An Awkward Commission

After a number of months, a whirlwind of the press gang, service at sea, wild storms, bitter battles with the enemy and a promotion, John Pearce finally finds himself free to follow his own wishes, rather than being forced to serve any longer in King George's Navy. The same does not apply for the trio of Pearce's closest friends who, with him as their leader, call themselves the Pelicans. Unaware of this, and arriving in Portsmouth, Pearce feels certain he can free his comrades. However, on arrival and seeking to liberate his fellow Pelicans, Pearce is informed that the trio have been shipped out on another vessel, condemned to service because of Pearce's over-indulgence in the arms of a woman. Still haunted by his father's execution at the guillotine, and his guilt at arriving too late in France to save him, Pearce is determined to keep to this vow of liberation. When help is refused from all higher powers and Pearce refuses to surrender, he embarks on an adventure to free his friends with or without aid.

Born in Edinburgh in 1944, David Donachie has had a variety of jobs, including selling everything from business machines to soap. He has always had an abiding interest in the naval history of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The author of a number of bestselling books, he now lives in Deal, Kent with his wife, the novelist Sarah Grazebrook and their two children.