, who guards Portugal's most secret treasure: a map that
already shows the way.
New York, present day: Mara Coyne's new client has left her uneasy.
Republican kingmaker Richard Tobias has hired her, he says, because of
her skill in recovering stolen art and advocating for the rightful
owners, but Mara senses that he is not telling her everything. Tobias
reveals that a centuries-old map was stolen from an archaeological dig
he is sponsoring in China, and he wants her to get it back. But as Mara
begins her investigation, she uncovers the shocking truth: The map is
more valuable than anyone has ever imagined, and her client's motives
are more sinister than she suspected.
Weaving rich historical detail and astounding fact into a fast-paced
suspense-fiction ride, The Map Thief is an incredible entrée to the
murky underworld of stolen artifacts and the thieves and traders who
broker them. From Hong Kong to the Italian countryside, from Lisbon to
the remote reaches of Communist China, and literally around the world on
the ships of 15th-century explorers, Heather Terrell takes readers on a
globe-trotting adventure of epic proportions.
