Winter, 1941. The ambitious and headstrong Lieutenant Commander George Steadfast RNR is looking forward to captaining his first ship, the HMS Defiant. After years having to answer to commanders and captains, it’s finally Steadfast’s turn to take charge. After losing his grandmother and brother to the war, Steadfast has a personal vendetta against the Germans, and is determined to prove himself as a ruthless, relentless and remorseless leader. However, many of his makeshift crew do not share Steadfast’s hunger for battle and glory. They see the Navy as the first and last defender of Britain’s liberty, rather than as an aggressive force that can take the fight to the enemy. As part of an East Coast convoy, the Defiant is on the roughest posting in the Navy. This will be the worst berth the crew have ever faced. The Defiant and its exhausted crew will have to cope with the harsh conditions of winter at sea, whilst defending itself from enemy attack from E-Boats and the Luftwaffe. Losing men and picking up injuries on the journey, the crew will need to work together to survive. But as the crew diminishes and the ship becomes increasingly worse for wear, Steadfast starts to doubt whether the Defiant will make it back in one piece, and whether he will return to a dressing down or a hero’s medal. Will Steadfast be able to unite the crew under his command? Will his harsh tactics work against the Germans? Or will the Defiant fall prey to Hitler's forces and be swallowed up by the sea? 'First Command' is a gripping naval thriller that combines convincing period detail with full-throttle story-telling, with almost every incident based on a true event in one of the thousands of convoys during the Second World War. 'You can taste the salt and feel the danger. A fantastic read.' - Tom Kasey, best-selling author of 'Trade Off'. Richard Freeman graduated in mathematics before following a career in distance education. He now writes on naval history. His other books include ‘Midway’, ‘Pearl Harbor’ and ‘Coral Sea 1932’. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading publisher of digital books.