Hodder & Stoughton

It is some time since Thomas Kydd was spirited away in the night to serve his country aboard the old line-of-battle ship Duke William. Now, together with other members of the ill-fated Artemis Tom is a shipwrecked sailor back in the land of his birth. But far from being able to return to loved ones, they find themselves virtual prisoners, waiting to be summoned as court-martial witnesses. In a political act to shield an officer's reputation, they are shipped out in haste to the Caribbean – where sugar is king and the yellow jack is a fearsome peril. There, Kydd finds his seamanship, tenacity and courage put to the ultimate test.

The book is published in the UK by Hodder & Stoughton and in the US by McBooks Press