Steni, L. Soldier Adrift

Atmospheric, moody sea novel at times reminiscent of B. Traven’s The Death Ship (1934). A medical officer aboard a troopship in convoy returning to England from the Far East immediately after the conclusion of the Second World War must contend with a mysterious epidemic which seemingly threatens to claim the lives of many men. Is it a new, yet undiscovered tropical disease or a virulent new strain of the plague? The unnamed troopship was a luxury liner in pre-War days, and Steni successfully captures the claustrophobic, nightmarish atmosphere of shipboard life on a vessel doing convoy duty, noting “Now was the last time that ships would ever move in convoy, and this one would be dispersed before they reached home.” The novel contains many flashbacks to the War years, including incidents revolving around convoy work and violent sinkings of merchant vessels at sea.