David Donachie has 14 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 4 narrators, with an average listener rating of 4.2★ across 4 ratings. The most-rated is By the Mast Divided.
By the Mast Divided
Summary
London: 1793. Young firebrand John Pearce, on the run from the authorities, is illegally press-ganged from the Pelican tavern into brutal life aboard HMS Brilliant, a frigate on her way to war. In the first few days, Pearce discovers the Navy is a world in which he can prosper. And he is not alone; he is drawn to a group of men who eventually form an exclusive gun crew, the Pelicans, with Pearce their elected leader. During an action-packed two weeks, as HMS Brilliant chases a French privateer across the English Channel, these disparate men form friendships that will last a lifetime.
©2004 David Donachie (P)2007 Soundings
A Close Run Thing
Summary
John Pearce is hiding in Gravelines with his mysterious companion, known to him as Oliphant. Although they find a crew willing to take them back to England, they learn on the journey that Pearce’s old enemies, the Tolland brothers, are still active on the route and may have been responsible for the murder of Catherine Carruthers.
Back in England their problems continue: Pearce must seek to mend fences with Emily Barclay, in a relationship in which nothing is simple. And just as things may be looking up, it seems Henry Dundas has another role for him and Oliphant: a mission to northeast Spain....
©2018 David Donachie (P)2018 Soundings
A Shot Rolling Ship
Summary
Pressed into King George's navy for the second time in a month, John Pearce finds himself working aboard HMS Griffin, sailing the Channel in search of the numerous French privateers preying on English merchant ships. Pearce, however, has other things on his mind. He must find a way off the ship in order to rescue his ailing father from the dangers of revolutionary Paris. By inciting mutiny he hopes to escape the ship unnoticed. But travelling to France, John Pearce discovers that his worst fears have become reality. All he can do is return to the Griffin - and exact his revenge.
©2005 David Donachie (P)2005 Soundings
Honour Redeemed
Summary
With his fiery Irish blood and well-known reputation for trouble, Lieutenant George Markham leads his embattled Royal Marines against the French in Corsica. His mission: to seize the island. Markham ventures across the island to persuade the veteran war hero Pasquali Paoli to unite the Corsicans behind him. But their loyalty remains torn by a heritage of vendettas, French bribery, and cross and double cross. Enemies abound, and the only men Markham can rely on are the grim, taciturn Sergeant Rannoch and a man who owes Markham his life - Bellamy, the educated, black Marine.
©1997 Tom Connery (P)2014 Soundings
The Devil to Pay
Summary
It's 1794. Stuck in Palermo harbour, the headstrong Lieutenant John Pearce and his trusty Pelicans must repair the battle-damaged HMS Larcher with only meagre funds to do so. Sailing into danger, they encounter enemies. Pearce has no option but to run until, trapped in an Italian bay, he is forced to abandon his ship. Pearce must face a court-martial for his actions, but his troubles are only just beginning. A deadly plan is contrived to send the unwitting Pelicans into mortal danger against a bloodthirsty, piratical Turk called Mehmet Pasha: The aim is to force them into a disastrous fight they cannot win. Only luck and Pearce’s fiery thirst for battle can save them now....
©2014 David Donachie (P)2015 Soundings
The Perils of Command
Summary
John Pearce, having negotiated the highly questionable sale of the two French prizes taken in The Devil to Pay, has left HMS Flirt, as well as the crew and the wounded Henry Digby in Brindisi and is headed for Naples to see his lover. In an uncomfortable journey he seeks to work out a way to best both Admiral Sir William Hotham and Captain Ralph Barclay, men who are his sworn enemies. All his calculations are thrown into turmoil when he discovers that Emily is pregnant which, while it is a cause for joy, is also a reason to worry; she is still married to Ralph Barclay and by the laws of the time he can claim the child as his own.
©2015 David Donachie (P)2016 Soundings
An Ill Wind
Summary
It is 1793. John Pearce and his Pelicans are going home - to gain their freedom and put the treacherous Captain Ralph Barclay in the dock. Emily Barclay discovers Pearce has papers that would ruin her husband’s career and her future security. And then comes that dread thing, a fire aboard a wooden ship of war! Cast adrift, Pearce and his Pelicans find help from an unlikely source. Finally back on British soil, they hope they have reached the end of their troubles, but with the documents missing, the real concerns have only just begun. Emily Barclay holds the key, but where do her loyalties lie?
©2009 David Donachie (P)2010 Soundings
A Shred of Honour
Summary
Introducing George Markham, lately of the 65th Regiment of Foot, now Lieutenant of Marines on His Britannic Majesty’s frigate Hebe. Irishman, papist, reputed coward; he is a man with something to prove. As the winter of 1793 comes to the Mediterranean coast of France, so too does the chill wind of the Revolutionary terror. When the Hebe is sent to help the Bourbon city of Toulon, Markham will have to prove he is a worthy officer of Marines…or die in the attempt.
©1996 Tom Connery (P)2014 Soundings
A Sea of Troubles
Summary
1794: In the wake of the Glorious First of June, Lieutenant John Pearce has pressing matters to attend to. He must undertake an urgent commission from Lord Hood, track down midshipman Toby Burns, and placate Emily Barclay. Meanwhile smugglers whose ship Pearce inadvertently stole, are on his tail. And it is not only John Pearce who has his fair share of trouble. The triumphant Channel Fleet returns, but the battle is already the subject of controversy - and Ralph Barclay is accused of holding back from the action. Pearce turns the table on his enemies and sets off for the Mediterranean with Emily Barclay. He can only hope that his troubles will end along with his mission. But are they only just beginning?
©2012 David Donachie (P)2013 Soundings
A Divided Command
Summary
Unbeknown to John Pearce, the private letter he is delivering on behalf of the prime minister carries the dismissal of the very man he is sailing to see. The need for a government majority to pursue the war with France means John Pearce must step down as Britain’s best sailor, regretfully relinquishing the position to the incompetent Admiral Hotham. Hotham is equally less than pleased about John Pearce, as he is the one person who knows the truth about his dishonest naval career. Pearce knows Hotham will try and destroy him any way he can to keep from being exposed, so he must navigate the dangerous waters whilst trying to return to Emily Barclay, the woman he loves.
©2013 David Donachie (P)2014 Soundings
The Contraband Shore
Summary
1787. Captain Edward Brazier is on a mission: recently paid off from his frigate and comfortably off with prize money, he is headed to Deal to propose marriage to the young and lovely widow Betsey Langridge. He must navigate the bustle of the town's narrow streets that are busy with legal, illicit and depraved business flowing from and around the ships at dock. But all does not go well; between Betsey's brother and guardian, Henry Tulkington, prohibiting the match and Brazier marked out for trouble by a local smuggling gang, his plans are in disarray. And when it slowly emerges that there may have been a decades-old injustice closer to home, Brazier is caught up in more than he'd bargained for.
©2017 David Donachie (P)2018 Soundings
A Treacherous Coast
Summary
Winter 1795. Lieutenant John Pearce, reckoning to have finally ditched his old enemy, Admiral Hotham, has found a new one in Henry Digby, previously a friend. Meanwhile, Pearce's pregnant and recently widowed lover is adamant they cannot be seen together for the sake of their unborn child as she seeks respectability in society. Aboard HMS Flirt as part of the squadron led by Horatio Nelson, Pearce and his Pelicans soon join them on a reconnaissance which results in the destruction of a key French battery - though the success is short-lived. In raids ashore, split loyalties and bloody sea fights, Pearce must show bravery and resource to ensure his survival and return to Emily. But the headstrong lieutenant is faced with immense danger, not only from the enemy but his own captain. Only luck and Pearce's fierce appetite for battle can save them from the perils ahead.
©2016 David Donachie (P)2017 Soundings
On a Particular Service
Summary
John Pearce is going home. But he has to avoid capture by an Algerine warship, having his Pelicans pressed into a British frigate, and that's before they are at risk of being hanged for desertion once home. Then there is the problem of Emily Barclay and their son, Adam. By cunning and bluff, he protects his friends but not his troubled love life. In a whirlwind of action, there are forged wills, devious trades, contrived murders and dangerous spy missions, with so much deceit that Pearce does not know whom to trust. All he can hope to do is survive.
©2017 David Donachie (P)2017 Soundings
Enemies at Every Turn
Summary
The year is 1794. Free from jail, John Pearce is not free from the smugglers whose boat he stole. While lying low, Pearce soon has other pressing concerns on his mind. Granted a commission by William Pitt, John Pearce evades his pursuers by undertaking a dangerous mission in France. As rebellious ambition turns to bloody disaster, Pearce must try to re-join Admiral Howe. Also serving with Howe is Ralph Barclay - who has somehow contrived to yet again press Pearce’s friends Charlie and Rufus into his crew. The danger for the Pelicans is only just beginning, however, as Howe’s collision with the French fleet climaxes in one of the greatest battles of the Revolutionary War.
©2011 David Donachie (P)2012 Soundings