Rock, Philip (1927-2004)
The Extraordinary Seaman. Meredith, 1967. 250 pages
A US Navy officer and four sailors stranded in the Philippines in the aftermath of the Japanese invasion in 1941 find a potential escape in an old Royal Navy river patrol boat at one of the islands south of Luzon. With the boat's captain, a RN Lt. Commander who is always immaculately dressed, the widow of US businessman killed by the strafing Japanese, and some friendly Moros, they set out on a journey for Australia. But as the voyage progresses it becomes obvious to the American Lt. jg that there is something strange and unearthly about Commander Finchhaven. Lots of fun to read. Made into a movie starring David Niven, Fay Dunaway, and Mickey Rooney.
Rockwood, Roy [pseud. for The Stratemeyer Syndicate]
Under the ocean to the South pole: or, The strange cruise of the submarine wonder. Cupples & Leon, 1907. 248 pages
The Speedwell boys in a submarine: or, the lost treasure of Rocky Cove. Cupples & Leon, 1913. 204 pages
Roddy, Lee (1921-2017)
Search for the Avenger. Accent, 1980. 160 pages
Twin brothers get separated in infancy. One is raised in a whaling ship, the other stands to inherit fortune. Set in Hawaii.
Secret of the Sunken Sub. Focus on the Family, 1990. 148 pages
When twelve-year-old Josh witnesses the sinking of a Soviet robot submarine off the coast of a Hawaiian island, he becomes the quarry of Russian spies racing to beat the United States Navy to the sub and its secrets.
Rohan, Michael Scott (1951-2018)
Chase the Morning. W. Morrow, 1990. 334 pages
In thes science fiction novel our hero gets into a street fight, is saved by aliens from another world, and boards a sailing ship from 1700s for piracy, swordplay and sea battles. Wild stuff!
Rohmer, Richard (1924- )
Periscope Red. Beaufort Books, 1980. 282 pages
The Soviets have a new sonar-jamming device: without US knowledge, the USSR is stationing its submarines near the West's 300 largest supertankers, in an attempt to goad the US into nuclear war.
Rolt, L.T.C. (1910-1974)
Sleep No More. Constable, 1948. 162 pages
Twelve stories of the supernatural, with a few taking place on U.K. canals.
Root, Corwin
An American, Sir. Dutton, 1940. 383 pages
Set during the War of 1812. Jeremy Peabody, son of a wealthy Boston family, having made a fiasco of his life at home, runs away to New York, boards a privateer, and lands in the thick of the war and a succession of hot-water episodes. Taken prisoner by the British he escapes, only to be captured by Americans who doubt his nationality until he finally gets a chance to fight with his own countrymen and is reprieved by General Jackson.
Roosa, Valerie
Henry Stapleton series:
The main character Henry Stapleton has been press-ganged into the British Navy at the onset of the war of 1812. He is torn away from his wife and family in opposition to British law. As a Methodist minister he is supposed to be exempt from such outrageous practice. But it is too late! Being in the wrong place at the wrong time Henry finds himself on board a British frigate, and forced to serve his country by participating in war at sea, along with twelve other men who have also been captured.
A mysterious turn of events during the war of 1812 sends Henry Stapleton, a victim of the British press gangs at the beginning of the war, into dangerous circumstances in Boston. His loyalties are pushed to the limits as he risks a daring escape on a privateering schooner, and ends up dueling with her captain. Who are his friends, and who are his enemies within the political and naval maelstrom of war?
Roscoe, W. F. (1885-1959)
Icebound. Vantage, 1954. 132 pages
Autobiographical novel about a salmon fishing voyage in Alaska during World War I.
Rosenthal, Eric (1905-1983)
Cutlass and Yardarm. Howard B. Timmins, 1954. 184 pages
Twenty-eight stories about pirate activities near South Africa
Ross, Sutherland (1912- )
Freedom Is the Prize. Walker, 1964. 192 pages
War of 1812 from the perspective of a young American boy pressed into the Royal Navy. Issued by the publisher as a companion to Wooden Ships and Iron Men by Clifford Lindsey Alderman.
Rossetti, Dante Gabriel, (1828-1882)
"The White Ship" in "Ballads and Sonnets". Ellis and White, 1881.
Long poem about the loss of King Henry's son and heir.
Rossi, Mitchell Sam
Truk Lagoon. Pinnacle, 1988. 384 pages
An American submarine laden with a fortune in gems heads for a rendezvous with the enemy in the war-ravaged Pacific, a mission that will brand the brave crew as traitors for generations to come. Fourty years later a young ex-naval officer driven by the dictates of honor is targeted for death in a frantic sea hunt to recover the lost secrets of civilization. The two stories link together to unleash a savage storm of violence, treachery, and greed on a tropic island paradise.
Rossman, Parker
Pirate Slave. T. Nelson, 1977. 148 pages
A twelve-year-old boy captured by Muslim pirates is forced into a life of piracy and slave trading.
Rostand, Robert [pseud. Robert S Hopkins]
Cross Currents. Pinnacle, 1985. 307 pages
White slaving and drugs in the Med, stir in a few ex-Nazis and season with a sprinkle of Mossad.
Rowland, Henry C. (1874-1933)
Hirondelle. Harper & Row, 1922. 321 pages
"A picaresque tale of picturesque America in the 1800's." -- spine.
Russell, S. Thomas (Sean) (1952- )
Charles Hayden series:
His career challenged by a mixed heritage in spite of his loyalty to the king of England, French Revolution-era naval officer Charles Saunders Hayden finds himself aboard an aging frigate that becomes subject to violent crew outbursts and mutiny.
After being tasked with taking HMS Themis into battle against the French for the strategically located island of Corsica, Master and Commander Charles Hayden soon must land his ship on Corsica, where his men join forces with native insurgents.
Charles Hayden sets off aboard the ill-fated HMS Themis with orders to destroy a French frigate sailing from Le Havre and to gather intelligence from a royalist spy. On discovering French plans for an imminent invasion of England, Hayden must return to Portsmouth to give warning before it's too late. U.S. title: Take, Burn and Destroy.
Under the command of the steadfast Captain Charles Hayden, Royal Navy frigate HMS Themis is sent across the Atlantic to counter the threat of the French forces in the West Indies. But before she strikes port in Barbados, the Themis intercepts a single boat adrift in the middle of the ocean - its sole occupants, two young Spanish noblemen. But not is all as it seems with Hayden's unexpected guests.
Russell, William ("Waters") (1806-1876)
Captain Kirke Webbe : edited (and brought to a conclusion) by Frederick W. Hayes. Hutchinson, 1907. 352 pages
During the Napoleonic wars, a privateer holds letters of marque from both the British and the French. He sees no problem in preying on the commerce of both sides. Expansion of Kirke Webbe, the privateer captain: Knight, 1856
Russell, W. (William) Clark (1844-1911)
John Holdsworth, Chief Mate. S. Low Marston, Low, & Searle, 1875. 3 volumes
The Wreck of the Grosvenor: an account of the mutiny of the crew and the loss of the ship when trying to make the Bermudas. S. Low Marston, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1877. 3 volumes
This gripping tale of the sea follows the disastrous of the Grosvenor of the British voyage Mercantile Marine, bound for Valparaiso. Aboard are a brutal and inhuman captain and chief mate. Mr. Royle, the ship's second mate, is our hero. Buffetted by the crew's mutiny and the captain's murder, and initiated into seamanship via brutal storms and a shipwreck, Mr. Royle rises to the rank of captain and gallantly proceeds to rescue a beautiful, wealthy young lady and her ailing father.
A Sailor's Sweetheart: An account of the wreck of the sailing ship WALDERSHARE, from the narrative of Mr. William Lee, second mate. Sampson Law, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1880. 3 volumes
Ocean Free Lance : from a privateersman's log, 1812. R. Bentley, 1881. 3 volumes
My Watch Below; or, Yarns Spun When Off Duty. Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1882. 248 pages
Round the Galley Fire: a collection of maritime sketches. Chatto & Windus, 1883. 308 pages
The Sea Queen. Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1883. 3 volumes
Young lady finally gets to sea with her captain husband for a mutiny, hurricane, fire at sea, fever, and other adventures.
The Death Ship: a strange story; an account of a cruise in "The Flying Dutchman," collected from the papers of the late Mr. Geoffrey Fenton, of Poplar, master mariner. Hurst and Blackett, 1888. 3 volumes
The Mystery of the Ocean Star : a collection of maritime sketches. Chatto & Windus, 1888. 311 pages
An Ocean Tragedy. Chatto & Windus, 1890. 3 volumes
Mad Sir Wilfred's wife has run off with the dashing Colonel Hope-Kennedy in the schooner yacht SHARK, and Sir Wilfred means to get her back. Sir Wilfred has armed his yacht, the BRIDE, with a long, brass 18-pounder and gone after the fleeing couple. The events are many, including the unfortunate death of a Portuguese seaman at the hands of the 18-pounder, the haunting of the BRIDE, the fortuitous capture of the two "lovers" in mid-ocean, the duel on the quarterdeck, the wreck of the BRIDE on the volcanic island that wasn't supposed to be there, and, best of all, the fossilized galleon on the crest of the island that can only be inhabited by the castaways after the water is drained out of her. "There's a reason that Russell was considered among the finest writers of sea stories at the time, and a reason why Melville dedicated one of his books to Russell, and Russell dedicated this one to him. An extraordinary work." [DG]
What Cheer?: the sad story of a wicked sailor. Cassell, 1896. 464 pages
The Yarn of Old Harbour Town. T. Fisher Unwin, 1905. 454 pages
The tale of the kidnapping of a sea captain's daughter, his frantic pursuit of her, and a fight in the English Channel. Enlivening the novel is an unforgettable cameo appearance by Admiral Lord Nelson.
Jack's Courtship : a sailor's yarn of love and shipwreck. S. Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington, 1884. 3 volumes
A Strange Voyage. S. Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1885. 3 volumes
A Voyage to the Cape. Chatto & Windus, 1886. 360 pages
Marooned: a Sea Tale. Macmillan, 1889. 3 volumes
The Romance of Jenny Harlowe, and sketches of Maritime Life. Chatto & Windus, 1889. 396 pages
My Shipmate Louise : the romance of a wreck. Chatto & Windus, 1890. 3 volumes
My Danish Sweetheart : the romance of a month. Methuen, 1891. 3 volumes
List, Ye Landsmen? A romance of incident. Cassell, 1893. 500 pages
The Tragedy of Ida Noble. Hutchinson, 1893. 315 pages
The Tale of the Ten : a salt-water romance. Chatto & Windus, 1896. 3 volumes
The Romance of a Midshipman. T.F. Unwin, 1898. 376 pages
Rose Island : the strange story of a love adventure at sea. E. Arnold, 1900. 353 pages
Rutherford, Gay [pseud. James Nobel Gifford] (1897?-1959)
Hearts at Sea. Gramercy, 1938. 255 pages
Jilted New York career girl books passage aboard poky freighter North Wind on a three week voyage to California. The passengers, crew and vessel are sympathetically portrayed.
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