First published 1974. Fontana paperback, 1977, pp 256, c.95,000 words.
As is often the case with Innes novels, there is some underlying theme connected to a topical issue of the day. In this case it is the discovery and exploitation of large reserves of oil in the North Sea, lying between Britain and Norway. There was also considerable strife between unions and management in Britain at the time, a theme also incorporated here.
Innes here uses his traditional formula of putting an ordinary man in an extraordinary situation and setting it in some exotic location, often including an element of seafaring. In this case his protagonist is a trawlerman who is involved in union activities and has witnessed a violent attack. Now he is caught between the police and the instigators of the violence. He finds a handy escape on a trawler commissioned as a watch vessel to standby an oil rig anchored off the coast of Shetland. Trouble soon reappears.
Innes is first rate at describing the moods of the sea and the play between ship and wave, and there is plenty to be described here. These serve to stage the action in calm and storm, and not to hinder the drive of a slightly unconventional thriller. There are some of the usual tropes though: the driven millionaire and his attractive daughter, the tough-as-nails seafaring folk, and the vicious bad guys.
This is an entertaining read that ranks well in the Innes cannon, which for anyone who likes a good thriller, is a strong recommendation. There are no fancy literary flourishes here, but the prose is solid and the story well constructed.
© William John Graham, May 2022