Von Schwabing is on the carpet at the German Embassy over the mess he made of the plot to destroy the British/Russian Peace Alliance described in 'Fellowship Of The Black Stone'. He swears that The Fellowship Of The Black Stone will be successful this time in its intention to eliminate Britain's First Sea Lord, Sir James West, whose armament of Great Britain is faster than Germany's.

Von Schwabing sets out to enlist Richard Hannay as an unwilling assassin of Sir James West. Hannay is kidnapped and finds himself upon what appears to be a sea-going vessel.

Using a young schoolgirl, who is in reality the Russian Grand-Duchess Madeline, Von Schwabing applies relentless pressure to Hannay who is put into a terrible moral dilemma. He must choose between the life of one of his best friends, Saunders, a member of Intelligence, and that of the Grand-duchess Madeline. Further he is railroaded by Von Schwabing into either killing Sir James West or letting Madeline die.

Using all of his ingeni

Somebody is sending threatening letters containing quotes from Shakespeare to Richard Hannay's old friend Reggie Armitage.

Hannay gets a lesson in female equality when his life is saved by Simone Angeketell, a member of the Suffragette Movement, who saves him from a person who has murdered a number of men who have one thing in common - all were members of the same squadron in the Boer War who gave evidence at the court-martial of Jerry Edwards - an act which leads to tragic consequences.

The year is 1912 and the 'unsinkable' ship 'Titanic' has sunk. Richard Hannay's god-daughter Susan is being married to Lord Berenger's son, Michael Harrington, and Hannay is visiting her family. The night before the wedding Michael goes missing after his batchelor's party.

Why did Lord Berenger send a large and immensely valuable consignment of gold to Canada via 'The Titanic' which was in fact heading for the United States? Did the missing gold in fact go down with the ill-fated ship - the uninsurable on board the unsinkable? What is the mystery behind the ship's bells at the foundary used by the firm Campbell/Mallory, of which Lord Berenger is Managing Director.

Hannay finds himself involved in a bizarre mystery involving a kidnapping, two murders and a plot involving the Czar of Russia.