A novel based on the short, eventful and tragic life of Englishman William Reynolds as it unfolds against that of Prussian immigrant to the USA, George Atzerodt.

Following the death of his father in Gosport's Haslar Hospital in 1853, a seafaring uncle exerts a paternalistic influence upon the young William Reynolds, deviously arranging his entry into the Royal Navy. This was much against his will since William's ambition was to become a soldier.

Raised by his widowed mother and grandmother, Reynolds' story shifts from the Hampshire village of Forton - and the kindly Parson...