Ramage is hoping to enjoy a well-deserved leave when he instead receives new orders: commission and take command of the Dido, a massive 74-gun ship that carries enough weight of metal to destroy a frigate in a single broadside or sweep a ship's decks clear of men. Accompanied by the courageous crew of the Calypso, Ramage ventures to sea once again—bound for the West Indies, where he faces the challenge of commanding this massive weapon of war.

In recognition of his great achievements at sea, their Lordships of the Admiralty have made Lord Nicholas Ramage captain of a ship of the line - the youngest man to be so honoured since Nelson himself. And so Ramage sets sail on the Dido, a formidable fighting weapon and the most prized war machine of the British Navy.

Ramage and the Calypso are sent to Sicily to track down Barbary Coast pirates—the Saraceni—who are capturing slaves and terrorizing fishing villages along the coast. Ramage is ordered to track the pirates to their home and destroy them before they can devastate another Sicilian town—and in the process, he and his crew must attempt to rescue hundreds of Italian prisoners!

1796 - sea battles raging and an attack from the French has left third-lieutenant Ramage the sole officer in charge of his frigate. With orders from Nelson to be obeyed young Ramage must rise to the challenge. This thrilling adventure is the first in Dudley Pope's popular and much-loved Ramage series.

Across the English Channel, Napoleon has massed a great invasion flotilla. English forces, under Lord Nelson, are all but paralyzed—not knowing the size, strength, or time of the foreign onslaught. In a brilliant yet daring spy scheme to protect Britain's shores, Lieutenant Lord Nicholas Ramage is chosen to plumb the secrets of the French High Command—and the penalty for failure is the guillotine.

Captain Ramage sails to Naples in the frigate Calypso. It is not long after Trafalgar and the last thing he expects is an encounter with two French ships of the line. Adventure follows, as it does when he finally arrives in Naples and is ordered to sail to Sicily where the Saraceni - Barbary Coast pirates - have been attacking the local ports.

The Treaty of Amiens is signed and Nelson's navy languishes in port. Ramage is at home on half pay and suspects Napoleon will yet break the terms of the Treaty. He is then given secret Admiralty orders to survey a small island off the coast of Brazil. He sails in Calypso, but then encounters more danger than in previous exploits.