The Archimedes is a modern merchant steamship in tiptop condition and inthe summer of 1929 it has been picking up goods along the eastern seaboard ofthe United ... » 

The Archimedes is a modern merchant steamship in tiptop condition and inthe summer of 1929 it has been picking up goods along the eastern seaboard ofthe United States before making a run to China. A little overloaded perhapsthe oddly assorted cargo includes piles of old newspapers and heaps of tobaccothe ship departs for the Panama Canal from Norfolk Virginia on a beautifulautumn day. Before long the weather turns unexpectedly roughrougher in factthan even the most experienced members of the crew have ever encountered. TheArchimedes it turns out has been swept up in the vortex of an immensehurricane and for the next four days it will be battered and mauled by windand waves as it is driven wildly off course. Caught in an unremitting strugglefor survival both the crew and the ship will be tested as never before. Basedon detailed research into an actual event Richard Hughess tale of highsuspense on the high seas is an extraordinary story of men under pressure andthe unexpected ways they prove their mettleor crack. Yet the originalityart and greatness of In Hazard stem from something else Hughess eeriefascination with the hurricane itself the inhuman force around which thiswrenching tale of humanity at its limits revolves. Hughes channels the furiesof sea and sky into a piece of writing that is both apocalyptic and analytic.In Hazard is an unforgettable defining work of modern adventure. «