The Passion and the Glory

When the Japanese dropped bombs on Pearl Harbour, America entered the Second World War. For Walter, youngest son of Lewis McGann, this meant the long-awaited opportunity to see some action — and the chance, too, of fighting alongside his brother Clive, a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy. But for both the McGann brothers it was a time of great anxiety as well as exhilaration; their sister Joan was in Hong Kong — and the beleaguered colony was experiencing Japanese savagery at first hand.

Walter and Clive experience the excitement, hardships, and horrors of World War II as officers in the Royal Navy, while their sister, Joan, trapped in Hong Kong, discovers the brutality of the Japanese conquerors. Walter and Clive serve at sea while Joan experiences Japanese rule in Hong Kong, bringing the saga to its conclusion through three distinct encounters with captivity, naval warfare and the collapse of British security in East Asia.