Laurence Bergreen’s Over the Edge of the World: Magellan’s Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe is a nonfiction account that reads with the grip and pace of an adventure thriller. Meticulously researched and filled with primary source details—particularly the diaries of the voyage’s chronicler, Antonio Pigafetta—the book is a tale of daring and peril.

Mr. Bergreen’s retelling is filled with rich details and an engrossing narrative. The rivalry between Spain and Portugal is discussed; Magellan was Portuguese but he sailed his armada for the Spanish, leading not only to a high stakes pursuit across the sea but to tensions and mutiny within his crew. Scientific exploration and inherent curiosity took a backseat to the economic motivations of the voyage and the religious fervor and dogged race to expand the empire.

At the center of Mr. Bergreen’s tale is the Captain General Ferdinand Magellan. I thought the author did a stellar job of fleshing Magellan out as a complex man, neither a hero nor a villain, but a fallible human. Over the Edge of the World is as much a portrait of this man as it is a tale of journey. Magellan is a man who is as determined as he is brilliant, as ruthless and cruel as he is devout, as rigid as he is hot tempered. In the end, Magellan is an example of hubris, caught up in an unnecessary side struggle for king and god and lying dead in the surf before completing his voyage.

The voyage itself is vividly described in all its discomfort. The conditions were abominable, the seas deadly, disease and distrust wracked the crew, and Mr. Bergreen details the three year ordeal brilliantly. It was a monumental undertaking when the world was still gripped by superstition and the unknown was inhabited by all manner of imagined monsters and horrors. Mr. Bergreen also touches upon several incredible achievements of the Age of Exploration and the varying mentalities of the different nations as they explored, e.g. the more Eastern practice of establishing trade relationships versus the more Western practice of establishing colonies.

Laurence Bergreen’s Over the Edge of the World is a gripping recounting of Magellan’s daring undertaking, of his complex character, and of the hardships and discoveries along the journey.