The Time of Terror: A British Naval Officer Battles the French Fleet as Blood Flows in Paris »

Seth Hunter is the pseudonym of the author of a number of highly acclaimed novels for adults and children. He has written and directed many historical dramas for British television, radio, and the theatre. He lives in London. Visit him on the web at www.nathanpeake.com

In 1793, British navy commander Nathan Peake patrols the English coast, looking for smugglers. Desperate for some real action, Peake gets his chance when France declares war on England and descends into the bloody madness of the Terror. Peake is entrusted with a mission to wreck the French economy by smuggling fake banknotes into Paris. His activities take him down Paris streets patrolled by violent mobs and into the sinister catacombs beneath the French capital. And they bring him close to famous characters of the day: the English feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, her American lover Gilbert Imlay who acts as George Washington's agent in Paris, and the British/American writer and revolutionary Thomas Paine. As opposition the Terror mounts, Peake fights to carry out his mission - and to save the life of the woman he loves.

Publishers Weekly

British writer Hunter's rousing American debut, the first of a trilogy, features Royal Navy officer Nathan Peake, a 23-year-old mariner whose misadventures had convinced him early on that “he was born to hang.” In 1793, Nathan is plucked from the deck of his warship and sent to Paris on a secret mission, disguised as an American sea captain smuggling tobacco into France. He is unwittingly involved in a British plot to ruin the French economy by flooding France with counterfeit banknotes and to provide gold to bribe French revolutionaries. Unfortunately, the viciousness of the Paris mob, the duplicity of revolutionaries like Robespierre, and the specter of the guillotine threaten Nathan, his conspirators, and the condemned widow he loves. Our hero survives sea battles, assassin attacks, and torture, but his schemes often tragically fail. Hunter (a pseudonym) presents a complex plot, written with wit, suspense, intrigue, and action. Along with a flawed but likable character, he reveals the bloody history of the French Revolution, and establishes solid ground for the upcoming sequels, already published in the U.K. (Apr.)