Murder on Pratas Reef

A proud Navy ship has run aground on a reef in the Pacific Ocean. Not only do the officers and crew have to do their utmost to free the ship, but a body is discovered after the grounding - not from the accident, but a murder. This is Murder on Pratas Reef, an historically accurate fiction novel by Rick Ainsworth. Murder on Pratas Reef is his second novel. His first novel, Thunder and Storm: The Haverfield Incident, was published by VRA Publishing and is enjoying brisk sales after winning the 2007 Indie Excellence Award in Historical Fiction.. His latest novel is a tremendous work of fiction; an engaging murder mystery against a backdrop of the Herculean effort to free the ship from its predicament. This extraordinary occurrence on which this book is based really happened in 1965 to the USS Frank Knox, a US Navy destroyer which had seen combat and the honor of being named Ship of the Year in 1964. It was the catalyst for a huge task force of US Navy ships which came together for 37 days of tortuous and heroic efforts to release the ship from the clutches of Pratas Reef. What could have been the US Navy's most humiliating event became instead a testament to the honor, loyalty, and dedication of the US Seventh Fleet in their rescue of their sister ship. Except for the murder, its investigation and solution, which are purely fictional, this novel is a masterfully crafted and meticulously researched account of this incredible effort. The murder of one of the crewmen is a fascinating and suspenseful mystery, which unfolds slowly throughout the novel and leads to a surprising conclusion. The freeing of the Knox was a triumph over adversity, and the crew and officers all have their own unique perspective on the ship, the untried and sometimes comically ineffectual methods employed to free her, the murder investigation, and the impinging of events back in the United States on the emotions and morale of the sailors. No one who lived through these times, even aboard a Navy vessel halfway around the world, was immune from the effects of the burgeoning Viet Nam conflict, the Watts riots, and the struggles of the civil rights movement. This novel has a broad market reach, appealing to those who honor veterans, who serve or have loved ones serving in the military, mystery readers, history enthusiasts, and those who enjoy social commentary and a good story.