New York, NY: Harper Collins (pub: April 12, 2022)

First Edition. Signed by Tom Clavin.

As new in dust jacket.

The enthralling story of the greatest Civil War battle at sea by the award-winning and bestselling historians Phil Keith and Tom Clavin.

On June 19, 1864, just off the coast of France, one of the most dramatic naval battles in history took place. On a clear day with windswept skies, the dreaded Confederate raider Alabama faced the Union warship Kearsarge in an all-or-nothing fight to the finish, the outcome of which would effectively end the threat of the Confederacy on the high seas.

Authors Phil Keith and Tom Clavin introduce some of the crucial but historically overlooked players, including John Winslow, captain of the USS Kearsarge, as well as Raphael Semmes, captain of the CSS Alabama. Readers will sail aboard the Kearsarge as Winslow embarks for Europe with a set of simple orders from the secretary of the navy: "Travel to the uttermost ends of the earth, if necessary, to find and destroy the Alabama."

Winslow pursued Semmes in a spectacular fourteen-month chase over international waters, culminating in what would become the climactic sea battle of the Civil War.

Phil Keith was the author of six books, including Blackhorse Riders, which won the 2012 award from USA Book News for Best Military Non-Fiction, was a finalist for the 2013 Colby Award, and earned a 2013 silver medal from Military Writers Society of America. He held a degree in history from Harvard and was a former Navy aviator. During three tours in Vietnam, he served with distinction and was awarded, among other decorations, the Purple Heart, Air Medal, Presidential Unit Citation, and the Navy Commendation Medal. Phil passed away in March of 2021.

Tom Clavin is the author of 18 nonfiction books and has worked as a newspaper and web site editor, magazine writer, TV and radio commentator, and a reporter for the New York Times covering entertainment, sports, and the environment. His latest book, Dodge City: Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, and the Wickedest Town in the American West became an immediate New York Times and national bestseller. Three previous books have also been New York Times bestsellers: The Heart of Everything That Is, The Last Stand of Fox Company, and Halsey’s Typhoon.