The Sir John Franklyn Expedition to the artic to find the North West Passage in 1845 In the two naval vessels HMS Erebus and Terror ended in devastating disaster as all 130 men failed to be seen again and are thought to have perished on the artic wastes... Dan Simmons extrapolates this true story by building the characters in a very compelling way when they are confronted with there own individual terrors and something seemingly pursuing and hunting them on the ice. A can't put down book... it might be wise to read Michael Palins book of known facts on the expedition 'Erebus' before reading The Terror.