Rendezvous - South Atlantic

Complex characters, unpredictable plot, sweep and scope!

This novel aptly defines the sailors’ and aviators’ axiom: days of sheer boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror. A Royal Naval Commander trying to cope with PTSD from the loss of his previous command is assigned to command the ship nobody wanted: a nearly thirty year-old medium sized freighter/passenger liner hastily converted to a “raider” with First World War armament and a dysfunctional crew made up of mix of the ship’s former merchant officers, passed over or drummed out Royal Navy regulars, inexperienced Reserves, and recruits fresh from boot camp. They are assigned the patrol area nobody wanted: the Denmark Strait between Iceland and Greenland during winter. Add two nemesis: an opposing German raider that the Admiralty is reluctant to pursue with more modern assets, and a reactivated, pompous Royal Navy Commodore who never fails to complicate Commander Lindsay’s attempts to carry out his mission. The action covers the length of the Atlantic and most of the Indian Ocean as complex characters

reveal themselves gradually and unpredictably. Having spent a career at sea, I could easily associate with the descriptions of watch routine and the challenges of assuming a new command. This was my first Douglas Reeman novel; he’s now on my favorite author list.