Captain Daniel Rawson Books In Order

Publication Order of Captain Rawson Books

Captain Daniel Rawson is the lead character in a series of adventure novels written by English author of the biography, children’s, and mystery & thrillers novels, Edward Marston. Captain Rawson is a linguist, spy, sportsman, ladies’ man, duelist and a career soldier who gets involves in the campaigns of the Duke of Marlborough during the Spanish Succession. Edward Marston began the publication of Captain Daniel Rawson series in 2008 when Soldier of Fortune the first book in the series was published. The series ran for five novels concluding in 2011 after A Very Murdering Battle was released.

Soldier of Fortune

Soldier of Fortune is the debut novel in Captain Daniel Rawson series featuring Captain Rawson by Marston. The author has written over forty other crime novels in different series set in four different times in history.

The novel opens up with Captain Daniel as a child greeting his father on temporary leave from the battle. Nathan is out fighting to depose the King and place the Duke of Monmouth on the throne. Unfortunately, the forces of Duke are defeated in the war and Nathan is executed. As a result, Daniel and his mother flee England to the safety of his mother’s native land in Netherlands.

Fast forward, we meet Daniel a dashing young soldier returning to fight and this time for the Duke of Marlborough and also for the Confederate forces in the battle of Blenheim.

Captain Daniel career is a spy and a soldier- handsome, loyal to his superiors and unfailingly brave he is also attractive to women. He uses his attraction to gather intelligence from the wife of a well-known General in his mission as a Confederate Spy. While returning to the battlefield, he is followed by Abigail Piper, a charming and very willful woman he had met for a short time before leaving for the flight and somehow more disturbing, by two hired assassins.

The general has no intentions of allowing himself to be used without taking his own vengeance. However, to ensure that he succeeds, Daniel will have to do whatever it takes to keep himself safe, keep Miss Abigail safe, get rid of the assassins after him, fight the battle for his Duke and dodge the bullet of commitment to one woman.

Drums of War

The Dashing career soldier, spy and ladies’ man, Captain Daniel is always up for an epic adventure. So when the Duke of Marlborough requests him to take part in an undercover mission, he gladly accepts. One of the covert agents, Dutch tapestry-maker working at the Court of Louis XIV, the Sun King has vanished in the thin air, and Daniel is tasked with finding out what could have possibly happened to the man.

In the meantime, Captain Daniel loyal, Sergeant Welbeck is left behind in the camp facing to deal with his own complications. His wide eye nephew has joined the military as a drummer boy in pursuit of honor and glory, and for Welbeck, he would do nothing more than ignore this ambitious young boy, but circumstance is making this almost impossible.

Additionally, as chances to prove his success at Blenheim more than a coincidence are becoming impossible, at the same time the Duke himself is coming strongly under fire while the Dutch are reluctant to play their role in this costly war, making requests that are costing the important British victories.

In the second novel in the series, Daniel is sent on an undercover mission to Paris, France to rescue a Dutch spy who is reported missing. While away from his unit we get to see Captain Daniel’s character more widely- where he acts on his own intuition and resourcefulness rather than follow orders by his superiors. Additionally, there is also a couple of subplots regarding the assassination attempt of the Duke of Marlborough, the leader of the Allied Forces, and also a young drummer boy who becomes abused by an over-bearing officer.

Fire and Sword

When returning home from a dangerous single mission behind the enemy lines, Captain Daniel finds himself caught in between a hot pursuit by the French soldiers. Fortunately with the help of a local farmer and the loan of a horse, but when he returns to give thanks to the man who helped him, he finds both the farmhouse and the barn have been set ablaze and the farmer almost dying, at the hands of English soldiers.

On the other hand, back at home in England, there is political turbulence. Queen Anne’s favor has drastically shifted thus resulting Duke of Marlborough to quit as Commander-In-Chief. After several similar attacks on other farms, Daniel request for the help of his good friend, Henry Welbeck to help him with the investigation. All while the scheming and treacherous French Commander, Duc de Vendome, is hell-bent on capturing Captain Daniel by any means possible.

Under Siege

In the aftermath of the Victory at Oudenarde, a career soldier and spy Daniel must take the leading role in the Allied Forces new strategy- to infiltrate deep into the French territories and capture Lille, the pear of its fortresses. In this battle, Daniel fights alongside the Duke of Marlborough, whom safety and position are threatened by political leaders in England plotting his downfall- with the collaboration of his treacherous and outspoken wife, Sarah.

Meanwhile, Daniel must come to face to face with a new rival for his beloved son, the charming Amalia Janssen, rescue his good old friend Henry Welbeck and avoid the capture by his enemies- the French soldiers.

A Very Murdering Battle

The year is 1709; Europe is dealing with one of the coldest winters in history. The ports freeze, people starve, and cattle die. Coup and dissertations bang the French military leaving Louis X1V to search for peace on almost any terms. On the other hand, the soldier of fortune is acting as an interpreter at the negotiations in The Hague, feeling frustrated when the talks fail. While the restart of war is just around the corner, Daniel is tasked a personal mission by the duke himself, one that takes him deep behind the enemy lines. Moreover, if he is to survive- the Battle of Malplaquet, the bloodiest battle still awaits.