In 1803 Napolean smashes the Peace of Amiens, and Captain Jack Abbrey,
RN, taking refuge in France from his creditors, is interned. He escapes
from France, from debtor's prison, from a possible mutiny, and pursues
his quarry straight into the mouth of a French-held harbor. Stephen
Maturin's struggles, with himself as much as with a proud and
intelligent woman, are woven into Aubrey's straining their friendship at
times to the breaking point.