Book excerpt: 1945. The battle against Japan in the Pacific is reaching its climax. One way or another, Inflexible will be Captain Thurston's last command of the war. Captain Thurston VC is a navy man to his bones. Offered a cushy office job to see out the last months of the war, he resists: instead he's handed command of HMS Inflexible, a proud and powerful aircraft carrier. It is no easy task. The overwhelming determination of the Japanese fighters and the cruel weather conditions make Thurston's command fraught with difficulties, but the struggle to provide air support for the US and Commonwealth troops must continue. Home is on the other side of the world, barely a reality, and Thurston finds that he is striving to do the right thing, not only as the Captain of the Inflexible but also in his private life. For a while he and his men are under daily attack from a deadly enemy, Thurston is plagued by feelings of guilt and remorse for the woman he has left behind. A. E. Langford's compelling naval adventure is an evocative account of life at sea during one of the most perilous and hard-fought battles of this century.