Martin Hicks

A Gathering of Soldiers relates the story of Daniel Ryan, an Irish immigrant who has begun a new life in Georgia just as the events leading up to the momentous civil war in America have begun to unfold. The book describes his experiences upon...

It is the late autumn of 1854 and the steam gunboat Spartan, commanded by James Rutherford has returned to duty following the repair of her battle damage in Calcutta.Another, though less powerful, Russian commerce raider is still at large in the China...

The box, skillfully fashioned from wood and with a pattern of stars inlaid on its side, was clearly very old.Intrigued by its age and craftsmanship, David Molloy bought it at the car boot sale in a Glasgow school playground, an acquisition that led to...

"A Season for Killing" is told from the perspective of Daniel Ryan, a corporal in Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Virginia in 1864 during the American Civil War, as the brutal campaign in the spring and summer of that year unfolds. Ryan, an Irish...

When Lieutenant James Rutherford of the Honourable East India Company is summoned to Government House in Calcutta, he has no inkling of what awaits him there. To his great surprise, he is offered command of the Spartan, a newly converted steam...

It is August 1863 and the Confederate Navy Cruiser Palmetto escapes from Charleston harbour to resume her career as a raider, hunting the shipping of the United States. The succeeding months see her range the Atlantic Ocean before facing a wild...

Bond of Blood tells the story of two Irish brothers, each of whom makes the life-changing journey to the new world as the second half of the 19th century draws on. Thomas and Michael Casey are linked by blood, but find themselves on opposite sides of...

HARD PASSAGE NORTH continues the story of Irish immigrant Daniel Ryan, who has left his adopted Georgia home to serve in Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. It is the summer of 1862 and, following the campaign to save their capital...

It is May of 1863 and the Civil War in North America has entered its third year. Facing a range of enemy threats, southern commander General Robert E. Lee proposes an invasion of the northern states to supply his army, relieve pressure on other...

It is the Spring of 1864 and the Confederate raider Palmetto is off the Philippines, pursuing her campaign against US shipping. For her captain, Thomas Grover there is much to consider, for with the ship’s previously sustained engine damage not fully...

It is 1861 and Thomas Grover has resigned from the US Navy to go with his native state of South Carolina which has left the Union.For two years his career in the new Confederate Navy is tedious and unrewarding. He is posted to Britain as a naval...

It is the late summer of 1863 and the third year of the war in North America. In the wake of the defeat at Gettysburg, Robert E. Lee has returned, with his Confederate army, to Virginia. But a further crisis to the west, in the Tennessee theatre of...

It is the summer of 1853 and Commander James Rutherford leaves Calcutta once more to renew his campaign against organised Oriental piracy. The principal pirate leader Liang Ziu is dead, but Rutherford obtains intelligence that his criminal...

The Rappahannock Line continues the story of Irish immigrant Daniel Ryan who serves in Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. As the year 1862 draws to its close, the powerful Union army gathers its strength on the Rappahannock River...

It is early 1854 and war looms with Tsarist Russia. James Rutherford and his ship Spartan are transferred to Royal Navy service and given a role patrolling Oriental waters in search of a powerful enemy warship which seeks to prey upon allied shipping....

It is the autumn of 1852 and the British warship Spartan, commanded by James Rutherford, continues her mission for the East India Company, to destroy a criminal consortium led by the Scorpion, a Chinese criminal named Liang Ziu, who controls an...