The river of diamondsGeoffrey Jenkins1964

The wind struck another hammer-blow. The whaler wheeled away stern-on, and then came up with a sickening thump forrard. 'One anchor cable gone!' Minnaar shouted about the roar of the wind. 'The other...' he never finished. the whaler sprang free as the second cable parted. She had been secured facing south-west and now she plunged back into the maelstrom. The water poured ankle deep on the bridge... 'Killer deserts, grizzled prospectors, mass suicides, savage nomads... and a vanishing U-boat patrol. I enjoyed it more than any other novel for ages." -Daily Telegraph 'Top-class, fascinating, scientifically plausible... a brilliant example of how to mix the mundane and the fantastic.' -Observer