Margaret Mayfield needs to get married. In a fit of desperation, she weds an eccentric scientist. As her husband's obsessions with science take a darker turn on the eve of World War II, Margaret is forced to consider the life she has so carefully constructed.

"Lieutenant Bobby Steele, USN, is a fresh-faced and eager naval aviator: a "Nugget," who needs to learn the ropes and complex procedures of taking off and returning safely to his aircraft carrier. A blurry night of drinking lands him in an unfamiliar bed aboard the USS Oklahoma; later that day, the Japanese destroy Pearl Harbor. After cheating death and losing his friend in this act of war, the formerly naive Steele vows to avenge the attack. Flying...

As the United States expands its Navy in earnest, Bliven Putnam-- now Captain of the sloop-of-war Rappahannock-- has come into his own as a leader and is chosen to be at the forefront of such expansion. Dispatched on a two-year tour of the Pacific, he becomes a beacon of American friendship, and influence, in the west. When a long-planned reunion with his wife is cut short by a new assignment, Clarity at last puts her foot down. If she can't keep...