31st December 1942. In the middle of the North Atlantic, the deadly 'gap' where aircraft cannot protect them, a destroyer and 4 corvettes are shepherding a convoy of ships from America to Britain. But as midnight passes, the New Year is marked by a white flash on the horizon - a German torpedo. What follows is a night scarred forever in the memory of its survivors. But for Michael Villiers, officer on the HMS Daisy, it is just another chapter in an extraordinary life. The son of a beautiful socialite and a British diplomat, Michael is brought up in Sombreado, Uruguay alongside his guardian's daughter Maria, and the pair are inseparable. Even when he is sent to school in England, the family ranch remains Michael's home and when his schooling is complete, there is never any doubt that he will return to Sombreado, to Maria. But when Michael returns to Montevideo in 1939, his steamer crosses paths with a German warship - an ominous sign of the conflict to come. And though Uruguay is neutral in the coming conflict, Michael is to be allowed no such luxury: the British Legation want him to make the most of his family connections. In a war, the English ambassador explains, everyone has to take sides ...

'UPON DARK WATERS is an honest and moving account of the realities of war and one man's attempts to come to terms with his past and shape his future. The actions moves swiftly between the beautifully wild pampas and the terror of the Atlantic battle, the contrast between these two serving to emphasise the brutality and uncertainty of life during war.' WATERSTONE'S BOOKS QUARTERLY 'An absolute gem.' NEW BOOKS MAGAZINE 'Radcliffe presents life on a ship in all its freezing, soaking glory in this terrific mix of adventure and saga.' GOOD BOOK GUIDE 'Radcliffe's action scenes are executed with his customary brio, and the unusual setting makes for a fascinating read.' MAIL ON SUNDAY 'Definitely one of my ten out of ten scores for reads this year and deserves to be a bestseler.' HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

Robert Radcliffe lives in Suffolk and is an experienced pilot. He has written two other novels, published under a different name.