Books by James Nelson

Recounts the courageous and exemplary campaign of Arnold Benedict and his cobbled-together fleet of 'ships' against the British in the Battle of Valcour Island (Lake Champlain) in October 1776.

Former pirate and captain of Guardship, Thomas Marlowe, is now a man of property, keeping his prosperous tobacco plantation in Virginia with his wife Elizabeth. But the Anglo-Spanish war has meant a decline in tobacco prices, and Thomas decides to come to England to trade his wares, thinking that he will meet an old enemy from his pirating days.

It is the summer of 1776 in the former Crown Colony of New York. A fleet of British transport ships are looming off Staten Island, while on Brooklyn Heights the remnants of General George Washington's army are huddled behind hastily constructed fortifications. There, Captain Isaac Biddlecomb seeks Washington's help.

Having survived the bloody Battle of New Orleans and the loss of his ship, Captain Sam Bowater is given new orders - to take command of an ironclad warship being built in Memphis, Tennessee. Outnumbered and outgunned, the Confederates once again fling themselves bravely at the overwhelming power of the Yankee invaders.

As the War of Independence begins in earnest, American merchant seamen prepare to strike the first blows. None strikes more deftly than Isaac Biddlecomb, captain of the Judea, whose smuggling activities are making a mockery of His Majesty's Royal Navy. Pursued by the HMS Rose, he sacrifices the ship he loved to the depths.

It is 1777, and captain Isaac Biddlecomb, together with his wife and child, is bound for Philadelphia aboard the brig Charlemagne. His orders are to take command of the newly-built frigate Falmouth and take her out to sea before she is taken by General Richard Howe's invading army.

Biddlecomb meanwhile must work to free his ship and his men and capture the gunpowder so vital in the fight for freedom. Will Biddlecomb and Fitzgerald overcome their common enemy - the greatest military power on Earth?The Maddest Idea is the second novel in James Nelson's Revolution at Sea series.

Thomas Marlowe, former pirate and captain of the Guardship, lives prosperously on his tobacco plantation near Williamsburg with his lovely wife Elizabeth. But when King James, the huge ex-slave who is in command of Marlowe's sloop, kills the crew of a slaveship and makes himself the most wanted man in, Marlowe is forced to go and hunt him down.

In the winter of 1776, a decade of simmering tensions finally comes to the boil. The rebel government of Philadelphia, determined to cast off the chains of British tyranny, has authorised the creation of the United States Navy - a brazen act of American aggression against the greatest maritime power in the world.

With the bounty from his years as a pirate, Thomas Marlowe purchases a fine Virginia plantation from a beautiful young widow, Elizabeth Tinling. But a threat from his illicit past appears, however, as an old pirate enemy plots to seize the colony's wealth, forcing Marlowe to choose between losing all - or facing the one man he fears.

Bestselling author James Nelson brings us another gripping and absorbing maritime adventure. Perfect for readers of Julian Stockwin, CS Forester and Alexander Kent."It is, by far, the best Civil War novel I've ever read; reeking of battle, duty, heroism and tragedy...a triumph of imagination and good taut writing" -- BERNARD CORNWELL"Authenticity runs throughout the books, carrying total conviction" -- PATRICK O'BRIAN"Nelson handles deftly the O'Brian dominated maritime genre with...tense action and battle sequences" -- PUBLISHERS WEEKLY"A real page turner where the reader feels part of the action.. you can almost feel the tension and atmosphere..." -- ***** Reader review"By far one of the best books I've ever read in my life" -- ***** Reader review******************************************************************************THROWN IN AT THE DEEP END, CAN HE STEER HIS COMMAND TO VICTORY? At the outbreak of the Civil War, the Confederate Navy must defend nearly 3,000 miles of coastline with only a meagre collection of ships and a handful of men. One of these men is Sam Bowater, a former lieutenant in the United States Navy, who obtains his cherished first command in a tugboat turned gunboat, the Cape Fear, with a ragtag crew. Struggling with the pressures of his first command, in a naval service which is still learning the ropes, Bowater finds himself and his men the only defence between the Confederate shores and the massive Union Navy.From Hampton Roads to Roanoke Island, to an exciting, bloody night time river fight for New Orleans, Glory In The Name vividly brings to life the dramatic naval battles of the Civil War.Glory In The Name is the first story in James Nelson's Civil War at Sea series. The action continues in Thieves of Mercy.