Philip K Allan is a British author. He lives in the UK with his wife and his two teenage daughters. He has an excellent knowledge of the 18th century navy and believes the period has unrivalled potential for a writer. On the one hand there is the strange, claustrophobic wooden world of the period’s ships and on the other hand there is the boundless freedom to move those ships around the globe wherever the narrative takes them. All these possibilities are fully exploited in the Alexander Clay novels. Philip’s inspiration for the series was to build on the works of novelists like C.S. Forester and in particular Patrick O’Brian. His prose is heavily influenced by O’Brian’s immersive style. He too uses meticulously researched period language and authentic nautical detail to draw the reader into a different world. But the Alexander Clay books also bring something fresh to the genre, with a cast of fully formed lower deck characters with their own back histories and plot lines in addition to the officers.
Age of Sail: Fiction
AOS Naval Fiction |
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| Series: The Alexander Clay Series | ||
| Year | Book | Comment |
| The Captain's Nephew | First Lieutenant Alexander Clay of HMS Agrius is self-made, clever, and ready for the new age | |
| A Sloop of War | Clay is given his own command, HMS Rush, and is sent to blockade St Lucia | |
| On The Lee Shore | Clay takes command of the frigate Titan and joins the blockade of the French coast. | |
| 1798 | A Man of No Country | Rumors abound of a French Army gathering in the south of France and Titan as sent to investigate. |
| The Distant Ocean | A powerful French squadron is at large in the Indian Ocean, attacking Britain’s vital East India trade. | |
| The Turn of the Tide | The crew of the Titan are sent on a secret mission across the Channel. | |
| In Northern Seas | Clay is given command of Griffin and sent on a diplomatic mission to the Baltic | |
| Larcum Mudge | Clay and the crew of the Griffin are sent to track down and recapture a rebel ship | |
| 1803 | Upon the Malabar Coast | Clay is sent in pursuit of a powerful squadron which has left Brest under Admiral Linois. |
| 1805 | Clay and the Immortal Memory | Griffin comes accross a huge Franco-Spanish fleet on its way to the Caribbean |
| Clay and the River of Silver | Griffin is chosen as part of a major expedition to the South Atlantic | |
Modern Era: Fiction
Modern Era Naval Fiction |
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| Series: The Wolves WW2 Series | ||
| Year | Book | Comment |
| 1941 | Sea of Wolves | The lives of three people, who do not know each other, caught up in the centre of the battle |
| 1941 | The Wolves in Winter | Dangers await the crew of the little escort ship HMS Protea in the Arctic |
The author’s official web site is philipkallan.com