This book is a compendium of 4 individual novels by C. S. Forester:
- Flying Colours - first published 1938
- The Commodore - first published 1945
- Lord Hornblower - first published 1946
- Hornblower in the West Indies - first published 1958
Covers Hornblowers escape from France, his role in the final defeat of France (in the Baltic and at Le Harve) and his command of the Jamaica station.