A Dangerous Game by Peter Moore - ISBN: 9781784743208
Hardcover
Naval hero, radical, revolutionary: Cochrane’s life was more thrilling than fiction.
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A Dangerous Game

Thomas Cochrane's Life on the Edge

$51.00

  • Hardcover

    656 pages

  • Release Date

    1 December 2026

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Summary

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.

“I wish Patrick O’Brian was alive to read this” - Nikolai Tolstoy

“A master historian and storyteller… an extraordinary subject” - Matthew Parker

“An extraordinary biography… brilliant, pacy and utterly enthralling” - Antoni…

Book Details

ISBN-13:9781784743208
ISBN-10:1784743208
Author:Peter Moore
Publisher:Vintage Publishing
Imprint:Chatto & Windus
Format:Hardcover
Number of Pages:656
Release Date:1 December 2026
Weight:750g
Dimensions:240mm x 156mm x 40mm
What They're Saying

Critics Review

I could only wish Patrick O’Brian was alive to have read this – NIKOLAI TOLSTOYThomas Cochrane’s life was almost absurdly eventful: a fearless warrior, a naval hero, a politician and an unlikely revolutionary, he was also a symbol of his turbulent and rumbustious age. Peter Moore’s gripping account perfectly encapsulates all of his vices and virtues. A triumph – RICHARD STRACHAN, author of Night Fire and The UnrecoveredA meticulously researched, widely accessible, highly entertaining and, at times, shocking book. Cochrane was, most definitely, the best kind of hero: purged, loved, misunderstood, dangerous, humble, and, importantly, always for the people – LOUIS D HALL, author of In GreenThe brilliant, dashing, outrageous Thomas Cochrane, who inspired so many works of thrilling fiction, has received a fitting tribute; Peter Moore’s A Dangerous Game unfolds the events of this amazing life with a verve worthy of the man. – CAROLINE ALEXANDER, author of The Endurance and The BountyA master historian and storyteller meets a truly extraordinary subject. The result is history that explodes off the page – MATTHEW PARKER, author of One Fine DayWith wonderfully balletic, graceful prose, Moore thrillingly brings Thomas Cochrane’s absurdly entertaining story to life. From the Napoleonic wars to Latin American revolutions, Moore vividly captures the brilliant, brave and brooding naval hero in all his complexity. A Dangerous Game is history and biography at its finest – EDWARD SHAWCROSS, author of The Last Emperor of MexicoAn extraordinary biography… a brilliant, pacy and utterly enthralling account of one of the greatest characters in naval fiction. If you are a Hornblower fan, or a Jack Aubrey obsessive, this account of the man whose real life exploits inspired the greatest Age of Sail novelists is unmissable. As a lifelong devotee of Patrick O’Brian and CS Forester, I read this true-life account of Lord Cochrane’s exploits with deep pleasure and the occasional moment of delighted recognition as the fictional and the real collided – ANTONIA SENIOR, author of Stalin’s Apostles

About The Author

Peter Moore

Peter Moore is a writer, journalist, and lecturer 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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