Master and Commander Charles Hayden returns in the sequel to the international best-seller Under Enemy Colors. Winter, 1793-the Reign of Terror rips through revolutionary France. In Plymouth, England, Master and Commander Charles Hayden is given orders to return to the ill-fated HMS Themis as the British fight the French for control of the strategically located island of Corsica. But within hours out of port, Hayden’s uncanny knack for attracting the attention of the French navy sees the Themis thrown back into action. When she lands in Corsica, and her men join forces with native insurgents, Hayden finds himself at the vanguard of a brutal clash of empires. “Vivid and evocative, especially about what Mr. Russell knows best, the sea and sailing.”-Wall Street Journal on Under Enemy Colors “A first-rate debut features taut plotting, liberal action, and an attractively modest hero: Royal Navy Lieutenant Charles Hayden.”-Publishers Weekly on Under Enemy Colors “A colorful account of duty and honor, punctuated by the cannonade of naval welfare.”-Kirkus Reviews on Under Enemy Colors

1794, the height of the French Revolution– Charles Hayden sets off aboard the ill-fated HMS Themis with orders to destroy a French frigate sailing from Le Havre and to gather intelligence from a royalist spy. On discovering French plans for an imminent invasion of England, Hayden must return to Portsmouth to give warning before it’ s too late. But the enemy has been lying in wait for him, and so begins a dangerous chase out into the Atlantic and into the clutches of a powerful French squadron. After a thwarted attempt to masquerade as French sailors, Hayden and his officers are taken prisoner. A shipwreck following a storm and a case of mistaken identity befall Hayden and his men, as they try in desperation to escape in order to warn the Lords of the Admiralty. Failure will mean the invasion of England– and the guillotine for Hayden.

Born to an English father and a French mother, lieutenant Charles Saunders Hayden’s career is damned by his “mixed” heritage. Assigned to the HMS Themis, an aging frigate under the command of a captain reviled by his crew for both his brutality towards his men and his cowardice in battle, Hayden is torn between honor and duty, as the British navy engages the French in a centuries-old struggle for power.

Charles Hayden returns in the thrilling new naval adventure from bestselling author S. Thomas Russell, today’s “Patrick O’Brian for a new generation” (Kirkus Reviews). Master and Commander Charles Hayden has received fresh orders that take him and the HMS Themis to the Caribbean, with instructions to meddle with French shipping to the colonies. While en route, they rescue two Spanish castaways who beg for help fleeing from a vengeful family situation-Hayden agrees to do what he can, though it’s soon clear his two new guests aren’t exactly what they seem. Arriving in the lawless Caribbean seas, Hayden and Themis find themselves torn between the forces of reckless English captains, conflicts between royalist and revolutionary Frenchmen, and Spanish ships that are enemies to both England and France. And when someone very dear to him is kidnapped, Hayden may sacrifice everything in a reckless pursuit to save her …