Rafael Sabatini

Rafael Sabatini was an Italian-born British author best known for historical adventure novels filled with political intrigue, swordplay and dramatic reversals of fortune. Born in Jesi, Italy, in 1875 to opera singers Vincenzo and Anna Sabatini, he was educated in several European countries and became fluent in multiple languages. He eventually settled in England, where he began publishing stories and novels in English and became one of the leading writers of historical romance in the early twentieth century.

Sabatini achieved his greatest success with Scaramouche, set during the French Revolution, and Captain Blood, about a physician forced into slavery who becomes a pirate. His other notable works include The Sea-Hawk, Bellarion the Fortunate and The Black Swan. Combining carefully researched historical settings with fast-paced plots, charismatic heroes and themes of justice, identity and revenge, Sabatini helped define the modern swashbuckling novel, while film adaptations ensured the lasting popularity of his stories.