Seized by Max Hardberger

¶ … Seized" Max Hardberger

Max Hardberger's Seized is a thrilling adventure novel, told from real-life events, of Hardberger's life as a sea captain, teacher, ship recapture, pilot, and family man. The novel, though biographical, does embellish certain events that took place in order to make the novel more appealing to readers. In a foreword by Hardberger himself, he says that it is his duty as a writer to give true facts, but warns that he may have combined certain events for "pacing and narrative," and that not all conversations within the novel happened exactly as written. How much can be true, only Hardberger himself would know.

The books timeline starts in the 80's and ends when Hurricane Katrina hits Louisiana. Each chapter consists of a story, whether it be a ship that is trying to be illegally seized, or an anecdote about Hardberger's personal life. Each chapter doesn't necessarily follow from the next is perfect chronological order, but gives the reader a sense of time moving forward, rather than a mish-mash of story telling. Although there are many events that happen within the novel, over a 20-year time span, obviously it is too much to go into meticulous detail over.

However, Hardberger starts off his novel by telling how he escaped possible prison and endangerment in Haiti; a "misunderstanding" has forced Hardberger's ship to stay in port in Haiti, where they await trial for the debts on the ship, which turn out to be a pirate ploy to illegally seize the ship. Hardberger comes up with a brilliant plan to steal away from the port in the cover of darkness so that none of his crew face false arrestment, including himself. Hardberger decides to bribe the two guards that are placed on board to make sure his ship stays in port with beer and food, meanwhile he devises a trap for the guards so they will be forced to give up their weapons and also be forced off the ship. The plan comes off without and hitch and establishes Hardberger as an honorable man who can think on his feet and not harm those who he is escaping from.

Throughout the novel Hardberger demonstrates the lengths he will go to get a seized ship out of a tight situation and bring her home to her owner. In a particularly stressful situation Hardberger manages to get the ship out of port and into international waters, but must take to her a little known island for three days so the crew can change her name on the side of the ship, change the name in all the paperwork and logs on board, and newly etch the name anywhere its found on board. The process takes so long that Hardberger needs to pacify the natives with food and rum so they will be too intoxicated to run to the local police. As is Hardberger's style, they manage to escape the island just in the nick of time.