Oriental Valiant : Richard Regan : 9780648354246 : 0648354245 : 13 Dec 2021 : December, 1941. Having survived the Atlantic convoys, Oriental Venture, under the command of hard-bitten and war-weary skipper Bill Rowden, is bound for Bangkok. The Japanese are locked in brutal combat in China with the Nationalist government and the communists but, elsewhere, the Far East enjoys a fragile peace. With orders to load a cargo of rice for Singapore, Rowden arrives in a city awash with intrigue in which Allied and Axis spies jockey to discover one another's secrets. Invited to dinner at the Oriental Hotel, once favoured by Joseph Conrad, Rowden is surprised to meet an old friend, military intelligence agent Arnold Spencer, recently promoted to Colonel in the Australian Army. Enigmatic as always, Spencer gives little away, but Rowden's tingling fingers are a sure sign of trouble. With loading complete, the ship is ready to leave when an unseasonal thunderstorm blankets the city during the night