- High Times on the High Seas in the Roaring 1980s -  

Pirates of Key West is the true story of author Kelly Ryan Harriger, who found himself pulled into the seductive, illicit, and exhilarating world of smuggling in the wild and woolly 1980s in Key West and the Caribbean. Although he’d planned to just do one trip for the experience and some quick money, he was easily lured into more trips with the promise of more money and the autonomy to pick his sailboat crews. Over the course of two years, working for a man who was financed by the Colombian cartel, he progressed from running marijuana shipments from the Caribbean to Key West to transporting cocaine from Miami to his own distribution network in Key West. The lifestyle took its toll, and he found himself drawn deeper into daily drug and alcohol abuse. After being busted on his third trip to Jamaica, he knew the smart thing to do would be to retire, but the author wasn’t ready to quit until he’d reached the end of his rope. The chronic drug and alcohol abuse finally took its toll, and as his life began to spiral out of control, he finally found the strength to walk away and start a new life.

REVIEWS:  

“The thrill of high-stakes adventure amid a breathtaking tropical backdrop in Pirates of Key West is enough to hook any adventure lover in Harriger’s true story of smuggling on the high seas. But the heart of the story is in Harriger’s internal struggle as a young man determined to push himself to the limits just to see how far he can go. Anyone who has ever thrown caution to the wind, or anyone who has ever wanted to, will love this book.” —Jessica Weible, author of Dead Letters: Delivering Unopened Mail from a Pennsylvania Ghost Town 

“William Faulkner once said that even in the folly of youth, we know that nothing lasts. Perhaps no one understands that better than Kelly Ryan Harriger. Harriger’s memoir is a tale of excess and risk, a maritime saga told with brutal honesty and introspection. That he lived to tell is nothing short of amazing. Without a doubt, Pirates of Key West is a wild ride, and one that the reader will long remember.” —Rebecca Titchner, author of A Ghost Comes Calling: An Adoptee’s Journey to Understand the Sister She Never Knew

by Kelly Ryan Harriger
Page Count: 188
Trim Size: 6 x 9
Publish Date: January 28, 2026
Imprint: Sunbury Press
Genre: Biography & Autobiography

TRUE CRIME / Drug Trafficking 
TRUE CRIME / Historical
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Personal Memoirs