In 1803 Napolean smashes the Peace of Amiens, and Captain Jack Abbrey, RN, taking refuge in France from his creditors, is interned. He escapes from France, from debtor's prison, from a possible mutiny, and pursues his quarry straight into the mouth of a French-held harbor. Stephen Maturin's struggles, with himself as much as with a proud and intelligent woman, are woven into Aubrey's straining their friendship at times to the breaking point.