
In this career-spanning collection of short fiction, master storyteller and former Royal Navy seaman Alistair MacLean is truly in his element—writing about the sea and its power and about the men and women who sail it.
MacLean’s distinctive voice is evident from his very first, prize-winning short story, “The Dileas,” and retains his characteristic dry humor and suspenseful pacing through every tale that follows. A gripping treasury of vintage MacLean, The Lonely Sea presents all his short works about the sea in one book for the first time, including two stories that were never published during his lifetime.
Alistair MacLean was born in Glasgow, Scotland, the son of a minister. He spent much of his childhood in Daviot, Scotland. His native language was Scottish Gaelic. During World War II he served with the Royal Navy and was released in 1946. After the war, he studied English at the University of Glasgow, and he began writing short stories for extra income. He graduated in 1953 and became a a school teacher in Rutherglen. In 1954 he won a fiction competition and Collins Publishing asked him for a novel. He submitted HMS Ulysses, drawn from his own war experiences, and it was published in 1955. It was very successful and MacLean became a full-time writer. In the 1960s, he published two novels under the pseudonym "Ian Stuart." His books eventually sold so well that he moved to Switzerland as a tax exile. From 1963–1966, he took a hiatus from writing to run a hotel business in England. He continued to write until his death in 1987, although with his later books his popularity declined.

In this career-spanning collection of short fiction, master storyteller and former Royal Navy seaman Alistair MacLean is truly in his element—writing about the sea and its power and about the men and women who sail it.
MacLean’s distinctive voice is evident from his very first, prize-winning short story, “The Dileas,” and retains his characteristic dry humor and suspenseful pacing through every tale that follows. A gripping treasury of vintage MacLean, The Lonely Sea presents all his short works about the sea in one book for the first time, including two stories that were never published during his lifetime.
Alistair MacLean was born in Glasgow, Scotland, the son of a minister. He spent much of his childhood in Daviot, Scotland. His native language was Scottish Gaelic. During World War II he served with the Royal Navy and was released in 1946. After the war, he studied English at the University of Glasgow, and he began writing short stories for extra income. He graduated in 1953 and became a a school teacher in Rutherglen. In 1954 he won a fiction competition and Collins Publishing asked him for a novel. He submitted HMS Ulysses, drawn from his own war experiences, and it was published in 1955. It was very successful and MacLean became a full-time writer. In the 1960s, he published two novels under the pseudonym "Ian Stuart." His books eventually sold so well that he moved to Switzerland as a tax exile. From 1963–1966, he took a hiatus from writing to run a hotel business in England. He continued to write until his death in 1987, although with his later books his popularity declined.