The French writer Henri de Monfreid (1879–1974) began his career as a diplomat at the French mission in Calcutta, then for some time he was engaged in commerce - selling leather and coffee. However, all his life he was attracted to sea adventures, and at the age of 32 he finally left public service and went to the French colony of Djibouti, where he engaged in pearl fishing. On the advice of the famous French writer Joseph Kessel, he wrote his first story, “The Secrets of the Red Sea,” about pearl divers, which was enthusiastically received by readers, and the author gained fame as a “corsair writer.” His next stories, “The Man Who Came from the Sea” and “Smuggling Voyage,” tell about the further adventures of the author, who decided to do business in the drug trade in Egypt. These stories are also written based on personal experience: Monfreid goes to prison for drug smuggling, he is accused of murder, and he miraculously escapes punishment. An entertaining plot keeps the reader in suspense until the last page.