Simon Fonthill, his wife Alice and trusty '352’ Jenkins are bound from the Chinese port of Tientsin for Durban, South Africa at the urgent request of Kitchener. The rusty tub that is to take them across the sea does not inspire confidence and, more worryingly, neither does the captain. When matters come to a head, all three must pull together to ensure that their plans and lives aren’t wrecked.

After a number of years working as a journalist, John Wilcox was lured into industry. In the mid-nineties he sold his company in order to devote himself to his first love, writing. His Simon Fonthill novels have been published to high acclaim and he has also published two works of non-fiction. John sadly passed away in 2018.