5 comments about Empire of Ivory (Temeraire, Book 4).

1. This book is the fourth installment in the ongoing adventures of Captain William Laurence and the dragon Temeraire in the service of His Majesty's air corps during the Napoleonic Wars.
   
   Obviously, this is an alternate history series. The only fantasy lies in the differing points in history, and the existence of dragons who are as intelligent (if not more) than most people.
   
   In this adventure, the dragons of England are seriously ill, and dying, of a terrible illness. Temeraire had had a similar one, but had recovered. Laurence and Temeraire, along with his crew, sail to South Africa in search of a remedy. What they find there is the wonderful story of this book, a remarkable, marvelously readible adventure that leads them deep into the heart of Africa.
   
   The denouement of the story can't be discussed here without creating a spoiler. Let's just say that if you read this book, you will be desperate to read the sequel!
   
   I recommend this book to anyone who loves a fine story, a unique universe to get lost in!



2. Naomi Novik is a writer to continue to watch and the Temeraire Series is a delight to read. I've not been as looking forward to a next book in a series for quite some time.
   
   What Novik does better than most writers in a series is to avoid the temptation of rewriting a previously successful book and manages to introduce new themes. In Empire of Ivory, Novik again changes the venue and moves the theater of operations within the Napoleonic wars to Africa where the social elements of slavery are furthered through through the interaction between the main characters Lawrence and the dragon who seems more human than some of the other characters through the continued internal and external conversations that take place. The naivity would likely not succeed in a typical construct in a traditional historical novel, but somehow, adding the fantasy dragon element here apart from just being entertaining and fascinating to consider, it makes the conversations and the moral and ethical underpinnings work and this is more thank most novels of this genre ever achieve.
   
   A remarkable book in a remarkable series.
   
   5 stars!
   
   Bart Breen



3. In Empire of Ivory, the author starts using dragons as a vehicle for early 19th century social criticism and the book falls flat.
   
   Novik is falling prey to her own fiction. In her first book she whipped up a race of speaking beasts set in the Napoleonic Wars; belatedly she realized having another sapient race on the planet might make for some social changes. Up until this point, the Temeraire books had been more or less-parallel to our own history -with dragons.
   In Empire of Ivory, however, she regresses into vilifying the British for the practice of Slavery (which she rewrites them into NOT abolishing in 1807) and for their senseless cruelty to dragons, and idolizes the enlightened China she has created. Napoleon's France, too, is now rewritten as a force for social equity! (nb: in actuality, he *revived* slavery, which had been abolished in the Revolution)
   
   In the effort to discover a cure for a mysterious plague, the English discover a *completely* unknown, continent-spanning African Empire, ruled by a dragons -a sort of cross between Shaka's Zulu Kingdom and Mahdist Sudan set in the Congo. And, surprise, they're angry about the slave trade!
   Now, I have a particular problem with the fictional Africans being -at the same time!- portrayed as a force of social justice both morally superior and more socially enlightened than the English, while ALSO being willfully close-minded murderers. More practically, if a kingdom were powerful enough to destroy EVERY white city from South Africa to Nigeria, how on earth was it unknown to the world? And how did it fall victim to the slave trade in the first place?
   While it started out fascinating, the gaping plot holes and poor planning eventually boggled the mind.
   
   The ending of the book is predictable, disgusting and pointless. Or rather, it is the inevitable result of the plot, but it is disgusting and pointless that the plot should have led in that direction. Nothing is resolved by the end of the book, and the reader is left dissatisfied with a sour taste in the mouth. Yes, I want to read more, but only so I can forget how horrible *this* book was.



4. I just started reading Naomi Novic's Temeraire series a couple months ago. I wish I'd found it sooner...and yet I'm very glad to have found it late! Here's why: now I can finish one book and immediately move on to the next, with only the wait at the bookstore cashier line.
   
   His Majesty's Dragon was excellent. Throne of Jade was subpar, though still good, and in Black Powder War things picked up again. I just finished Empire of Ivory, and am hard put to decide whether it is the best since the first, or the best so far! It was magnificently executed, combining many of the successful plot elements of previous books, while avoiding their pitfalls. There is a lot of suspense and tension, with a goodly amount of action.
   
   Like Throne of Jade, in Ivory we are shown a new society and its relation to dragons. While China was fascinating, African dragons are amazingly conceived. Also, this book does a lot to further character development, especially for Lawrence and Temeraire...though others get more page time too. The dragons really came to life and personality for me in this one more successfully than in the past. And this one already has me itching to read the next.



5. This is a great read. I was not planning on read this book, since the description did not sound that good. But I am glade I downloaded it to my Kindle, it is a great addition into the series. You, the reader, get to know a bit more about the dragons and the captains inner thoughts and how they think/fill about a topic, such as slavery. I know a bit about this time era (less then I would like, but reading about it more since reading this series) and the author works well in the time line. When reading you really fill that dragons could really have participated in the battles and lived along side the true historical time line.

5 comments about Flying Colours (Hornblower Saga).

1. This is the next Hornblower chronologically, it was not the next one written. Now that the series is completed it makes sense to read it as Hornblower's career progresses in the Royal Navy.
   
   The whole series is a pleasure to read full of action and adventure; with enough time for a little romance.
   
   Get acquainted with one of the most popular characters in modern literature.
   
   After reading this you will be back for more. And that is a wonderful thing.



2. I bought this book as a gift for my dad. It arrived in less time than it would have taken me to go out to the book store! GREAT!



3. I thought I wasn't going to enjoy this book because it was set mainly on land, but was I wrong. Great story, interesting twists and lots of Hornblower situations make this a winner.



4. C.S. Forester was the Father of Naval Fiction. Critics of Hornblower portrayed in Flying Colors, have to realize that a "Kings Man" in the Royal Navy had to be just as well versed in life on the coastal areas and rivers as being in mid Atlantic. It comes with the territory. My first novel True Colors, set during the war of 1812 has five major sea battles; but in my second Shadow on the Water, half the story is set on land in Boston, with only two sea battles. As an author who trys to stay true to their plot, it's all about the story; the story; the story. Forester was a great inspiration to me although I always thought Hornblower was a bit too involved in self analysis. Forgive the pun, but whatever floats your boat.
   Valerie Roosa
   Author: True Colors
   Shadow on the Water
   A Cross for this Land
   Editor of Day Star Art & Publishing



5. Flying Colours (1938) is C. S. Forester's eighth Hornblower novel by chronology, third by publication; it completes Forester's original story arc. Having been forced to surrender to a French squadron at the end of Ship of the Line, Horatio Hornblower is imprisoned and sent with Lieutenant Bush and his coxswain to Paris to have an example made of him. Most of the novel deals with their attempts to escape France.
   
   Most of Flying Colours takes place on land, making it a refreshing change from the innumerable sea battles that fill every other Hornblower novel. And Forester moves things a long at a fairly good pace. There are a few noticeable conveniences in the plot, but they are not sufficiently egregious as to ruin the story.
   
   The problems Forester had in Ship of the Line with Hornblower being overly loathsome have been alleviated for the most part. Hornblower has escalated his philandering ways, however, but since it should be abundantly clear by now that he is a man of no principle beyond his duty to the Royal Navy, this should hardly come as a great shock to the reader. This fundamental lack of integrity most assuredly has quite a bit to do with his complete inability to be contented with his life, even with things wrapping up in a very tidy manner for him as they do here.
   
   There is a great deal of drama here with Hornblower and his wife Maria, or there should be; Forester leaves it largely untapped. For those who read the Hornblower novels in the order Forester wrote them, Maria has never appeared "on camera," as it were, to this point, and so this is not a big deal. But those who have read them in chronological order are considerably more invested in the character of Maria, and rightly hoped for more. Obviously Forester could not have gone back and changed things in his earlier works, but the end result is that the resolution here is hardly satisfactory. This is the price one pays when one writes out of chronology: the merit of the original works is diminished by later works, which reveal and even create flaws in them.
   
   Flying Colours is a step up from Ship of the Line, and is a mostly satisfactory conclusion to the original Hornblower story arc, which is, on the whole, decent, and which would give way to subsequent superior novels.

5 comments about Sharpe's Havoc: Richard Sharpe & the Campaign in Northern Portugal, Spring 1809 (Richard Sharpe's Adventure Series #7).

1. Sharpe's Havoc is for long-time fans of Richard Sharpe who want to know about all of his fictional adventures. As usual, looking after the interests of the local British causes Sharpe lots of problems.
   
   If you are reading these books in the order of the chronology of the events rather than the order of their publication, this book follows Sharpe's Rifles where Sharpe rises to command a small band of the 95th Rifles after his superiors are killed in the disastrous retreat from Spain. Sharpe has attached himself to a surveying team that is preparing maps for the British.
   
   As the French prepare to capture Oporto under Marshal Soult, Sharpe is ordered to help locate a missing woman who may have gone to her family's country home. No sooner does he receive this order than it is countermanded by the shadowy Colonel Christopher who orders a retreat in the opposite directions. After receiving his orders in writing, Sharpe begins to retreat . . . only to find it's too late. There is no safe way out of the city. So he takes his men and they take their chances.
   
   The scenes involving Portuguese people leaving Oporto are pretty gruesome. You won't soon forget them.
   
   Eventually, Sharpe and his men (alone with some Portuguese allies) find themselves where the missing woman may be found. Once there, Colonel Christopher begins playing dangerous games at the expense of the British and Sharpe. He also misleads the woman into believing she is married (even though Christopher is already married). The consequences are fatal for many of those who rely on Christopher.
   
   At the book's end, Sharpe and his men play a key role in the recapture of Oporto by Sir Arthur Wellesley (Sharpe's not-so-friendly friend in high places).
   
   There are three battle scenes that you'll enjoy in the book. The various machinations of Christopher and Sharpe being caught in stasis don't provide for much interesting reading. As a result, the middle of the book (between the first and second battle scenes) may not appeal to you.
   
   If you don't like to read about gruesome mistreatment of innocents, this book won't be for you. It's pretty explicit.
   
   If you are a Francophile, don't read this book. The French army comes in for some pretty strong condemnation for its ways of "living off the land and the local people."



2. This one is better than the previous couple of books in the series; maybe it's because Lieut. Sharpe is paying more attention to the war against the French and less attention to women and spies. By internal chronology, "Sharpe's Havoc" comes immediately after "Sharpe's Rifles" -- which actually was the first book Cornwell wrote in this series, but whatever. It's the spring of 1809 and Richard Sharpe, previously a private and then a sergeant, and most recently a regimental quartermaster (because the gentlemanly officers of his unit don't have much use for someone with his lack of family background), finds himself in command of a short company of rifles in northern Portugal. The British army has retreated south but a bridge across the Douro River gives way and Sharpe and his men are stranded on the French-controlled side of the river. A certain Colonel Christopher (he's really an opportunistic Foreign Office observer with personal ambitions) begins giving him orders and Sharpe follows them, but reluctantly -- at least until the bastard steals his prized telescope, and then all bets are off. The colonel turns out to be a cad in several other ways as well. Cornwell, as usual, sticks pretty close to historical events for the background of Sharpe's adventures, and it's kind of amazing just how much real-life improves on fiction in this case. Sharpe's riflemen find ways and places to lie low, aided by a very young, completely inexperienced Portuguese lieutenant, but who has the right attitude and good instincts. They have several opportunities to teach the French about the accuracy and range of the rifled barrel, and they benefit from the wrongly assured superiority of the French commanders. Sharpe's path crosses that of Sir Arthur Wellesley yet again, but at least the lieutenant doesn't find it necessary to murder anyone in cold blood this time. out.



3. seems to be a pattern in the books and one wishes that they were not quite so repetitive



4. I love the Sharpe series. The books are infinitely better than the movies. Havoc is a bit predictable, but still great read. Since Portuguese is my mother tongue, I was disappointed to find several mistakes. Names like the mountain-man Andrêa or father Josefa--the correct spelling would be André; and Josefa is a woman's name. Ordenança is a word that has plural--ordenanças. (I found this same kind of small language mistakes in "Rifles" too, then in Spanish.) Apart from that, extremely enjoyable book.



5. That's All She Read http://allsheread.blogspot.com
   
   This is only the seventh book in the Richard Sharpe Adventure Series if you line them all up in chronological order by battles. I suspect Sharpe's Havoc was written after the three India, one shipboard and one Denmark novels were written, themselves a jump back fromn 1814 to 1798 and soon after to fill in Sharpe's early years. Sharpe's Havoc provides a place for Cornwell to tie up a loose end or two and acknowledge events, like the battles in India, the surprising presence of Sharpe at Trafalgar, the sad love story of of Copenhagen and even sadder love story of lady Grace. Personally I founed it satisfying to have all those dramatic events taken into account in Sharpe's life.
   
   In Sharpe's Havoc our boys find themselves in Portugal with Captain Hogan, assigned to look for a missing British wine merchant's daughter and, with Hogan's arch insinuation, "to keep an eye on Christopher". Christopher is a Foreign Office operative assigned to feel out the Portuguese attitude towards the French invasion of their country. He has decided he has a higher calling, to manipulate relations within and without the the French leading officers to create peace between the three nations. Our Christopher has more than a little larceny in him, as he plans to marry the wine merchant's daughter, Kate, and get hold of her late father's company, and then some. I felt that Hogan suspected something, but if so, he certainly did not get that across to Sharpe who trusts the guy for an awfully long time. I kept shouting at the book, "Send someone to warn Hogan, for God's sake!" My exhortations did not help.
   
   Sharpe almost obeys Hogan's other suggestion, not to fall in love with Kate. There is one kiss, then the book ends with someone else with her in his arms, implying I suppose that he gets the girl, not Sharpe. The novel starts with the French capture of Oporto, follows Sharpe and his rifles to a standstill in a small Portuguese town where he sits more or less idle while Christopher is off doing his dirty tricks. When Our Hero finally figures out he's been duped, it is almost too late. Her, Harper, Hagman, Tongue, Perkins and Harris, and the rest, as they say on Gilligan's Island, withstand the siege of a hill fort before Christopher and the French give up and head for Oporto with an unhappy Kate and not before murdering literally everyone in the small town. In a dramatic battle at a seminary the British now under the general command of good old Nosey, Sir Arthur Wellesley, retake the seaport and send the French scrambling for the Spanish border. It is of course Sharpe's official mission to stop the French from escaping and his private mission to kill Christopher, retrieve his stolen telescope, and presumably Kate.
   
   The novel begins on a bridge and ends on a bridge. You can tell this is is a bridge in itself, written later than the earliest novels. For one thing, all the catch up and fill in. But also because it is even better written than those first Sharpe adventures. Cornwell wrote dozens of other novels in between, and it really shows. This is as smooth and mature a Sharpe novel as there is. Other than instances where I wanted to give Sharpe a blow upside the head for obtuseness, this is as satisfying a Sharpe novel as there are. It has all the anticipated treasures, battle, courtship, Sharpe's struggle to be a proper officer, the growing comradeship of the key rifles, and Sharpe's self-actualized comments and actions. Christopher says to him, "We are England. We don't assassinate." Sharpe replies, "I do."
   
   My husband, Jim, as wild a fan of Cornwell as I am, after all my long and patient evangelism, read Sharpe's Havoc to me. It is available in hardback, paperback, and even a leather bound edition, on Kindle, and on audio VD and download. For blind and otherwise print impaired readers, you can find it at BookShare.org and from the National Library Service via your local library in cassette form as RC 58259 and download as DB 58259. This is not one of the novels made into a film.

5 comments about Sharpe's Honor (Richard Sharpe's Adventures, No. 7).

1. 
   
   Poor end, but Sharpe's Honour Novel Another Page Turner
   By Kristin Battestella
   
   
   In the throngs of homebound illness, what am I doing? Reading Sharpe, of course. Bernard Cornwell's ninth novel in the series again adds depth that didn't fit in the fine on screen adaptation.
   
   As I've mentioned before, the television series may have taken a few misses by filming the novels out of order and prematurely introducing characters. The Sharpe's Sword book comes before the Honour novel, yet the Honour film introduces La Marquesa-according to them, she's never met Sharpe. Fortunately, the novel expands on their unusual relationship from the Sword novel. Sharpe's wife is now dead, and he must find La Marquesa to prove his innocence and keep the fragile balance between England and Spain. But of course, Sharpe's motives are entirely manly; wishing to see the `Golden Whore' again.
   
   I prefer Cornwell's writing when it is Sharpe dominated; Richard's conflicts, internal drama amidst historical dilemmas. Sure I like Sean Bean and action and the period production and cheekiness of the Sharpe films, but I don't read for those things. When Sharpe's Honour is intimately Sharpe, it is very much like Hornblower. Sharpe is the hero we love of course, but he's also a man, a common soldier caught in a world not of his making.
   
   Unfortunately, Cornwell strays more and more from the close viewpoint of Sharpe and his friends as the series moves forward. After a lovely build up of Sharpe alone, then with La Marquesa; the latter third of the Honour novel switches between Wellington, La Marquesa, the French Marshals, even King Joseph. Of course Sharpe couldn't be everywhere for the big historical finale, but we spend so much time with strangers and history for the end. The epilogue about what happens to Sharpe is just that, an afterthought almost. You can't spend half a book with a man on a quest to reclaim his rank and then say, `Sharpe, now a Major again' and think that sums it up.
   
   Cornwell is a historical novelist and of course he does a lot of research and his lavish portrayals of historical events are divine, but if I wanted to read a history book, I would. I'm interested in character, and conflict, and restitution. Despite a heavy handed action lackluster ending, Sharpe's Honour is a must for any Sharpe enthusiast. The character driven first half of the novel is worth a read.



2. As France is slowly pushed north in Spain, France suddenly gets a lift from Napoleon's victories in northern Europe. Ducos, his spy chief in Spain, plots a coup that would restore the Spanish throne, ally Spain with France and evict Britain from the country.
   
   Instrumental to it is the lovely and treacherous Helene Leroux, now remarried to a Spanish marquess, who does not object to his demise as long as she'll get to keep her wealth. She doesn't realize it means the demise as well of Sharpe, whom she retains a soft spot for.
   
   Caught fighting an illegal duel with the marquess, Sharpe is jailed, his life in jeopardy, when his opponent is mysteriously murdered. Wellington is under pressure to hang Sharpe to appease the Spanish public. And La Marquesa, "the Golden Whore", is shut up in a convent.
   
   France has been retreating towards its own border with its wagons stuffed with Spanish plunder, but France's Marshal Jourdan sees his chance to finally vanquish Wellington, who has made so many French generals look bad. Wellington has only a desperate chance to turn the tables on Jourdan and keep the slow liberation of Spain alive. Ducos and his collaborators, a Spanish Inquisition priest and his vicious partisan brother, do everything they can to destroy Sharpe and the bewitching woman he can't forget. It all comes to a head at the battle of Vitoria, where the French are so confident of victory they set up a viewing stand for their ladies and mistresses, with their wagons full of gold and treasure parked nearby.



3. Richard Sharpe, once a private in the British army's ranks and now a major in a battalion of the South Essex Regiment, seems to spend more time these days as an intelligence operative than as a soldier. It's 1813 and the British under Wellington have finally pushed Napoleon's occupying armies almost back to the Pyrenees. But a revenge-seeking French spymaster whom Sharpe insulted in the last book arranges for him to be charged with murder. And the "soldier's soldier" is convicted and hanged. (The End.) Actually, his friend, Hogan, has sent him off to find out why the French are pursuing certain policies -- and to recover his own reputation and clear his name if he can manage it. The book ends with Sharpe returning from the dead just in time to take part in the stunning British victory at Vitoria -- arguably the most important engagement in the Peninsular Campaign -- but Cornwell gives it very short shrift indeed. So while the actual story isn't bad, I'd still rather Sharpe spend his time leading his men in battle. That's where Cornwell's greatest talent is, and he seldom has to invent more than the minimum amount of detail -- which tells you something about what the Napoleonic wars in Portugal and Spain were really like.



4. "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house." Matthew 13:57
   
   Major Richard Sharpe is a living legend to the British Army, but he finds that others don't see him as even honorable. Not knowing the Biblical advice above, he takes it personally . . . and digs a deep hole for himself.
   
   With the death of Sharpe's wife at the end of Sharpe's Enemy, the series was bound to take a new turn in the 16th book in the chronological order of events. It's a u-turn back toward the alluring charms of La Marquesa, the blond French spy whose treacherous wiles Sharpe cannot resist. Sharpe also has problems with temptations concerning his honor. Other men are even weaker when it comes to pride and greed in this entertaining look at the narrow line between doing the right thing and going off the rails.
   
   Sharpe's Honor nicely balances several story lines that will entertain you:
   
   1. The battle of Vitoria, one of the most important conflicts in the Peninsular Wars.
   
   2. A French scheme to divide Spain from the British.
   
   3. An act of revenge aimed by Pierre Ducos at Sharpe for breaking his glasses.
   
   4. An attempt to re-institute the Spanish Inquisition.
   
   5. A lust story involving Sharpe and the woman known as the Golden (lady who makes herself available to all comers).
   
   6. A fascinating look at greed from several different several dimensions.
   
   7. Sharpe's developing sense of self-worth. Now that he's a major, he sees himself differently from before . . . and wants to be better than his betters.
   
   8. Deadly hand-to-hand combat.
   
   Mr. Cornwell also mixes up his writing style. There are the usual sequences of blood-and-guts, but he also has some of the best comedy writing in the entire series. The mood shifts from deadly serious (almost depressing) to frivolous hilarity. These modulations in style and mood make this book much more entertaining than it otherwise would have been.
   
   Other than the specific events involving what Sharpe does, the rest of the story is well connected to the actual events that occurred. As a result, the book provides more fascination than a mere fiction tail disconnected form history would.



5. I've been reading Sharpe's adventures (mostly) in order. This book is my least favorite thus far. Several characters (Sharpe included) seem to act out of character. Eventually I just wanted it to end as it became predictably boring.

5 comments about The Hundred Days (Vol. Book 19) (Aubrey/Maturin Novels).

1. Overhelming view of England day to day life during the last months of Napoleon power.



2. We made the mistake of buying this ABRIDGED version of The Hundred Days, not noticing the FINE PRINT. The reader was very good, but the material truncated, choppy, and not "up to snuff." If you are a devoted fan of the Aubrey-Maturin stories, hurry up and read, yes, read the book. There's not a moment to lose!



3. Less than the best Captain Jack book, with a long slow middle section while Maturin is onshore in North Africa trying to cut off Muslim support for an escaped and restored Napoleon. Ends on an upbeat swing, though, as they capture a ship full of gold bound to support Napoleon, and find out that they will get to claim the gold as prize money.
   
   Also disappointing is the way O'Brian handled the death of two supporting characters: Diana, Maturin's wife and a key and colorful character throughout the series, was killed off-stage as it were, with little drama and with surprisingly dispassionate grieving by Maturin and Jack, Maturin's one-time rival for her affections. Bonden, a long-time shipmate of the pair, was killed off in the short and otherwise nearly bloodless battle for the ship of gold, with only a bare sentence or two mention.
   
   Twentieth in the series: Blue at the Mizzen (Aubrey/Maturin Series)



4. With Napoleon back in France after escaping from Elba, he needs to stop the arrival of Russian and Austrian troops sent to augment British forces at Waterloo. He needs the help of Muslim mercenaries who work only for gold, gold supplied by a sheik in North Africa.
   The team of Adm Aubrey and physician/master spy Dr. Maturin set about to intercept the shipment, both on land and at sea. A delightful example of Patrick O'Brien's mastery of the historical adventure novel.



5. Patrick O'Brian's "The Hundred Days" is the nineteenth book in Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series. The Aubrey-Maturin books are quite simply the best fiction I've ever read. I enjoy them so much that I find it difficult to read any other fiction now.
   
   Although there are twenty (completed) Aubrey-Maturin novels, in a sense they are one long, unending story. O'Brian tells the story of an unlikely pair of friends in early 19th century Britain: a hard-charging Royal Navy captain and an Irish physician and naturalist (and British spy). Both are devoted, for different reasons, to the fight against Napoleonic France. Captain Jack Aubrey and Doctor Stephen Maturin are dedicated friends, and the interplay between this unlikely pair is ranges from deep philosophical discussions to intended and unintended humor.
   
   But what really makes these novels is Patrick O'Brian's writing style. Through his words, he paints wonderful pictures and creates real characters in brilliant narratives; which is good, because Aubrey and many of his exploits are based on real-life adventures during the Napoleonic Wars.
   
   "The Hundred Days" is set during Napoleon's brief return to power in 1815. Aubrey's squadron is involved in the Mediterranean, and much of the book is devoted to efforts - both diplomatic and military - to prevent a Muslim ally of Napoleon from shipping gold to its allies in the Balkans to be used to prevent the Russian and Prussian armies from joining up. This book is a bit lighter on the sea action than many others in the series and doesn't stand out in the series. Still, this is an excellent book, but I recommend that everyone with any interest in historical fiction or the Royal Navy read the entire series in order.

5 comments about Sharpe's Trafalgar: Richard Sharpe & the Battle of Trafalgar, October 21, 1805 (Richard Sharpe's Adventure Series #4).

1. Cornwell is a master writer in style, depth of characters, and especially in his meticulous research of the period he is writing about. If learning history was always this much fun, I would have majored in it! Realistic descriptions of the carnage of war may spoil the books for those who cannot bear to look upon its presence through the centuries.



2. Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/RLRXQO2Z8UEBQ A Sharpe book is a history lesson in a sugar coated pill! In this short video I discuss who will like Cornwell's books featuring Richard Sharpe and why. Join me! Frank Derfler author of A Glint in Time [...]



3. This book is BEYOND excellent!!! I can relate in a way to Sharpe; I am an old Marine Infantryman, and I'm very glad that my shipboard experiences were not like that of those souls on 19th century ships of war! As is typical, Cornwell is very graphic and totally accurate!
   --Carl Johnoff/Kurt Niemann, author of "The Powder Blue Negligee: Memoirs Of A Probation Officer."



4. In chronological order, Sharpe's Trafalgar is the fourth book in the series. You could also think of it as an out-of-sequence book because it has little to do with the stories about Richard Sharpe as a soldier. In fact, unless you want to read a little about what it was like to be at the Battle of Trafalgar, you could skip this book and not miss anything important in the way of character development. Unlike the India books where Sharpe was continually fighting off deadly threats to his life, Sharpe is more concerned here with sneaking around with a married woman, a remote cousin of Sir Arthur Wellesley, Lady Grace Hale.
   
   The Napoleonic Wars were fought in Europe. Naturally, Sharpe has to leave India if he is to appear to save the day in all of those amazing battles on the continent. Naturally, he's going to pass by Trafalgar. Why not write a book about the battle and have Sharpe stumble into it? That's clear the thought process behind this book.
   
   As a result, you end up with a lot of plot "development" that is sort of filler before the main battle. Having never studied the sea battle, I found that the explanations were interesting and the story helped make the technology and strategy easier to understand. Had this been a novella that focused on the last third of this book, I probably would have graded the book as a five-star effort.
   
   The ins and outs of avoiding being swindled by ship chandlers, East India ship captains, and common seamen didn't seem all that interesting to me. The romantic side of the book wasn't too credible to me and didn't add much to my enjoyment of the story. If you think Bernard Cornwell's novels about Sharpe lack enough of a love interest, then you'll probably like this book a lot better than I did.
   
   The writing is quite good in comparing naval battles with the kind of fortress breaching that Sharpe engaged in during the three books in India. I don't recall reading another novel from this era that made those comparisons quite so explicit and interesting.
   
   By contrast, some of the dialogue is particularly bad. In fact, Cornwell makes fun of his own dialogue by putting words into the mouths of characters who don't agree that every ship's captain is a "fine fellow."
   
   The unforgettable part of the book is the characterization of Lord Nelson who led his sailors to such a remarkable victory that day.
   
   Fire!



5. It's the summer of 1805 and Ensign Richard Sharpe (who, not so long ago, was Private and then Sergeant Sharpe) has been on duty in India for six years. Having grown up in a workhouse and then on the streets of London, he regards India as much "home" as anywhere -- but now he's heading back to England to join a newly-forming rifle regiment. (Although, having been a "redcoat" since he was sixteen, he's not happy about switching to a green jacket.) But first he has to get there, and that means four months at sea. And his timing is such that he's destined to be off the coast of Spain in October. Fans of Napoleonic naval fiction will recognize what that means. Sharpe's voyage is eventful, first on an East Indiaman that's captured by a French ship through the treachery of the English captain. Then, after a week as prisoners below decks, the passengers on the Indiaman are rescued by the intervention of a British ship-of-the-line -- which just happens to be commanded by a captain of Sharpe's previous acquaintance. The captain indulges in an ocean-spanning chase of the fugitive Frenchman -- which includes some of the best descriptions in the book for those who know Hornblower and Aubrey -- and they all arrive off the southern coast of Spain at just the right moment. Meanwhile, first on the Indiaman, then on the warship, Sharpe has been carrying on an affair with the beautiful young wife of a coldly arrogant peer, to the secret amusement of practically everyone on board except the lady's husband, who may or may not be ignorant of the adultery. Actually, the two plots don't overlap much. The love story seems unlikely, given the difference in station between Sharpe and the lady, and the naval plotline seems positively forced, being just a way to allow our hero to be present at one of the greatest marine confrontations in European history. The adventure is all very well, but it does stretch credulity. And believability is ordinarily one of Cornwell's greatest assets. (I wonder if Sharpe is going to be present at Gettysburg, too.)

5 comments about Ship of the Line (Hornblower Saga).

1. This is the next Hornblower chronologically, it was not the next one written. Now that the series is completed it makes sense to read it as Hornblower's career progresses in the Royal Navy.
   
   The whole series is a pleasure to read full of action and adventure; with enough time for a little romance.
   
   Get acquainted with one of the most popular characters in modern literature.
   
   After reading this you will be back for more. And that is a wonderful thing.



2. The entire series is amazing! I do wish I was a little more of a sailor it would make the read much more enjoyable as his books are filled with techinical jargon, etc... Don't worry though not knowing anything definately does not detract from the stories, but knowing sure would help. Make sure you start with Midshipman as there are many allusions to it in later books.



3. You are right there with Horatio in all his battles and adventures. I really enjoyed this book and all the others in the series.



4. Ship of the Line (1938), also known as A Ship of the Line, is C. S. Forester's seventh Hornblower novel by chronology, second by publication. Hornblower, who seemingly encounters ridiculous drama every time he gets a new command, takes charge of Sutherland, a ship of the line, then sails off to conduct various raids on the French.
   
   Horatio Hornblower has never been as unsympathetic or unlikable as he is in Ship of the Line. Throughout the series, Forester has made Hornblower a particularly flawed character - that's part of Hornblower's charm. But here, Forester has gone too far - he's made Hornblower a loathsome, pathetic individual. Hornblower is obtuse; he's prone to paranoid inner monologues; he wallows in self-pity; he has no real moral values beyond his duty; he moons about, pining for Lady Barbara; he's racist, law-breaking, self-serving and dishonorable. Forester got a better handle on the character in later novels, but for the modern chronological reader it certainly appears that Hornblower is evolving into a despicable man of low character in his old age.
   
   Most of Ship of the Line is action, but none of Hornblower's adventures in this novel are particularly remarkable. Capture a ship, sink a ship, attack a fort, weather a storm - been there, done that. There's no real plot here; it's just attack, attack, attack. And is Hornblower the only man in the Royal Navy who speaks Spanish? Really? This isn't the first time Forester's given the reader that impression, either. And again, a careful reader who has gone through the series chronologically will notice more events that Forester later retconned.
   
   Ship of the Line is a tremendous disappointment, especially given the superior Hornblower novels Forester wrote after it. It ends with a cliffhanger, so you really can't skip it, but it's easily the worst book in the series to this point in the chronology.



5. My 23 yr. old son asked for this book for Christmas and was delighted to receive it. What he did not expect is that his 80 yr old Grandfather would be as delighted as he....seems he used to read these stories in the newspaper as a boy.
   
   It arrived promptly from the seller in excellent condition.

5 comments about Nick of Time.

1. My 11yr old son loved this book. I'm also looking for good adventure books that are not scary and full devilish characters.



2. My non-reader son just loved this book. He looked into the sequal, and can't wait for it's release. He loves the cover and doesn't want anyone else reading it because we may bend it. I plan on getting him the hard cover for his b-day.



3. My 12-year-old son doesn't love to read fiction. High praise of a fiction book would be "It was pretty good" or "I liked it ok". That's it. I bought Nick of Time for him for Christmas. He immediately put it on his bookshelf with the many other books there collecting dust. I decided to stick it in his backpack the other day, hoping he'd come across it at school and give it a try. The next day, he walked in the house after school carrying it. I asked if he'd read any of it. He'd read the whole book - at school - in 2 days. I was shocked. He'd actually voluntarily read an entire fiction book. No assigned reading, no book report, no reading log. He just read it. When I asked how it was, he said "Awesome. I'm going to look online to see if there are any sequels". What more can I say?



4. This was a very good and exciting book. I enjoyed reading it. The book is well written and has an interesting plot that will keep you reading for hours! Philip (age 14)



5. Nick of Time by Ted Bell is a most unusual read. I had heard the author speak about this and his new book, (The Time Pirate: A Nick McIver Time Adventure, due to be released on April 13th-so you'll have to get your taxes done ahead of time!). I became interested in Mr. Bell's objectives, ordered the book and have now devoured it. This book is most unusual, because it is written in a "high style" for children of all ages. Mr. Bell has stated that he had been disappointed in the level of children's books today because of their simplicity, lack of morality and not containing characters which have traditionally been thought heroes of merit in "classical lore" (i.e. Treasure Island, Kidnapped, Robinson Crusoe and other treasured classics).
   
   One review on the front of the book written by James Patterson is apt: "Nick of Time is a blast. The kid in me loved it and so did the adult." I have a grandson named Nick and so I bought, but thought I must check it out before sending it to him. Was I totally surprised to find that I truly couldn't put it down, even making me late for dinner, bedtime and running around sneaking in my chores while reading.
   
   Now, it is a bit scary, as I believe all great adventures are, as we as children are little salty dogs and swashbucklers and have enjoyed the intrigue of pirates, storms at sea, castles and small islands. Nick does the "trick" for fulfilling every one's starvation for well-written, classical adventure. I do suggest that it might best be suited for at least the 10-year old starting point, but that a parent reading a bit at bedtime for small fry with a little bit of explanation, will find these listeners begging, "Just read a little bit more! Pu-lease?"
   
   Ted is also the best selling author of the Alex Hawke series and he has a new classical book ready for "launch" and all of his fine work is available on Amazon and all major book providers. (Nick, I can send this now that I have written this review, even though it bwasn't in the nick of time for Christmas!)
   
   Del Latham, [...] January 13, 2010

5 comments about Victory of Eagles (Temeraire).

1. Book is good and arrived well packed with the other books of the series.
   Now I don't know if I should be writing a book review here or not, so i'll go with former.
   but as usual am very happy with the purchase coz Amazon rocks!!!!



2. Victory of Eagles continues the greatness of Empire of Ivory. I felt that with these two books, Naomi Novik finally hit her stride again after Throne of Jade. In Victory of Eagles we read the aftermath of Termeraire and Laurence's choice to bring the cure to the French. And for the first time, we have major sections of the book devoted to draconic pov.
   
   With this book, Novik has really succeeded in bringing the dragons to life, in a way she hasn't done since China. Temeraire has always been a bit on the human side, but in this book not only do other dragons gain personality and depth but also a clearer measure of "dragon-ness."
   
   As with most of the other books, Victory of Eagles has fantastic characterization and character development. And ends with an amazing battle. I do, however, think Novik missed out on an opportunity at the beginning of the book. She revealed Lawrence too soon, which nullified the tension and suspense that she had been building. She could learn a thing or two from Lord of the Rings...by separating pov's a bit more she could have upped the tension. There is a value in misinformation. The reader doesn't need to know everything all the time; and I think a longer stretch in the dark regarding Lawrence would have made the book stronger.



3. Naomi Novik's Temeraire series - a World War II alternate history in which the Aerial Corps is composed of dragons - started off with a bang, had a few ups and downs, and came roaring back with a vengence in the fifth book of the series, Victory of Eagles.
   
   The novel picks up where fourth book Empire of Ivory leaves off: our hero, Captain Will Lawrence, has been condemned as a traitor, and his extraordinary dragon Temeraire exiled to a remote breeding grounds. But as Napoleon lands on British shores, the two must find each other again and come to their country's defense, facing not only dangerous battles but deadly politics.
   
   The first reason to love this book is the action, which never lets up and will keep you turning pages long after bedtime. But Victory of Eagles is so much more - it provides more insight than ever before into Temeraire's mind (and the minds of other dragons), and you can see him struggling to understand why humans act the way they do and realizing just what Lawrence has sacrificed for their relationship. My only critique, as others here have noted, is that the British seem so incompetent and so backward thinking you sometimes wonder why the dragons (and even Lawrence) remain loyal!



4. This is the fifth in the Temeraire series, and it continues to be a very engaging and entertaining story. I'm very happy I bought this book.



5. Highly recommended for anyone who has read the previous 4 books in the Temeraire series.

5 comments about War and Peace (Vintage Classics).

1. I was awed by Tolstoy's ability to capture the inner psychological life of the characters and the psychological impact of events in War and Peace. One example is the withdrawal of Prince Andrei's interest in life when he is dying and the dismay of Natasha and Marya as they try to empathize with him. Prince Andrei is looking into another world and withdrawing his interest from this one, preventing that empathic connection. I am told by hospice workers that this is a common occurrence with the dying.
   
   As a psychoanalyst, I also think the portrayal of Pierre Bezhukov in the early stages of the novel is a very accurate picture of a fragmentation prone personality, with his confusion and disorganization. His healthy transformation is worthy of a psychoanalytic treatise. Tolstoy's description of Pierre's character, his search for an idealizable mentor and his eventual transformation seem true to life for me.



2. This novel offers everything you would expect from a sweeping multi-generational historical fiction novel; love, hate, births, deaths, lust, betrayal, etc. That part is a very good read. But, I will admit, it is a little hard to keep track of the characters because they are all "prince this" or "princess that".
   
   However, the part which makes the book so huge and daunting was a real turnoff. Blow by blow descriptions of the Napoleanic War and chapter after chapter about the socio-political-economic cause and effect of Napoleon's rise to power. Bo-ring! I finally read this behemoth during enforced confinement after surgery - and if there had been any other entertainment options I would never have finished. I found myself talking back to the author many times "Yeah, yeah, I get it, you *really* hate Napoleon".



3. This is a comment on the editing, not a review.
   
   The endnotes are helpful in providing historical and cultural context. However, many notes refer to another note on the same topic that appeared perhaps 500 pages ago. One cannot find the reference when the note says, "See note 24 to Volume II, Part Two", without flipping madly through pages of endnotes, since at the top of each page it only says, "Notes to pages X to Y". Adding the page number to the reference would solve this problem.



4. Translator Richard Pevear notes in his preface that "War and Peace" is a novel "as vast as Russia itself and as long to cross from one to the other" (personally, I read it in about a month, in the midst of doing various other things). This particular edition runs to 1224 pages of text, which is comparatively slim compared to some smaller page formats, which approach the 1400-mark. One of the two major works of Count Lev (Leo) Nikolayevich Tolstoy, together with "Anna Karenina", this is the backbone of 19th-century Russian literature, elevating him to the same category as Pushkin, Dostoyevsky, and Chekhov.
   
   One of the perils of reading a novel such as this is its reputation, rather akin to attempting to watch "Citizen Kane" divorced from all the attendant acclaim. Insofar as that can be done, I tried to do it. The plot is both so expansive and so familiar that it might seem both too large and too unnecessary to summarize (though Woody Allen pithily commented, having sped-read it in twenty minutes, "it involves Russia"), but in brief: in the turbulent period from 1805 to 1812 (plus a 100-page epilogue some years later), three Russian aristocratic households and their various acquaintances and hangers-on deal with war, marriage, God, finance, and any number of other issues (Mark Twain noted t hat Tolstoy "carelessly neglects to include a boat race."). The three most significant characters are Count Pyotr Bezukhov ("Pierre"), Prince Andrei Bolkhonsky, and Natalia Rostova ("Natasha"), but that's only a beginning.
   
   A perennial complaint about Russian literature from non-Russian readers is the proliferation of names for each character. Not speaking to other novels (it can be harder to grasp in, say, Dostoyevsky), but I found their usage in "War and Peace" easy enough to follow. Most are fairly comprehensible variations (handily summarized by the translator at the start of the book), ie, Sofya/Sophie/Sonya, Natalia/Natalie/Natasha.
   
   One of the novel's other frequently-discussed features is Tolstoy's ruminations on history, which are both interspersed with the dramatic action and doled out in standalone sections, particularly toward the end. Even as a graduate student in history, some parts of this can be fairly dull reading (partly because he adheres to some concepts about History as a force of its own that works better as literature than as an actual understanding of history), though he voices some fairly 20th century ideas about viewing history as more than just the actions of a few men. He also treats the larger historical narrative as a real part of the story, with lengthy sections featuring figures like Napoleon and Kutuzov, rather than just as a background to the personal drama, which is not the usual for this genre.
   
   Of the characters, many of them are extremely well-drawn (they certainly have plenty of time to be), particularly Tolstoy's famous heroine, Natasha, and one of the two men in her life, Prince Andrei. Of the more minor characters, I found my mind continually returning to Sonya, the orphaned Rostov cousin, selfless to a fault (rather like Eponine in "Les Miserables" (the musical moreso), modern audiences tend to find her particularly sad).
   
   With a novel of this stature there are numerous translations to choose from, and I cannot offer any particular advice on how the work of Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky compares to others (not having read them; one version is enough for me), nor to the original (having no Russian). I will say that I found the whole novel eminently readable.



5. I have compared and read many different translations of W&P over a period of 40 years and find this one by Pevear and Volkonsky to be at the top of the pile. The Briggs translation, published almost at the same time, is distinctly "British" in idiom and reads like some sort of "street" talk. Not at all what I am used to in reading Tolstoy. I have read all that Lev Tolstoy published and believe the Pevear edition is closest to his style of writing. I highly recommend it.