The Angry Boats

Book excerpt: Australia, April 1942 - the unimaginable is now a reality. Japan's attention has turned south to the Coral and Solomon Seas. The gemstone of the Pacific is Australia, the vast and only Island Continent. With her fighting men serving in Europe and the Middle East, she is vulnerable. But the Japanese must first claim New Guinea. Survivor of the destroyer, HMAS Nerang, torpedoed and bombed into a burning hulk, Lieutenant-Commander John Roberts, DSC, has witnessed the brutal destruction of ship and crew at the hands of the Japanese. He knows the odds are against them. But the only course is to fight or lose. From raw recruits and the jaded orphans of lost ships a fighting group is forged - Special Coastal Forces is born from a ragged and depleted navy to represent Australia as the first line of defence. Their mandate - protect allied convoys. Seek out and destroy the enemy. Staying alive is subordinate...