Alistair MacLean · 1986 · sea

Alistair MacLean's final novel, published in 1986. On station in the Aegean under cover of a survey mission, the crew of HMS Ariadne watch two disasters at once: a burning yacht going down, and a strategic bomber falling into the sea. The plane was carrying nuclear weapons - and the yacht's survivors know far more about it than they will say.

1. 1
   Naxos

   Cruising the Cyclades off Naxos under the guise of a hydrographic survey, the electronic intelligence ship HMS Ariadne picks up a burning pleasure yacht on her radar - and, in the same instant, an aircraft falling out of the sky.

2. 2
   Kolumbo

   Over the drowned volcanic vent of Kolumbo the Ariadne's divers find the wrecked bomber on the sea bed with its cargo intact - two hydrogen bombs, armed and waiting, in water deep enough to hide them and shallow enough to reach.

3. 3
   Thera

   Under the cliffs of Thera, whose ancient eruption drowned a civilisation, the yacht's survivors play their double game - and the Ariadne races to lift the weapons clear before timers or treachery finish the job.