In the 17th century, England's future is dependent on the sea. Merchant adventurers and shipping companies seeking to expand international trade are constantly threatened by piracy on the high seas. In 1671, after 12 years of service, Lieutenant Martin Denbow decides to resign from the King's Navy. Leaving service on the same day are fellow officer Rodney Carteret and chief gunner Humility Flood, each to pursue his own ambition. The fortunes of Denbow and Carteret are affected by the beautiful but mysterious Helen Fitzwilliam, wife of a wealthy ship owner, while Flood becomes emotionally involved with Bess Dawlish, a feisty woman with a colourful past who lost her family and business in the Great Fire of 1666 and the Black Plague that followed. All experience the pleasures and horrors of the period, as the action moves from London to the pirate-infested waters of the Caribbean ruled over by notorious buccaneer Henry Morgan, and on to an uncharted island in the South Pacific. Swordplay, romance, intrigue, betrayal, and sea battles abound in the sprawling saga The Sea Dogs, the first novel by Ken Barnes.