The first volume of a visionary historical trilogy from the secret diaries of Captain John Smith, which tells also the life of Sir Francis Drake. The entire trilogy, titled IN THE LAND OF WHISPERS, concerns the first generation of Englishmen in the New World, dating from 1565-1631, and chronicles how the English came to the American shore to found a Utopia, but founded a slave state instead. THE WEIGHT OF SMOKE is published in advance of the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown. The two subsequent volumes will be published in 2007 and 2008.