Bleak Future (The Flying Dutchman Trilogy, #1) NILS VISSER Author

1622: Threat of renewed warfare with Spain throws an ominous shadow over the young Dutch republic. Liselotte Haelen, a physician's daughter, has to cope with other shadows as well, trapped in an unhappy household as she is. Her prodigal cousin, Peter Haelen, has built a ship like no other but who will crew her? Folks are superstitious, wary of innovation. Some say Peter has defied the natural order of things. Wagging tongues claim his ship is cursed ere she's even launched. Other aspects are at play. Echoes from the past. Realms below the waves. Hidden forces that confound logic, as deep as the ocean and as wide as the sky.