The Baltic, 1854: Navies, like armies, have camp followers, and the British fleet that sails to the Baltic on the eve of the Crimean War is no exception. Along with the floating grog shop and brothels come ‘war tourists’ – aristocratic gentlemen travelling to see the war first-hand.
When Viscount Bullivant is taken prisoner by the Russians, it falls to Commander Kit Killigrew to negotiate his release. But the Russians suspect his lordship has vital information and before long Killigrew is a prisoner of the Third Section – the feared Tsarist secret police.
In the ensuing forty-eight hours, Killigrew must escape, rescue Bullivant, steal back his yacht, sail through the treacherous Ekenäs Archipelago and take on a Russian ship with an unarmed schooner. And in Captain-Lieutenant Count Mikhail Yurievich Pechorin, he may finally have met his match…
‘Leaves the reader breathless for his next voyage’ Northern Echo
‘Action-packed and well-researched… in the vein of Forester and O’Brian but with its own distinctive flavour’ Good Book Guide
‘A rollicking tale with plenty of punches’ Lancashire Evening Post
‘A hero to rival any Horatio Hornblower. Swashbuckling? You bet’ Belfast Telegraph