England's long war against France is seemingly drawing to an end, but a new French alliance with Spain could extend the conflict immeasurably. However, a surgical strike against Spanish territory could throw the alliance into disarray, and the target chosen by the British military is the rich stronghold of Havana.

But Havana is not an easy target, and the best means of surprising the Spaniards is a sneak attack from the north -- which requires threading the Old Bahama Straits, a treacherous span of poorly charted water dividing Cuba from Florida, the Bahamas and surrounding islands. Captain Edward Carlisle has made the passage before, so he and his fourth-rate ship of the line HMS Dartmouth are tasked with mapping and marking the route so the massive British fleet can get through safely. Once that's accomplished -- and it's no easy task -- the British army and naval forces must beat through the city's many defenses, including the stronghold of Morro Castle, through a series of attacks from land and sea.

Carlisle of course is in the thick of things every step of the way and, since he has interacted with some of the Spanish leaders in the past, he is sometimes asked to act in the role of unofficial ambassador to try to negotiate a surrender..

Old Bahama Straits is the 15th novel in Chris Durbin's Carlisle & Holbrooke series, and I swear, they keep getting better. The attack and siege occurred much as Durbin relates it here, although other men did the deeds attributed in the novel to Carlisle. But the story never comes across as dry history, nor does the author turn his protagonist into an infallible naval officer; Carlisle has his failings, but he overcomes them with bold action and clever stratagems.

This series divides its attention between two main characters, Carlisle and his protege, Captain George Holbrooke. With Holbrooke no longer at Carlisle's side, he has been developing a new protege, 2nd Lt. David Wishart, who begins to find his stride in this novel and comes into his own. (One wonders if future novels will be billed as "Carlisle, Holbrooke & Wishart Naval Adventures.") But, with Wishart commanding a prize crew, Carlisle's often overlooked 1st Lt. Matthew Gresham begins to find his place in the chain of command -- another example of Durbin's excellent character-building.

This novel puts readers right in the center of a thrilling and complex military action that likely changed the course of the war. I am grateful to Durbin for bringing us along to experience the action up close.

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