Bøger af David Donachie

When John Pearce is sent on a mission to collect fleeing members of the Corsican government, he seeks the aid of a local clan chief, inadvertently putting himself, his crew, and his rescued charges in jeopardy.

London, 1793: Young firebrand John Pearce, on the run from the authorities, is illegally press-ganged from the Pelican Tavern into brutal life aboard HMS Brilliant, a frigate on its way to war. Shipboard life is hard, brutal, and dangerous¿that anyone chooses it suggests that life ashore is even worse. But Pearce is not alone; he is drawn to a disparate group of men pressed alongside him who eventually form an exclusive gun crew, the Pelicans, with Pearce their elected leader.The Pelicans find solidarity in facing together the cruelty of their hard-nosed captain, Barclay, and the daily threat of bullying, flogging¿even murder. The one light on the horizon is the captain's wife, Emily, who is also aboard and new to life at sea. During an action-packed two weeks, as HMS Brilliant chases a French privateer across the English Channel, Pearce discovers the British Navy is a world in which he can prosper, and he and the Pelicans form friendships that will last a lifetime.

Winter 1795: Lieutenant John Pearce, reckoning to have finally ditched his old enemy, Admiral Hotham, has found a new one in Henry Digby, previously a friend. Meanwhile, Pearce's pregnant and recently widowed lover is adamant they cannot be seen together for the sake of their unborn child as she seeks respectability in society.Aboard HMS Flirt as part of the squadron led by Horatio Nelson, Pearce and his Pelicans soon join a reconnaissance mission which results in the destruction of a key French battery¿though the success is short-lived. In raids ashore, split loyalties, and bloody sea fights, Pearce must show bravery and resourcefulness to ensure his survival and return to Emily. But the headstrong lieutenant is faced with immense danger, not only from the enemy but also from his own captain. Only luck and Pearce's fierce appetite for battle can save them from the perils ahead.

With his fiery Irish blood and well-known reputation for trouble, Lieutenant George Markham leads his embattled Royal Marines against the French in Corsica. His mission: to seize the island. His problem: not just the French, but spies, traitors, and jealous rivals¿including jealous husbands. As the bastard son of a Catholic father and a Protestant mother, Markham has a lot to prove. But as a scarred veteran of the war in America and against the French, Markham is battle-hardened in a way too many of his senior officers aren't, and his hardness wins over his men¿men whom even their own officers regard as the scum of the earth. With the help of these men, Markham ventures across the island to persuade the veteran war hero Pasquali Paoli to unite the Corsicans behind him. But their loyalty remains torn by a heritage of vendettas, French bribery, and cross and double-cross. Enemies abound, in both French blue and British red, and the only men Markham can rely on are the grim, taciturn Sergeant Rannoch and a man who owes Markham his life: Bellamy, the educated, black Marine. Brimming with violent action and an energetic, pulsating plot, Honour Redeemed is a worthy successor to A Shred of Honour in the gripping Markham of the Marines series.

1942: The time of Stalingrad.At home, Elisabeth von Trecheim must run the family estate, not knowing if her husband is alive or dead. Into her life steps a handsome English Prisoner of War, invoking troubling memories. Her husband, Hans, must survive a Russian prison camp; no food, raging epidemics, men dying like flies. He finds himself teaching a female Russian doctor horsemanship, which grows into something more intimate. With the war ending, Hans wants to go home, but Elisabeth must abandon it, fleeing West, aided by the Englishman. Each desires freedom, but who will succeed and with whom? Perfect for fans of Ken Follett's "Century Trilogy". David Donachie is a Scottish historical novelist. He also writes under the names Tom Connery, Jack Ludlow and Jack Cole.

1940. Dunkirk is over? Will Britain fight on or talk peace?Fugitive and Hitler admirer, Billy Houston, craves a Nazi-run Britain. Needing money and intent on burglary, it ends in murder. But he’s in luck, his victim has in his possession the entire anti-invasion plans for Southern Britain, this while Armistice talks are slated to take place on the Isle of Wight. A desperate Billy makes contact with Rudi Graebner, a German naval officer and spy embedded in the Spanish Embassy. The two have nothing in common - they instinctively take a dislike to each other and trust is at a premium. But even so, they must work together to get the plans to the German delegation, as Billy wonders if he's at as much risk from his glory-seeking German agent as the MI5 pursuit. Adam Strachan, Deputy Director of Counter-Espionage at MI5, faces his greatest challenge. Working with detectives from Scotland Yard, he must find Billy Houston and the National Defence Plans. But his quarry enjoys an amazing run of luck. Time after time, they evade capture by a whisker. Will Houston and Graebner succeed, or fall out? If they do, Hitler will be able to make demands to so weaken the country, it will leave Britain weak and wide open, very soon, to a future German invasion.Perfect for fans of Ken Follett, Alan Furst and Samuel Marquis.

Volume #3 in The Last Roman trilogy. Sixth-century Byzantium is a hotbed of intrigue. Count Flavius Belisarius, the empire's most successful military leader, must navigate a world infested with too many enemies and few friends-and fight and win battles along the way.

Volume #1 in The Last Roman trilogy. It is the sixth century of the Byzantium Empire. When Flavius Belisaurius witnesses the death of his father and the irretrievable tarnishing of his reputation, his life changed for good. Flavius swears vengeance on the man who betrayed his father and begins a journey from which there is no virtuous way back.

Volume #2 in The Last Roman trilogy. Justinian desperately wants the lost provinces returned to his rule but must first dispatch his brave general, Belisarius, to fight the Persians. Concerned that Belisarius will grow successful and become a powerful rival, Justinian then dis...

1936: When a favor to a friend leaves Cal Jardine caught up in the Spanish Civil War, he finds himself with an interesting assortment of fighters. His new compatriots are a group of athletes in Barcelona for the People's Olympiad. Together, they make an effective team and are primed for the fight; however, with a communist fanatic in the ranks, trouble is brewing. Even worse, a murderous betrayal lies ahead which threatens not just the fight, but Jardine himself. From the street battles of Barcelona to the fighting in the countryside, Jardine finds action as well as friendship?but will he have suitable revenge on his betrayer?

1935: Cal Jardine is a soldier of fortune. Forced to leave Hamburg, where he has been helping Jews flee the Nazis, he is recruited by a secretive British committee to smuggle guns to Abyssinia, a country threatened by Italian invasion. But first Jardine must procure the weapons from Romania, a country full of treacherous locals as well as German agents seeking his arrest. By sleight of hand, he contrives to steal the weapons he wanted to buy before escaping the country, leaving both the Romanians and Germans floundering. Taken to the Horn of Africa, the arms are then transported over a harsh landscape, along an old slave trader's route full of danger, into the hands of the Ethiopian Army. On his travels, Jardine acquires more baggage than he anticipated, including a beautiful but difficult American woman in search of her archaeologist mother, a determined reporter, and a daredevil French flyer, while missing out on a painful death by sheer good fortune. But the Ethiopians are ill-equipped to face a modern Italian army using tanks, bombers, and poison gas. Trained for war, can Jardine simply walk away? Or will he be drawn into a bloody conflict against massive odds, and manage to save those who now depend on him?

1938: While Hitler sets his sights on the Sudetenland, not everyone in Britain is willing to appease him. Convinced that the Fuhrer's land-hunger is insatiable, the head of the SIS recruits Cal Jardine to help him prove that Czechoslovakia is threatened with invasion. As jealousy and mutual suspicions within secret service ranks make it impossible for Jardine to tell friend from foe, he rediscovers old friends of dubious loyalty and makes new enemies of untested ruthlessness. This is the final installment in Ludlow's sweeping series set in the pre-WWII European powder-keg.

"Fourteenth-century Italy: The Hundred Years' War is over but the country is in upheaval. Unable to rely on their own citizens to fight their battles, cities and Popes are forced to pay vast amounts of money to mercenary captains to fight on their behalf. Hawkwood, a valiant Englishman, shrewd and relentless on the battlefield, finds himself fighting for and against any state of Italy prepared to pay handsomely"--

1794: Stationed in the Mediterranean, John Pearce finds himself entangled in a political plot and fighting against a superior force of Barbary corsairs.

1794: Stuck in the Mediterranean, headstrong lieutenant John Pearce must repair his battle-damaged ship, face a court-martial, and survive a battle against a bloodthirsty and piratical Turk.

It’s the perfect Special Forces snatch, kidnapping the Vice President of the USA and killing three of his Close Protection Team? For Brit Jamie Strachan, ex-SAS soldier and long-time friend of Vice-President, Phil Beekman, it looks too perfect. The Veep is ex-Delta Force so he knows how to survive. With the help of feisty New Yorker, Clare Holman, Jamie Strachan is able to access the investigation trying to find him. He is soon mystified and damned curious....Beekman is vying for the Presidential Nomination; he needs to be at the convention. But too many people would prefer him to remain absent. Worse, he was on his way to secretly meet the political opponent and Hispanic leader, Aldo Franciscus. To talk? About what? How come those who took him knew exactly where he was going and made the snatch with such ease? Finding out taxes all Jamie Strachan’s skills, putting his life in danger as well as that of Clare Holman, in an attempt to get his old friend to where unknown enemies don’t want him to be? A hard-hitting, action-packed political thriller. Perfect for fans L. T. Ryan, J. B. Turner, and Netflix hit "Designated Survivor".

La cerimonia funebre del longobardo Guaimaro, che un tempo era stato un potente duca di Salerno, sta per essere celebrata in sordina. La campana rintocca, il vescovo è pronto per avviare la liturgia, finché una parola interrompe la solenne sacralità del momento: "Normanni".Si apre così il primo romanzo della serie che vede come protagonisti i sei fratelli Altavilla, nobili di origine normanna che contribuirono a cambiare per sempre il destino dell’Europa. Con il solo aiuto dell'ingegno e del proprio coraggio, gli uomini sfideranno i longobardi, il Papa e addirittura il Sacro Romano Impero, cambiando per sempre il corso della storia.Riportando alla luce un periodo storico spesso trascurato dalla narrativa europea, David Donachie riesce a coniugare con maestria accurati dettagli storici e finzione, accompagnando il lettore in un’avventura mozzafiato tra intrighi storici, battaglie all’ultimo sangue e personaggi intrepidi e valorosi. Insieme a "Tom Connery" e "Jack Cole", "Jack Ludlow" è uno degli pseudonimi utilizzati dal romanziere scozzese David Donachie (1944). Grande appassionato di storia navale, Donachie ambienta molte delle sue opere nel XVIII e XIX secolo. Tra i romanzi più famosi firmati come Jack Ludlow figurano "L’oracolo di Roma", "Mercenari" e "Guerrieri".

Italia meridionale, undicesimo secolo. Il potere esercitato sulla Puglia da parte dell’impero bizantino sta iniziando a scricchiolare. Rivolte e tumulti imperversano lungo la costa adriatica. Il longobardo Arduino, un mercenario al servizio del generale Michele Doceano, decide di sequestrare la fortezza di Melfi. L'unico modo per fronteggiare l'esercito nemico è però quello di ottenere l'aiuto di Guglielmo D'Altavilla e dei suoi sei fratelli...Riportando alla luce un periodo storico spesso trascurato dalla narrativa europea, David Donachie riesce a coniugare con maestria accurati dettagli storici e finzione, accompagnando il lettore in un’avventura mozzafiato tra intrighi storici, battaglie all’ultimo sangue e personaggi intrepidi e valorosi. Insieme a "Tom Connery" e "Jack Cole", "Jack Ludlow" è uno degli pseudonimi utilizzati dal romanziere scozzese David Donachie (1944). Grande appassionato di storia navale, Donachie ambienta molte delle sue opere nel XVIII e XIX secolo. Tra i romanzi più famosi firmati come Jack Ludlow figurano "L’oracolo di Roma", "Mercenari" e "Guerrieri".

John Pearce's promotion means that he is free to follow his own wishes. While Pearce is indulging himself in London, his trio of friends are shipped off to the Mediterranean. Pearce vows to liberate them from the brutal tyrant they are serving under. But Pearce is obliged to embark on a dangerous mission before he can free his friends.

1794. Lieutenant John Pearce is caught between a feuding trio of admirals. One puts him in a position of danger while another asks him to undertake a hazardous commission in order to protect his friends, the Pelicans. Meanwhile, Pearce is also trying to construct a perjury case against Admiral Ralph Barclay. Barclay''s own wife has turned against him, but by law she cannot testify against her husband. Her cowardly nephew has become a pawn in the Admiral''s game, the objective of which is to finally silence Pearce.

Lieutenant John Pearce must undertake an urgent commission from Lord Hood, track down midshipman Toby Burns, and placate Emily Barclay. He can only hope that his troubles will end along with his mission, but are they only just beginning?

Free from jail, John Pearce must undertake a dangerous mission in support of a massive revolt in the Vendée region of France. As high rebellious ambition turns to bloody disaster, Pearce faces real peril, climaxing in one of the greatest battles of the French Revolutionary Wars: the Glorious First of June.

Fugitive Billy Houston, keen to bring about a Nazi-run Britain, needs money. Intent on burglary, his victim has in his possession the entire anti-invasion plans for Southern Britain. Billy must get the plans to the German delegation. Will he succeed? If he does, Hitler will lead Britain to a German invasion.

John Pearce finds himself working aboard HMS Griffin sailing the Channel in search of the numerous French privateers preying on English merchant ships. He must find a way off the ship in order to rescue his ailing father from the dangers of revolutionary Paris. But when traveling to France, he discovers that his worst fears have become reality.

John Pearce is entrusted with the task of escorting 5,000 radical French sailors to a port on the Atlantic coast where they are to be set free. But when the assignment goes awry, it is up to Pearce and his trio of friends, the Pelicans, to prevent judicial murder.

After situating his previous crew in comfort, John Pearce charts his return home to his pregnant darling Emily. He is tasked with outsmarting his enemies Admiral William Hotham and Emily's husband Captain Ralph Barclay who can legally claim Pearce's child as his own.

Lieutenant John Pearce is seeking protection for his friends from a reluctant Admiralty. Lacking the evidence of perjury, his prospects are not promising. Ralph Barclay's wife has the means to get her own way: the evidence Pearce believes was lost at sea. His friends join Pear...

John Pearce and his Pelicans are going home to gain their freedom and put the treacherous Captain Ralph Barclay in the dock. Emily Barclay discovers Pearce has papers that would ruin her husband's career and her future security. Back on British soil, the real concerns have just begun.

Edward Brazier is enlisted by Prime Minister William Pitt to assist his investigation into smuggling activity in Deal. However, with his love Betsy now locked into a loveless marriage with Tom Spafford, Brazier is distracted from his mission.