What do you think?
Rate this book
Richard Mariner #3
The Leper Ship
'A master of seagoing adventure.' Clive Cussler
While removing toxic waste from a dead zone in the Palestinian desert, the captain of the Napoli is killed by local villagers whose land and families have been destroyed.
Fully laden, the Napoli limps off to Cyprus, but desperately needs a new master—and Heritage Mariner of London are requested to provide one.
Recalled from his honeymoon, John Higgins is the only captain available.
But this ship has trouble written all over her.
She’s an ageing rust-bucket with a multi-racial crew, and the containers on board are filled with chemical and nuclear poison.
Still, Higgins’ orders are simple enough: take her home to Naples.
But, when they arrive, they find this is only the first of many ports to refuse the leper ship entry.
With an increasingly mutinous crew, and acidic waste eating away at her insides, there seems nowhere left to turn...
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 21, 1993
34 people are currently reading
45 people want to read
About the author
Peter Tonkin
92 books62 followersPeter Tonkin's first novel, KILLER, was published in 1978. His work has included the acclaimed "Mariner" series that have been critically compared with the best of Alistair MacLean, Desmond Bagley and Hammond Innes.
More recently he has been working on a series of detective thrillers with an Elizabethan background. This series, "The Master of Defense", has been characterised as 'James Bond meets Sherlock Holmes meets William Shakespeare'. Each story is a classic 'whodunit' with all the clues presented to the reader exactly as they are presented to the hero, Tom Musgrave. The Kirkus Review described them as having 'Elizabethan detail, rousing action sequences, sound detection...everything a fan of historical mysteries could hope for."
More recently he has been working on a series of detective thrillers with an Elizabethan background. This series, "The Master of Defense", has been characterised as 'James Bond meets Sherlock Holmes meets William Shakespeare'. Each story is a classic 'whodunit' with all the clues presented to the reader exactly as they are presented to the hero, Tom Musgrave. The Kirkus Review described them as having 'Elizabethan detail, rousing action sequences, sound detection...everything a fan of historical mysteries could hope for."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
December 10, 2017
The Leper Ship by Peter Tonkin is the 3rd book in the Richard Mariner maritime thriller series, set around the world's oceans in the late 20th century. Definition of a leper ship: "a ship forbidden to dock or unload in any port or haven because of the hazardous nature of its cargo."
For years, a disposal company furtively buried toxic waste in the Lebanese desert. People living in the desert were dying of horrible disfiguring disease, and children born deformed. Finally the company was forced to remove the deadly waste and transport it for proper disposal. A ragtag crew was hired for the Napoli, an old ship in dire need of repair and upkeep. As the crew loads the ship to depart Lebanon with the waste, the locals attack, killing the captain.
Heritage Mariner Crewfinders provides experienced ship captains and crew, when and wherever needed, at short notice. When disaster strikes in Lebanon for the crew of the Napoli, Captain John Higgins aborts his own honeymoon trip to respond to the call. He's appalled at the horrible state of the Napoli, and challenged by both the lack of skill and the divisiveness of the crew, but the cargo itself is his greatest worry: both highly corrosive waste and radioactive waste. If the corrosive waste were to leak, it could destroy the protective barriers around the nuclear waste, as well as deteriorate the body of the ship itself. John takes all possible measures (however limited by circumstances) to re-stow the waste containers securely.
To add to the suspense, there are 2 PLO members aboard, wanted in most countries. John knows them from the Prometheus crisis (earlier book). He tries to drop them off in Tunisia on the way to Naples, and narrowly escapes a gunfire attack. The situation worsens for all when they reach Naples, and learn that all of Italy's ports are closed to them.
Ann Cable boards in Naples, representing Greenpeace. She will take measurements and keep careful records during the toxic cargo transport. John learns he must brave the Atlantic storms and head for England to dispose of the waste. The Napoli barely survives the Atlantic storms, only to meet another rebuff when they reach UK. Suspense builds as Napoli heads out again across the Atlantic, and attempts to survive the mother of all storms. A rapid paced thriller with just enough characterization of key crew members to keep the reader caring about their fate.
For years, a disposal company furtively buried toxic waste in the Lebanese desert. People living in the desert were dying of horrible disfiguring disease, and children born deformed. Finally the company was forced to remove the deadly waste and transport it for proper disposal. A ragtag crew was hired for the Napoli, an old ship in dire need of repair and upkeep. As the crew loads the ship to depart Lebanon with the waste, the locals attack, killing the captain.
Heritage Mariner Crewfinders provides experienced ship captains and crew, when and wherever needed, at short notice. When disaster strikes in Lebanon for the crew of the Napoli, Captain John Higgins aborts his own honeymoon trip to respond to the call. He's appalled at the horrible state of the Napoli, and challenged by both the lack of skill and the divisiveness of the crew, but the cargo itself is his greatest worry: both highly corrosive waste and radioactive waste. If the corrosive waste were to leak, it could destroy the protective barriers around the nuclear waste, as well as deteriorate the body of the ship itself. John takes all possible measures (however limited by circumstances) to re-stow the waste containers securely.
To add to the suspense, there are 2 PLO members aboard, wanted in most countries. John knows them from the Prometheus crisis (earlier book). He tries to drop them off in Tunisia on the way to Naples, and narrowly escapes a gunfire attack. The situation worsens for all when they reach Naples, and learn that all of Italy's ports are closed to them.
Ann Cable boards in Naples, representing Greenpeace. She will take measurements and keep careful records during the toxic cargo transport. John learns he must brave the Atlantic storms and head for England to dispose of the waste. The Napoli barely survives the Atlantic storms, only to meet another rebuff when they reach UK. Suspense builds as Napoli heads out again across the Atlantic, and attempts to survive the mother of all storms. A rapid paced thriller with just enough characterization of key crew members to keep the reader caring about their fate.
Displaying 1 of 1 review