Dark Victory is the secret history of John Howard's campaign against boat people that began with the Tampa and ended ten extraordinary weeks later - after deaths and disappearances, violent confrontations in the Indian Ocean and international uproar - with the Australian people giving the Prime Minister his third, most daring election victory. David Marr and Marian Wilkinson, two of the country's most accomplished investigative journalists, burrow deep into the ways of John Howard's Australia. They reveal a world of ruthlessly skilled politicians, timid bureaucrats, a cowed Opposition, outmanoeuvred top brass, subtle spin doctors - and the men and women arriving on rotten boats who found themselves ambushed at sea by an angry Australia.

1. Full up, August 23 to 26 -- 2. Sea rescue, August 26 -- 3. Australia v. the boat people -- 4. Canberra scrambles, August 27 -- 5. Pan Pan, August 28 -- 6. Boarding party, August 29 -- 7. Labor cornered, to August 31 -- 8. Pacific solution, August 30 & 31 -- 9. The rule of law, August 29 to September 3 -- 10. The thick grey line, September 3 to 10 -- 11. The shadow of the Twin Towers, September 11 to 19 -- 12. The voyage of the Manoora, September 3 to October 8 -- 13. Launching the campaign, to October 8 -- 14. Orders from the top, October 6 to 9 -- 15. Truth overboard, October 9 to 12 -- 16. A military campaign, October 14 to 23 -- 17. The boat that sank, October 17 to 28 -- 18. The worst of times, October 23 to November 4 -- 19. The navy leaks, November 4 to 8 -- 20. The burning issue, November 8 and 9 -- 21. Victory, November 10.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 294-321) and index.