September 1494 - Amid the chaos of Charles VIII's devastating invasion of Renaissance Italy, a squadron of Turkish galleys slips out of Istanbul under cover of night, and disappears west into the October storms. Aboard are three Turkish diplomats, a papal nuncio, and a fortune in gold ducats. The unforeseen consequences of their dangerous mission threaten to destabilize the papacy and alter the military alliances of Europe. A tale of seagoing adventure and actual historical events, The Sultan's Helmsman is also a philosophical novel exploring eastern and western ways of thought. Kachak -- the helmsman of the Turkish galley White Falcon -- is a fugitive from war-torn Europe who has been educated at the elite Ottoman palace school. When the west attempts to reclaim him, he must rely on his training, and on the loyalty of his friends, to make himself the person of his own choosing.