Late summer, 1666. Captain Matthew Quinton is summoned by the King to London, a city seething with seditious plots, enemy nationals and dangerous paranoia. It's the Year of the Beast, after all, and with England at war with both the Dutch and the mighty French, tensions are running sky high. The King's spies have learned of a secret quartet of terrorists who plan to destroy the capital, stir rebellion and open the way for invasion. When fire breaks out in the tinder-dry, narrow lanes of the ancient City, spreading rapidly west, the worst seems to have happened. But an even greater threat still lurks amidst the smouldering ruins. And only Quinton can avert it. AUTHOR: J D Davies was born in Wales and now lives in Bedfordshire. He is the foremost expert on the seventeenth-century navy and recently published Pepys' Navy which won the 2009 Samuel Pepys Award. SELLING POINTS: . Contains new evidence about the causes of the Great Fire and published on the 350th anniversary of the fire itself . For readers of Patrick O'Brian and C. S. Forester: the Quinton series is steadily gaining in reputation . The 6th instalment in a planned 12-book epic to run from the Restoration to the Georgians . J. D. Davies is an award-winning historian and one of the world's foremost experts on the 17th-century navy. . Terrific characters, sparkling dialogue, humour (of both the bawdy and the subtle variety) and of course high adventure. REVIEWS: 'Mr O'Brian would have heartily approved of the finely shaded characters, excellent plotting, gut-clenching action and immaculate attention to period naval detail that Davies supplies. Superb!' - Angus Donald, author of The Outlaw Chronicles 'J D Davies's depiction of Restoration England and the British navy is impeccable, his characters truly live and breathe, and the plot kept me in suspense . . . I could not recommend it more' - Edward Chupack, author of Silver 'Swashbuckling suspense, royal intrigue and high seas naval action . . . an excellent series' - Publishers Weekly