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...to the website of James L. Nelson, award-winning author of historical maritime fiction and nonfiction. On this page, you'll find the latest books and projects; for more information on upcoming lectures and such, please visit the Author Events page. To learn more about the author himself, see our About the Author page.
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The Narrow Seas
BOOK XI OF THE NORSEMEN SAGA
Available Now!

Thorgrim Night Wolf and his men, facing off against the powerful army of Æthelwulf, king of Wessex, must find some means to continue their voyage home. But Æthelwulf, too, is trapped, unable to set sail on his pilgrimage to Rome while the powerful fleet of Northmen remains at his
doorstep. Only when the enigmatic Felix proposes a solution that will take them across the narrow seas that separate England from Frankia is the impasse broken. This new plan will lead Thorgrim and Louis de Roumois closer to their homes, and into even greater danger on the distant shore.

​As Thorgrim fights for his survival, his son Odd, leader of the rebellion against Halfdan the Black, and his brothers-in-arms, must gauge the threat that awaits them as they make their secret way toward their former homes. But they soon learn the truth; Halfdan’s fury has not abated, and
the king will stop at nothing to run Odd to earth and crush him and his rebellion once and for all.
"Nelson's Viking Sagas are a tour de force of tautly crafted twists, turns full of authentic detail, and plots that drive you to the finish!"
 – Dewey Lambdin, author of the Alan Lewrie Naval Adventures
The Falmouth Frigate

BOOK VI OF THE REVOLUTION AT SEA SAGA
The year 1777 is bleak indeed for the cause of American Independence, with the British army twice defeating Washington and taking the capital city of Philadelphia, and the Royal navy sweeping aside the defenses of the Delaware Bay.

And for Captain Isaac Biddlecomb and the men of the half-built frigate Falmouth things are more dire still. After managing to slip through a British blockade they find themselves trapped in a desolate harbor on the New Jersey coast and menaced not by the British but by the outlaw bands that terrorize the countryside and see Falmouth as a potentially valuable prize. Biddlecomb’s most potent weapon, the captured British sloop Sparrowhawk, is gone, stolen by the deserter Angus McGinty, and Biddlecomb is left to face the ruthless Pine Robbers on his own, with only his diminished crew and the near-useless local militia to help.
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Meanwhile, Virginia Biddlecomb, trapped in occupied Philadelphia, sees her chance to play a clandestine role in the fight. In the course of her activities, however, she lets slip information that will put her husband, his ship and crew in mortal danger, leading to a desperate race get the unwieldy Falmouth to a place beyond the reach of the Royal Navy.
"[Nelson] writes with such clarity and conviction... follow the action and be gripped
​by it...."
– Allan Massie, The Wall Street Journal
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