Dead Man’s Island in the rain was as God-forsaken a place as you could find anywhere on earth.

Following his escape from France, Lieutenant Oliver Anson is appointed by Commodore Home Popham to command the Seagate Sea Fencibles. Moreover, the commodore has implied that there may be a clandestine nature to Anson's new duties...

After the successful capture of a Normandy privateer Anson is summoned to Dead Man's Island, only to find the commodore absent. Foregoing any explanation, Anson is required to witness the funeral of a Frenchman from a hulk.

Hoping that Captain Matthew Wills will be able to provide some explanation, Anson is only further mystified when Wills arranges for him to visit the hulk of the officer whose funeral he has just attended.

With promises that the full picture shall soon reveal itself, the lieutenant embarks once more.

David McDine, OBE, is a former Admiralty information officer, Royal Navy Reserve officer and Deputy Lieutenant of Kent, and the author of Unconquered: The Story of Kent and its Lieutenancy. He also wrote The Normandy Privateer, another naval adventure featuring Lieutenant Oliver Anson, and the series prequel Strike the Red Flag.