Empire of the Clouds: A conquest for Gold is an action packed novel about the Inca Empire. This sweeping saga follows historical events that actually happened over five hundred years ago. Filled with action and suspense, it will keep the reader on the edge of their seat. When the leader of the Incas and his appointed successor die from smallpox, the empire is plunged into a brutal civil war that lasts almost five years. As the two brothers fight to be the next leader, the dreaded smallpox disease ravishes the countryside. When the war is finally over and the disease has run its course, the Inca Empire has been brought to its knees. But events go from bad to worse when the Spanish invade the empire. Just ten years after Cortez conquered the Aztecs, Fernando Pizarro and his one hundred and sixty-seven conquistadores capture a kingdom of over 10 million people. The Spanish are brutal in their conquest, and the Incas have no answer to the Spanish steel weapons and cannon. As the Spanish systematically loot the country of gold and silver, an Inca general hides over 700 tons of gold and silver from the Spanish. This gold has never been found and is believed to be hidden in an inaccessible region of the Andes. Amidst all the fighting and intrigue in the royal Inca court, a beautiful young woman has to flee to save her life, but she is relentlessly hunted by the two royal brothers who have their own reasons for capturing her. One wants to force her to marry him while the other wants her dead.
About the Author: Skip Wright is a Naval Academy graduate who served 27 years in the Navy. He had command of a destroyer (USS John Young) and an AEGIS cruiser (USS San Jacinto). After retiring from the Navy, he worked for a scientific company for twelve years. In 2009 he and his wife Shannon retired to pursue their dreams. Skip has been married to Shannon for almost forty years. They have a daughter Jennifer and a son Chris. Skip and Shannon own a home in Florida. The also own a 53-foot Hatteras Motor Yacht called Mad Hatteras. They keep the boat in the Chesapeake Bay and spend equal time between the two residences with their two Russian Blue cats. This is his fourth novel. His first novel was a suspense thriller that took place aboard a 53-foot Hatteras Motor Yacht called Mad Hatteras. Go figure. His second novel was another suspense thriller entitled Protect the Innocent, which was a story about a terrorist attack against America power plant told though the perspective of the terrorist. The third novel was titled The Staine Legacy. It was a suspense thriller about a treasurer hunter seeking Nazi gold.