The Map Thief

Beijing, China, 1421: It is a momentous time for the Ming Dynasty. Honoring the completion of the Forbidden City, a fleet of unprecedented size sets sail under Admiral Zheng He. Zheng's mission is to chart the globe, trading for riches and bringing glory to China's emperor. Among the crew is the talented cartographer and navigator Ma Zhi, whose work will lead to the first true map of the world--but whose accomplishment will vanish when the fleet returns to a very different China than the one it left.Lisbon, Portugal, 1496: At the height of Portugal's maritime domination during the Age of…