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A Dangerous Game

Thomas Cochrane's Life on the Edge
By Peter Moore
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Brief Description
Discover the extraordinary life of Thomas Cochrane, the 18th century naval hero and political radical, inspiration for the characters of Jack Aubrey and Horatio Hornblower, whose sensational exploits at sea and on land shaped the course of history. Compelling... compulsively readable - THE TIMES I wish... Read More
Format: Hardback
$6500
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Releases 1st December 2026 (Approx. Date) Pre-order  "A Dangerous Game" now to secure your copy from our first shipment

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Discover the extraordinary life of Thomas Cochrane, the 18th century naval hero and political radical, inspiration for the characters of Jack Aubrey and Horatio Hornblower, whose sensational exploits at sea and on land shaped the course of history.

Compelling... compulsively readable - THE TIMES
I wish Patrick O'Brian was alive to read this - NIKOLAI TOLSTOY
A master historian and storyteller... an extraordinary subject - MATTHEW PARKER

The astonishing true story of Thomas Cochrane - naval hero, political radical and inspiration for Patrick O'Brian's Jack Aubrey - whose audacity at sea, scandals on land and battles across empires make for a tale as thrilling as any novel.

Cochrane's life was even more remarkable than the fiction it inspired. A hero of the Napoleonic Wars, known for destroying the French Atlantic fleet in one explosive attack, he was an equally aggressive force in British politics as the radical MP for Westminster.

Cochrane's fortunes turned in 1814, when he was convicted of a fraud on the Stock Exchange. After escaping from prison, he later reinvented himself as a revolutionary admiral, helping the Chileans, Peruvians, Brazilians and Greeks in their struggles for independence.

In A Dangerous Game, the Sunday Times-bestselling historian Peter Moore draws on newly uncovered materials to bring Cochrane vividly to life. Bold, rebellious and uncompromising, he saw the world as a contest to be won - at sea, in politics, even in scandal - and played it more dangerously than any man of his era.

Brilliant, pacy and utterly enthralling - ANTONIA SENIOR

A fitting tribute... unfolds the events of this amazing life with a verve worthy of the man - CAROLINE ALEXANDER, author of The Bounty

Moore vividly captures the brilliant, brave and brooding naval hero in all his complexity... history and biography at its finest - EDWARD SHAWCROSS, author of The Last Emperor of Mexico

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781784743208

Publisher: Vintage Publishing

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 03 September 2026

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Chatto & Windus

Audience: General / adult, Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 44.0mm

Width: 165.0mm

Height: 251.0mm

Weight: 832g

Pages: 640

Collections

Biography & Memoir Education & Reference History & Archaeology History & Military Non-Fiction Non-Fiction Pre-Orders Penguin Books Peter Moore Political Biographies Pre-order Biographies Pre-order Books Pre-orders Pre-orders by Release Date

About the Author

Peter Moore is a writer, journalist and tutor in creative writing at the University of Oxford. He is the author of five works of history, including the Sunday Times bestsellers The Weather Experiment and Endeavour. His latest book is A Dangerous Game, a new biography of Thomas Cochrane.

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