Currently reading Empires of the Sea by Roger Crowley, and when I finish I would like to read a book / trilogy / longer series, about someone who gets captured, is forced to be a galley slave for some time, escapes, and then does whatever an escaped galley slave would do, but on an epic scale.
I loved The Hammer and The Cross trilogy by Harrison, so something like that would be awesome, but open to any recommendations. I don't care which side of the Mediterranean the story starts / ends on.
After reading the section on galley slaves, I am hard pressed to imagine a worse life. Seeing a reversal of the norm (dying in chains and then thrown overboard) would be cool!
by 20_mile