Post Captain

First published in 1972, this is the second novel about Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin. During the Peace of Amiens, Aubrey is ashore in England, pursued by creditors and by the courtship of Sophie Williams, while Maturin continues intelligence work and his attachment to Diana Villiers. When war with France resumes, the two are caught on the wrong side of the Channel and must get home. Later chapters return them to a ship, a difficult captaincy, and actions in the Atlantic. The book mixes drawing-room comedy with naval routine. It is a historical novel of the Napoleonic wars, not a biography of any one officer.

Bound in blue buckram, cover blocked in gilt, black, green and white with a designs by Neil Gower. Blue slipcase.