J. E. MacDonnell, Abandon Ship, 1963
Australia
HMAS Wind Rode (G46)
J, K & N Class Destroyer?
Details as per the real ships
Note: See the entry for 'Repel Boarders' (1963) for additional details on the pennant number.
HMAS Scimitar (G42)
J, K & N Class Destroyer?
Details as per the real ships.
Name clash with S Class (WWI) Destroyer HMS Scimitar which served in WWII and was scrapped in 1947. The pennant clashes with that of HMS Lincoln (ex-USS Yarnall (DD-143)), a Town Class Destroyer.
Note: See the entry for 'Sainsbury, VC' (1962) for additional details on the ship. The author explicitly confirms that these two novels are in the same 'Universe', however by the time the novel is set she is no longer under the same commander.
HMAS Swallow
J, K & N Class Destroyer?
Details as per the real ships.
Note: Author explicitly identifies the ship as a destroyer. The name clashes with an S Class (WWI) Destroyer sold for scrap in 1936 (It was one of 24 old destroyers traded to the scrapyard for the former RMS Majestic (ex-SS Bismark.)) and with a C Class (WWII) Destroyer that was renamed HMS Caprice while under construction.
Unnamed
'Destroyer', class not specified
No other details provided
United States
Unnamed
A task force comprising 1 Cruiser and 6 Destroyers.
Japan
Various Unnamed submarines and cruisers.
Plot summary: It is the last years of World War II in the Pacific (A precise date is not given, but the story appears to be set during the Philippines Campaign (October 1944 to the end of the War.)). An Allied convoy makes it's way north, for one ship, it's reputation damaged by Japanese propaganda, this may be the last chance to put the record straight...
Note: J. E. MacDonnell was a prolific Australian writer of action fiction for newsstand paperbacks. Some of the novels by him covered in this thread include, 'Gimme the boats!' (1953), 'Wings Off The Sea' (1953), 'The Frogman' (1958), 'Night Encounter' (1958), 'The Surgeon' (1959), 'The Secret Weapon' (1959), 'Subsmash' (1960), 'The Coxswain' (1960), 'U-Boat' (1962), 'Not Under Command' (1963), 'Killer Group' (1964), 'The Snake Boats' (1967), 'Approved to Scrap' (1968), 'The Hammer of God' (1968), 'Hunter-Killer' (1968), 'Petty Officer Brady' (1968), 'The Last Stand' (1970), 'The Kill' (1974), 'Breaking Point' (1979) & 'The Glory Hunter' (c. 1980s) . He also wrote a series of 'James Bond' style superspy thrillers featuring an agent named Mark Hood, novels in this series that have appeared in the thread are 'Come Die With Me' (1965) and 'Operation Octopus' (1968).
