Mark Helprin, the #1 New York Times, best-selling author of Winter's Tale and A Soldier ofthe Great War, has returned with a fast-paced, beautifully written novel about the majesty of the sea; a life dedicated to duty, honor, and country; and the gift of falling in loveWhen Stephen Rensselaer, a Navy captain near the end of his career, is called upon to defend the politically doomed development of a variant of the Navy's smallest ship, he does so without hesitation, thereby alienating the President of the United States. The program is cancelled after its first prototype, Athena, Patrol Coastal 15, and Rensselaer-his place on the promotion list for admiral all but forgotten-is given command, an intended humiliation for someone of his rank. Rather than resign, he carries on, and while supervising Athena's fitting out in New Orleans, encounters a brilliant lawyer, Katy Farrar, with whom he falls in love. After failed marriages for both, this is a completely unexpected and exhilarating last chance. Soon thereafter, he is deployed to the Persian Gulf. However, while refueling and taking on provisions in Israel, he discovers that his mission has been changed, which subjects his integrity, morality, and skill to the ultimate test, and ensures that Athena will live forever in the annals of the Navy. As in the Odyssey, Katy is the force that keeps Rensselaer alive and the beacon that lights the way home through seven battles, mutiny, and court martial. In classic literary form, an enthralling new novel that extolls the virtues of living by the laws of conscience, decency, and sacrifice, The Oceans and the Stars is nothing short of a masterpiece.

Mark Helprin, the #1 New York Times, best-selling author of Winter's Tale and A Soldier of the Great War, returns with a fast-paced, beautifully written novel about the majesty of the sea; a life dedicated to duty, honor, and country; and the gift of falling in love.

About the Author
Mark Helprin is the internationally acclaimed, best-selling author of Paris in the Present Tense, Winter's 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. He lives in Virginia.

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 Rensselaer's profundity." * Booklist, *starred* review *
"Helprin's 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 Helprin's brilliant, swiftly paced epic-a sea, war, and love story-is a moral statement for our time, taking its place in literary history alongside James Jones' From Here to Eternity and Norman Mailer's 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 *



Book Information
ISBN 9781419769085
Author Mark Helprin
Format Hardback
Page Count 464
Imprint Abrams
Publisher Abrams