Cold War Naval Thriller Reading Order#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Frigate |
1988 |
Buy |
| Carrier |
1988 |
Buy |
| Submarine |
1988 |
Buy |
Non-Fiction#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| The Pulpit of the American Revolution |
2009 |
Buy |
| Souls Speak |
2019 |
Buy |
Standalone Novels#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Below The Horizon |
1974 |
Buy |
| Oil Strike |
1976 |
Buy |
| Black Tide |
1977 |
Buy |
| Avalanche |
1978 |
Buy |
| Red Mutiny |
1978 |
Buy |
| Target Risk |
1979 |
Buy |
| Seawaymen |
1979 |
Buy |
| William the Conqueror |
1983 |
Buy |
| Go Deep |
1985 |
Buy |
| The Windship Race |
1988 |
Buy |
Submarine Warfare in World War Two Reading Order#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Convoy Escort Commander |
1971 |
Buy |
| The Fighting Tenth |
1971 |
Buy |
| Crisis Convoy |
1971 |
Buy |
Submariner Sinclair Reading Order#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| In The Blood |
1973 |
Buy |
| Submariner Sinclair |
1959 |
Buy |
| Jimmy-the-One |
1960 |
Buy |
| Sinclair in Command |
1961 |
Buy |
| Nuclear Captain |
1962 |
Buy |
| Sub-Zero |
1963 |
Buy |
| Full Fathom Five |
1967 |
Buy |
| The Sea Above Them |
1975 |
Buy |
WWII Action Thriller Reading Order#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Torpedo Strike |
1964 |
Buy |
| Never So Proud |
1966 |
Buy |
| Last Ditch |
1971 |
Buy |
John Wingate served in the Royal Navy’s submarine fleet during the Second World War, and that experience became the foundation for his long writing career. Starting with Submariner Sinclair in 1959, he produced 29 books over three decades, ranging from tense submarine fiction to Cold War thrillers and historical accounts of wartime convoys.
His best-known work is the Submariner Sinclair series, which follows a Royal Navy officer through eight books of undersea action. He also wrote standalone adventure novels, a trilogy of Cold War naval thrillers, and several books about the real submarine campaigns of WWII. Titles like Torpedo Strike and Full Fathom Five show a writer who understood the claustrophobia, discipline, and danger of life aboard a warship.
Wingate’s later non-fiction work covered subjects outside his naval career, but the bulk of his output remains firmly rooted in the world he knew best: the sea, its submarines, and the men who served in them.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many books has John Wingate written?
John Wingate has written 29 books across six series.
What was John Wingate's first book?
John Wingate’s first book is Submariner Sinclair, published in 1959.
Was John Wingate's writing based on real military experience?
Yes. John Wingate served as a Royal Navy submarine officer during World War II, and his firsthand experience at sea shaped nearly all of his fiction. His Submariner Sinclair series and WWII novels draw heavily on the realities of underwater warfare and naval operations.