This tells the story of HMS Seraph, in one of the most unusual events of the mediterranean theater in WW2.
Shortly before Operation Torch, the Allies were wishing to secretly send a team of negotiators to the French in North Africa, to ease the paths of the intended landings.
This posed some problems, as, after Oran (Operation Catapult) the French were generally unwilling to deal with the British in most any capacity.
However, the US had next to no naval presence in the med, hence the unusual solution described by the book’s title.
A thoroughly GOOD read, if somewhat sparse of detail on the negotiations themselves.
An added bonus is the account relating to the death of Admiral Darlan, one of few that shed a little light on that shrouded episode.
Kind Regards, Uyraell.