8 h 29 minAudiobook15 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 8 h 29 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
A hidden fortune in pearls draws outlaws, Apache warriors and wandering adventurers across the dangerous California frontier.
In The Treasure of Pearls, Gustave Aimard brings a hunt for wealth into rough country where paths cross and danger waits along the trail. Outlaws live beyond the law. Apache warriors defend their lands. Adventurers move between worlds. The concealed fortune pulls these different people toward the same goal, making the search a meeting ground for dangerous company.
Aimard tells a frontier adventure full of action and color. Landscape, dress and weapons give his world concrete detail, while suspense draws you from one chapter to the next. Long journeys and hidden riches shape the experience: this is a story for readers who want to follow a dangerous trail and feel the pull of treasure.
What you’ll discover
- The lure of pearls Follow a hidden fortune that brings very different people toward a single prize.
- Dangerous company on the trail Meet outlaws, Apache warriors and wanderers whose paths cross in rough frontier country.
- A landscape full of risk Enter Aimard's California frontier, where wide spaces offer adventure rather than an easy passage.
- Color in every detail Find vivid descriptions of landscape, dress and weapons woven into the action.
- Suspense along the way Feel the forward pull of chapters that leave you eager to keep reading.
Who will love it
You will enjoy this if you love frontier adventure, treasure hunts, sea voyages and sudden reversals, and heroes who think fast.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Three travelers are hunted through the Sonoran wilderness
- A buried cache and a dying pirate's map
- The Englishman hangs above a tower of bandits
- A ship is won in a game of cards
- Dolores comes aboard under the British flag
- The hunt for the chest ends in a sea fight
- Years later, a hunter guides the Englishman into a tavern fight
- Debts of gratitude hold the heroes together
- Fine names and fake faces hide what people really are
- A narrator who talks to you and paints the scene
Who’s who
- George Frederick GladsdenAn English sailor who runs from school at twelve, loves risk and keeps his word to a dying bandit.
- Benito Vázquez de BustamenteA young pearl diver, son of an exiled Mexican president, who wants to marry Dolores and protect her.
- Dolores de MirandaDon José's sixteen-year-old daughter, gentle and brave, who wants a safe life with Benito.
- MatasieteA cowardly but cunning bandit chief who uses many grand names and wants Dolores's fortune and revenge.
- IgnacioPepillo's brother and the bandits' lieutenant, a sly rogue who serves whoever offers him the best deal.
- Oregon OliverA tall frontier guide, called the Ocelot, who is honest, cunning and fierce toward enemies.
- Doña Maria JosefaDolores's stout, spiteful aunt, who fears losing her comfort when her niece marries.
- La PerlaA young woman kept captive by Apache chiefs, who longs to return to her father.
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The Treasure of Pearls
Three unarmed travelers and a hidden chest of pearls set a sailor and a diver on the Mexican frontier.
Challenging5–10 hours to readEnglish
Excellent
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In short
Three people stagger through the wild country of Sonora, in Mexico, with no horses, no weapons and no food. A faithful dog lies dead from an arrow, and an unseen hunter is still on their trail.
The Treasure of Pearls at a glance
- Reading time
- About 4 h 55 min3 h 55 min fast, 5 h 50 min slow
- Length
- 70,300 words
- Library level
- Challenging long sentences, a rich vocabulary
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Three travelers are hunted through the Sonoran wilderness
The story opens in western Sonora, on the edge of the Gulf of California. One Apache warrior of a band called the Poison Hatchets follows three travelers. His weapons carry deadly salves.
The travelers are Don José de Miranda, his sixteen-year-old daughter Dolores and her sweetheart Benito. They have lost their horses, their guns and now their huge dog Fracasador, killed by an arrow. Benito and Don José take turns carrying the exhausted girl, and they hide the dead dog from her.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 15 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 5 h 30 min
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
Aimard, Gustave. The Treasure of Pearls. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-treasure-of-pearls.
Aimard, G. (2026). The treasure of pearls. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-treasure-of-pearls
Aimard, Gustave. The Treasure of Pearls. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-treasure-of-pearls.
@book{aimard2026treasure,
author = {Aimard, Gustave},
title = {The Treasure of Pearls},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-treasure-of-pearls}
}
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What is The Treasure of Pearls about?
It is an adventure novel set in Sonora and the Gulf of California. An English sailor and a pearl diver recover a hidden chest of pearls; years later, an Oregon hunter joins them in fighting frontier enemies.
Who is Gustave Aimard?
Aimard was a French author of frontier adventure novels who died in 1883. He wrote about trappers, outlaws and Native peoples in the Americas, and he often added descriptions of nature and customs.
Who is Oregon Oliver?
Oliver is a tall American hunter and guide, also called the Ocelot by Indians. He guides Gladsden across the border and is known for his honesty, cunning and skill with a rifle.
The author
Gustave Aimard
1818–1883 · French adventure novelist
Gustave Aimard (1818–1883) was a French novelist born in Paris, where he also died. He wrote adventure novels, including The Treasure of Pearls. His novel Les Trappeurs was published in 1858. Much of his fiction was set in the Americas, particularly on the North American frontier.
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