For centuries, writers have been inspired by the sea, pitting man against nature in stories and novels. The allure of the sea is mighty, and here is a collection of classic adventure stories from writers such as Daniel Defoe, Joseph Conrad and C. S. Forester, whose protagonists must pit their wits against fierce oceans, terrifying storms and creatures of the deep.

Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, cloth-bound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover.

A young Hornblower is tested in a rare short story by C. S. Forester, a ship’s captain is gripped by a fatal desire to stay on course in 'Make Westing' by Jack London and terrifying sea monsters rear their heads in Rudyard Kipling’s 'A Matter of Fact'. An elderly captain saves the day in 'The Captain’s Arm' and 'The Open Boat' by Stephen Crane is an account of a nail-biting shipwreck.

Many of the writers chosen here are experienced sailors and seafarers themselves, bringing authenticity and realism to their own gripping tales.

All the stories in Standing Her Ground have been chosen to celebrate the skill, the passion and achievements of women writers spanning one hundred years of innovation. Part of the Macmillan Collector's Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition is edited by Harriet Sanders. Edith Wharton was the first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for literature. Writer and activist Alice Dunbar Nelson was an early adopter of the Harlem Renaissance movement. Kate Chopin and Elizabeth Gaskell dared to explore themes outside the strict social codes of their times. And Virginia Woolf was hugely influential in both the feminist and modernist movements. From 'The Manchester Marriage', in which a husband, supposedly drowned at sea, returns to find his daughter, to the two sisters who are comically adrift after the death of their domineering father in 'The Daughters of the Late Colonel', and a young girl who enlists the help of a sorceress to win back her boyfriend in 'The Goodness of Saint Rocque', Standing Her Ground showcases nine groundbreaking women writers.