The Serdar or Commander of all Ottoman forces in Europe buys a slave at auction and sends him to his betrothed in Stamboul, ancient Constantinople. Grand Vizier Hasan the Fruiter tells Aisha, Sister of the Sultan, he personally conquered the slave on the European battlefield. Hasan promises his fair noblewoman that she will she receive a handsome ransom: all she needs to do is contact the slave’s rich family in the Kingdom of Bohemia and collect it.

Aisha speaks Italian and soon discovers her “Bohemian” slave speaks Italian, too. She quickly learns he is no ordinary slave, but an English captain, who fought for the Holy Roman Empire against the Ottoman Turks. When beautiful Aisha recounts her fiancé’s story of how he conquered her slave on the battlefield, the English captain vehemently protests, for he is no ordinary captain, but Captain John Smith: no one has ever defeated Smith in single combat. Furthermore, Hasan the Fruiterer did not capture Smith on the battlefield, but bought him at a slave auction at the border town of Axiopolis on the lower Danube.

The Sister of the Sultan faces a dilemma: if Capitano John Smith’s story is true, then her fiancé has lied to her. What will she do?

To test the truth, Aisha brings to her palace two close friends—English and French translators. Each time her powerful mother visits the grave of her father, Aisha pretends to be sick and stays home. Each time her English slave tells more of his adventures of how he left England and traveled to France during the latter years of the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King Philip II of Spain.

Based upon Smith’s own memoirs and original research, Empires and Kingdoms Series: The English Slave is the first book in a historical fiction series written by David Eugene Andrews. Learn about the epic story of young Captain John Smith, before he became Governor of Colonial Virginia.

Here's what readers are saying:

In the Empires and Kingdoms Series,The English Slave (Book One) was awarded a Five-Star review, their highest rating, by Readers' Favorite! See what reviewers are saying about The English Slave:

"Get ready for an exciting ride into a historical setting that will blow your mind...David Eugene Andrews' debut novel is a masterpiece...powerful prose...characters leap off the pages...wonderful craft of great dialogue...reads like a great movie....I couldn't put it aside for a moment."

- Romuald Dzemo, for Reader's Favorite

"...an intriguing look at some of the real life events in the life of Captain John Smith...events come alive through dialogue and the relationships...writing style is engaging...vivid imagery...very interesting glimpse into history."

- Gisela Dixon, for Reader's Favorite

"We immediately jump into the thick of things, and Andrews keeps up the intense, engaging action." - reviewed by J. Aislynn d'Merricksson, posted in the San Francisco Book Review and the Seattle Book Review