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Loading... Signal-Close Action! (1974)by Alexander Kent
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Belongs to SeriesBolitho (14, 1798)
The year is 1798. Commodore Richard Bolitho is sent to the Mediterranean where Napoleon's naval forces are massing, preparing to annex Egypt. When Bolitho places his squadron between the Nile and the entire French fleet, the fate of his men and the freedom of his nation hang on the decisions he must make in the awful heat of battle. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)823.914Literature English & Old English literatures English fiction Modern Period 1901-1999 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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In this book, Richard Bolitho is Commodore commanding a small squadron in the Mediterranean Sea in 1798, tasked with figuring out what the French fleet is up to and making recommendations. The squadron consists of three 74s, a frigate, and a sloop; most are commanded by folks we've encountered in earlier books. Thomas Herrick's the flag captain, George Probyn and Charles Farquhar command the other line-of-battle ships, and Francis Inch has the sloop. All in all the assignment's a frustrating experience; while they know there's an enemy fleet in the Med, they can't pin down its location. (I'm leaving out a lot of detail, here, as the story's largely about personality conflicts between the characters I've just mentioned.)
The alert reader will have recognized this plot is a small-scale version of Horatio Nelson's 1798; indeed, Bolitho's well aware of Nelson's efforts, but circumstances--not to mention the frustration of an apparently-failed search effort--prevent the two from actually meeting. Francis Inch manages to ferry messages between the fleets, to his delight, but they're inconsequential.
Bolitho eventually manages to communicate his belief (not quite knowledge) that the French fleet is at Aboukir Bay, so Nel can chase Admiral Brueys (and Napoleon) down and win the Battle of the Nile. Bolitho's ships have an encounter with the French just before the main battle and are therefor too damaged to actively participate in the victory.
Incidentally, this is the novel where Herrick's wife-to-be, Dulcie, first appears.
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