David Blackmore, McFarland, ISBN 978 0 7864 4799 2

This study covers the period 1571-1866 and deals not only with the major conflicts but some of the colourful characters of the time, both well-known and not so famous, including Don Juan, perhaps more remembered for his amorous conquests than the fact the he was the only European to defeat the Ottoman Turks in a major galley battle; De Ruyter, the Dutch admiral who was the finest sea soldier of the mid-17th century - and of course Horatio Nelson.

Blackmore brings solid credentials to his authorship, having served in both the Merchant and Royal Navy. The book's text is enhanced with 22 useful illustrations such as the weather gage and fields of fire - as well as various maps detailing the conflicts discussed.

Iain Ballantyne, Pen and Sword, ISBN 18441 5983 3

The mission of the German battleship Bismarck was to destroy convoys in transit between North America and Great Britain – but she was to have only one operation during her brief career following a relentless pursuit by the Royal Navy. Ballantyne’s fascinating narrative gives new insights into this famous episode in naval history, focusing on eyewitness accounts of British sailors, marines and carrier aviators.

Brian Lavery, Conway Maritime, ISBN 9791 8448 61095

This book, produced to accompany a major BBC television series, tells the story of how the Royal Navy expanded from a tiny force to become the most complex industrial enterprise on earth.

Gloriously illustrated with special photography taken during the filming of the series and numerous historic artworks and documents, the book explores themes such as the Navy’s relationship with the State and the British people and the tactics and initiatives that created such decisive sea victories.

Captain Peter Hore, Seafarer Books, ISBN 978 1 906266 08 0

In November 1941 the Australian light cruiser HMAS Sydney, with a crew of 645, disappeared off the coast of Western Australia. Almost at once conspiracy theories sprang up to explain the tragic loss of the pride of the Australian navy. The wrecks of the two ships were finally located in March 2008. Based on the author's decryption and interpretation of German coded accounts, interviews with survivors from the raider Kormoran and other research, this fascinating narrative lays to rest much of the controversy surrounding the tragedy. A compelling piece of historical detective work.

Roy and Lesley Adkins. Abacus paperback ISBN 978 0349 11916 8

The Adkins set themselves a daunting task - to cover such an action-packed seventeen year period as 1798-1815 in just volume - but they succeed brilliantly and bring it to life in this compelling narrative history.

Their inclusion of eye-witness accounts gives a powerful immediacy to the text. And for those wanting to follow up a particular item, the book is well indexed with an extensive notes and bibliography section.

William James, Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0851779050

This is the first in a comprehensive six-volume set that covers the operation of the Royal Navy during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.

In this volume James examines such important aspects as the naval events at Toulon in 1793 where Sidney Smith burnt half of the French Mediterranean fleet, Howe's victory at the Glorious First of June and the Royal Navy's role in colonial expeditions.

The volumes can be purchased separately, or as the complete set - and provide an unsurpassed historical record of Kydd's Navy, both on the national and international scale.

John Winton, Conway Maritime, ISBN 1844860078

It was very fitting in the Year of the Sea that Conway brought out a revised edition of Winton's splendid history of that most British of institutions, the Royal Navy. This impressive book begins with the reign of King John and concludes with the nuclear age of warships - and includes superb four-colour illustrations throughout, as well as first-hand reminiscences of life on board a warship. The sort of book you can either read from cover to cover - or just dip into at random to find something to catch the eye...

Brian Lavery, Conway Maritime, ISBN 184486 0167

Published by Conway Maritime in conjunction with the National Maritime Museum, this was the official volume of SeaBritain 2005. Superbly illustrated, the book celebrates 2000 years of maritime and naval history - and is certainly a worthy addition to the wonderful feast of books coming out every year about the sea.

William James, Conway Maritime, ISBN 0-85177-9875

James wrote "Naval Occurrences" to counter the version of the war put forward by American authors and concluded that "no American ship of war has...captured a British ship of the same force."

(William James is of course better known for his later 6-volume epic "The Naval History of Great Britain" from which, however, many of his more controversial passages about the 1812-1814 war were trimmed.)