Ask No Quarter

by George Marsh (1945)

A historical maritime novel partly set in 1600s Newport.

From a contemporary review in The Mississippi Valley Historical Review:

At the end of the seventeenth century, when Rhode Island was fighting for freedom against neighbor and foreign power alike, Hugh Jocelyn wedded his destiny to privateering. An innocent lad to mingle with sailors and pit his strength against the sea, he nevertheless persisted until eventually he commanded his own ship. George Marsh, like many another historical novelist, has sought to pack his book with adventure set against the background of the times. And he draws in his stage setting with some competence—taverns, blockhouses, white lawn cravats, greasy stocks, scheming barmaids and pure ladies, and battles at sea. Action is swift and constant, and right always triumphs over wrong. Following the romantic tradition, Ask No Quarter is more of an old-fashioned "thriller" than an historical novel. Students would be excited by it, but would gain little historically.