Hellespont: Through the Jaws of Death

by Byrne Avery

“ The Naval History of Britain contains no page more wonderful than that which records the prowess of her submarines at the Dardanelles ” Winston Churchill (The World Crisis 1915)

Based accurately on real events, 'Hellespont - Through the Jaws of Death' is an eye-opening thriller about submarine operations in support of the Gallipoli campaign

The Author is a decorated veteran with 36 years’ service including command appointments in all types of Royal Navy submarines; diesel-electric patrol boats, nuclear hunter killer and nuclear deterrent submarines. His lived experience and innate understanding of submarine function, warfare and strategy informs his writing. “Hellespont – Through the Jaws of Death” is his first novel.

At the turn of the 20th century. On account of his penniless, rural background, Ted Crockford suffers every prejudice as he strives to become a naval officer. He and his colleagues in the nascent submarine service are reviled and rebuffed by their parent organisation, with the Royal Navy itself refusing to budge from centuries-old dogma as the threat from Germany intensifies.
Gallipoli 1915. The battleships have failed to silence the guns of the defending forts but a momentous amphibious assault is about to explode onto the beaches. This new breed of warrior – the submariners in their diminutive and rudimentary submersibles – undertake an unimaginable mission to fight their way deep behind enemy lines and into the Sea of Marmara. There they can disrupt the Ottoman resupply routes to the front line. But between them and their goal lies that historic and impenetrable barrier – Hellespont – described by Churchill as the “Jaws of Death”.

**WHAT READERS ARE SAYING**“I loved Hellespont. Gripping stuff – I couldn’t put it down when we got to the exploits of E57 in the straits, and then in the Sea of Marmara.” Brian Huggett, fiction author.“The plot hangs together really well and the mission draws you in and feels completely authentic and believable; I was ‘there’ and felt as if ‘I was living it’ with the crew.” Richard Raggett.“I think you have the balance of historic fact, maritime nomenclature and character just right which makes it engaging, exciting and informative to read.” Paul Barrett.

323 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 6, 2025