The Adventures of Sam Witchall : Battle Fleet Trafalgar - 1805

This book starts off with Sam returning to England from Australia. It is hinted that he was transported there after being wrongly convicted of an offence while serving in the Navy. Unfortunately, no references either in the blurb or in the story itself refer back to prior events and the reader is left wondering. In fact, the only indication given that this book is the third in a series, is the list of two other titles by the author Paul Dowsell.

After arriving back in England, Sam learns that Napoleon has plans to invade England, and has to decide whether to again join the Navy. A patron offers to pay for him to become a Midshipman and he is posted to Nelson's flagship, "HMS Victory". The second half of the book is about his experiences as a Midshipman on Victory, and graphic descriptions of the Battle of Trafalgar.

Although I enjoyed the book, it would have been better if I had read the two preceding titles, or if more information about prior events had been included in the story.