The Golden Ocean by Patrick O’Brian
In 1740 Commodore George Anson of the Royal Navy sailed from England with a squadron of eight warships intent on disrupting the trade and capturing the holdings of the Spanish Empire in the Pacific Ocean. The squadron’s voyage took four years and of the eight ships that sailed from England only one returned. 188 men out of 1,854 survived to tell the tales of the dangers they’d face, the wonders they’d seen, and the marvelous treasures held by Spain in the Golden Ocean.