Wonderful new author I've found While checking out books from the library last week I noticed on the recommended shelf a book on naval history by James L. Nelson entitled "The Reign of Iron: The story of the first battling ironclads, the monitor and the Merrimack". Picking it up on a whim, I found a first -rate historical writer. The book is more than a dry historical account of this American civil war confrontation, but describes in detail the personalities involved, the confusion of the time and the parallel developments that brought these two revolutionary ships together in Hampton Roads in March of 1862. You can read the first chapter online here to get a taste of the author's style. The author, a former professional sailor also has written fiction about the American revolutionary war and I'm anxious to see if his fiction is as compelling as his non-fiction.