The Oceans and the Stars: A Sea Story, A War Story, A Love Story (A Novel)

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Description

Part lyrical love story, part naval adventure, and part modern morality tale, this epic new novel by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Winters Tale and Paris in the Present Tense showcases Mark Helprins powers as a master storyteller

Stephen Rensselaer, a Navy captain near the end of his career, is a man who speaks truth to power despite the consequences. So when hes called upon to defend a politically doomed program involving the development of a new class of ship, he does not hesitate. The program will almost certainly be canceled after its first prototype, the Athena, patrol coastal ship 15, is finished, and he will then be assigned to command it, his place on the promotion list for admiral all but forgotten.

Rensselaer has the courage of conviction to carry on with a sense of purpose, though. While supervising the outfitting of the Athena in New Orleans, he meets a brilliant lawyer named Katy Desper, with whom he falls in love. Soon thereafter, hes deployed to the Persian Gulf. However, while refueling and taking on provisions in Israel, hes assigned a very differentand top secretmission that will put his morality to the ultimate test.

As Rensselaer perseveres over the course of seven battles, a mutiny, and a court martial, Katy is the beacon that lights his way home. An enthralling new novel about the virtues of living by the laws of conscience and decency, The Oceans and the Stars takes readers on a heroic odyssey that is nothing short of a masterpiece.

Reviews

Helprin excels at creating three-dimensional characters, and Rensselaer is a man of high moral character driven by a deep sense of humanity with a Shakespearean reference always at the ready. Helprin masterfully blends adrenaline and heart while the plot pieces fall into place like tumblers in a lock. Military aficionados will appreciate detailed descriptions of weaponry and tactics, while lovers of exquisite prose will be captivated by Rensselaers profundity. * Booklist, *starred* review *
Helprins love letter to the old Navy and all the old virtues that it relied upon to protect our great country and give us peace and the opportunity for a good life . . . Throughout the novel, we learn that seemingly impossible acts of bravery and courage are possible and are remembered in the annals of eternity. * National Review *
A grand epic . . . every situation is thoroughly set up, providing technical how and emotional why, intellectual why, political why. No blind corners here, no unreliable narrators . . . Inspirational. * New York Journal of Books *
War, love, and the sea intermix in this novel of bravery and conscience . . . the action is terrific . . . Fans of war stories and nautical tales will enjoy this one. * Kirkus *
Mark Helprins brilliant, swiftly paced epica sea, war, and love storyis a moral statement for our time, taking its place in literary history alongside James Jones From Here to Eternity and Norman Mailers The Naked and the Dead. * Quarterdeck Magazine *
Mark Helprin is the most compelling novelist in America today...a story of great heroism. * Mike Pence, American Politician *

Author Bio

Mark Helprin is the internationally acclaimed, bestselling author of Paris in the Present Tense, Winters Tale, In Sunlight and in Shadow, A Soldier of the Great War, Freddy and Fredericka, The Pacific, Swan Lake, Ellis Island, Memoir from Antproof Case, and numerous other works.