Jay Worrall Books In Order
Book links take you to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn money from qualifying purchases.Publication Order of Napoleonic Wars Books
| Sails on the Horizon | (2005) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
| Any Approaching Enemy | (2006) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
| A Sea Unto Itself | (2013) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Jay Worrall is an American historical fiction author who made his debut with the 2005 published novel “Sails on the Horizon.” He was born in Washington DC, at the Walter Reed Army Hospital at a time when the United States was in the middle of the Second World War. Born in a Quaker military family, he grew up all over the place just like many other army brats. Jay has lived in four continents and six countries some of which he visited or lived in as a child with the rest being countries he lived in as an adult. Given his many wanderings, he is proficient in several languages including Vietnamese, English, Japanese, French, Italian, and German. As a teen, he went to Indiana’s preeminent Quaker school the Earlham College, from where he graduated with a degree in physics. Several years later, he went to the University of Virginia and graduated with an ABD and MA in Anthropology. He also went to the University of London in England. During his early years, he was known as a conscientious objector of the Vietnam War and a fierce pacifist. For a time, he worked as a volunteer with refugees when he lived for several years in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. When the war ended, he moved to Japan where he became an English tutor.
For many years Jay Worrall was a social research scientist in Washington DC and the surrounding suburbs. He would eventually specialize in the development of human and innovative programs for prisons and policies to enhance their administration. Even though he worked a 9-5 job, he also ran his own construction company in addition to collaborative programs to foster American-Chinese business relations and America-Soviet literature. In the recent past, he has been working for a prominent Quaker organization operating out of Philadelphia. While he has served in different capacities his most recent was historical interpretation director. Worrall has always been interested in the intersection of technology and history from both personal experience and an academic perspective. He has studied how they influence the social systems, the values, and daily lives of the common people in different eras all of which he then uses in the writing of his novels. He currently lives with his wife and children in the small town of Downingtown, Pennsylvania, a few miles from Philadelphia.
“Sails on the Horizon” by Jay Worrall is a novel set in 1797 during the Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon Bonaparte has proven himself a military genius, winning all manner of impossible battles against the enemies of France. But on the high seas, he has not had much success as the English navy which is the best in the world has put up a spirited resistance. On the British side is Charles Edgemont, a second lieutenant who is the leader of the Argonaut battleship. When they get orders to engage in what all experienced officers would deem a suicidal maneuver, he complies. He leads his crews and joins the other members of the squadron to escape from the clutches of hostile Spanish ships prowling the coasts of Portugal. Unfortunately, the first lieutenant and captain of the squadron lose their lives in the maneuver and he has to step up and become commander. Edgemont had refused to yield to a barrage of enemy fire and the feat had so impressed his superiors that he is generously rewarded with a promotion to Admiral. The post makes him one of the richest men in Britain which is nothing he could ever have dreamed of. But when he comes back home after the war, he is unable to win the love of Penelope Brown, a fierce critic of the war she deems perverse. She thinks the soldiers that fought in it are nothing more than organized killers. This may just be the hardest battle he has ever fought until he is sent back to the open seas, where he faces off against a daunting enemy in a sequence of inspiring battles of might and will.
Jay Worrall’s “Any Approaching Enemy: is a novel set in 1798, where revolutionary France and England have reached a bloody stalemate, with France supreme on land and England with the upper hand at sea. Napoleon the 28-year-old general had been responsible for France’s victories with his unorthodox methods getting a lot of traction. However, the French will not let the stalemate continue and have been secretly assembling a fleet so big they believe it will crush the British. When the news of the fleet reaches the British, several ships led by Horatio Nelson a Rear Admiral are sent out to investigate. But once they are on the high seas, their ships are scattered as they are buffeted by an intense and ferocious storm. Once the storm clears, the damaged ships limp back to the meeting point but Vanguard, the flagship commanded by nelson is missing alongside two other ships. Given his pugnacious nature, Edgemont believes the rear admiral has gone on with the mission without the others. While he has direct orders, he goes ahead to pursue Nelson and the French fleet and in doing so puts his career in jeopardy. But with the high tensions on the ship, insubordination is the least of Edgemont’s troubles as there are whispers of overturning him. A chance discovery in Naples only serves to further complicate his mission.
“A Sea Unto Itself” by Jay Worrall is a novel set in 1799, at a time when Napoleon Bonaparte leading commander of revolutionary France conquered Egypt. His occupation of Egypt was a mystery especially since most of his enemies are not in Africa but Europe. While it is a land rich with the history and riches of the pharaohs, of what use could it be to the young emperor? Could he be planning to use Egypt as a stepping stone towards the invasion of India, one of Britain’s most prized but troubled colonies? While it does seem farfetched, such a plan could rob England of an important source of money, making it almost impossible to continue fighting France. Most European powers know that Egypt is critical if one wanted to dominate Europe and hence Napoleon intends to control it and by extension the Red Sea. The newly appointed Captain Charles Edgemont who is the commander of Frigate Cassandra is sent to the Red Sea on what he thinks is a fool’s errand. He finds his under-strength crew is on the verge of mutiny as they do not want to leave port with an unresolved murder of one of their own. He is to report to Sir John Blankett, a pig-headed fool who believes the French would never invade India and he does not like it one bit.
Book Series In Order » Authors »
Any issues with the book list you are seeing? Or is there an author or series we don’t have? Let me know!
Any more novels coming? You are a joy to read.
Jay,
Whether thee write more on the Edgemont saga or no thy writing inspires joy, laughter and trust in the soul.
Well done Jay.
George
I love your Edgemont series, excellent writing, characters and story. Please write a fourth book, much needed.
Loved your first two books. Bought the third and donated it to my local library as they only had the first two as well. I have checked all three out and spent a long weekend with Edgemont a few times- they never get old. Any chance for a fourth?
Thanks so much!!
Sails on the horizon is fantastic reading, Mr. Worrall you are an incredible writer, I am sure that your peers such as Patrick O’Brain and Richard Woodman, both are great writers and storytellers, would have loved to have Charles Edgemont, on their Crew.
I am reading Sails on the Horizon , and enjoying it. No complaints except since when has Whitby been on the Mersey near Liverpool ? Whitby ( birthplace of Captain Cook) is on the east coast of England in Yorkshire
Will there another book to follow ; A Sea unto its Self ?… Captain Edgemont has a hero in his wife, Penny….and would like to read more about them.
Curious to know if there will be any more books published on capt. Edgemont series?
Respectfully
L. Kemling
Please, More ! I really need to get my seafaring tales fix replenished. I’ve already reread the whole Hornblower series 5 times !
You should read the Thomas Kydd novels by Julian Stockwin. There are 24 to date and you won’t put them down!
Then follow that up with the 30+ Bolitho books by Alexander Kent. That will keep your cravings in check…….temporarily.
And the Alan Lewrie novels by Dewey Lambdin. Hilarious, bawdy and nautical.
Just finished “A Sea Unto Itself” which completes my travels with Captain Edgemont. I hope that there will be additional books to this series in the near future. I would place these books on level with Patrick O’Brian, CS Forrester, and Richard Woodman.
Excellent first book. Any more planned beyond 2016? Look foweard to Books 2 and 3.
Derek Mackay