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astroprof's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
5.0
frodolives's review against another edition
adventurous
4.0
Won’t Somebody Please Allow Mr Bush A Good Night’s Sleep: A Novel
This was a strong sequel to Midshipman Hornblower. I enjoyed it quite a bit more actually - unlike the first book, it's one continuous story (if you've seen the TV series, episodes 5, 6 and the beginning of 7 follows the events in this novel pretty closely). It's also told from the point of view of William Bush so we get to meet Hornblower from somebody else's eyes, and Bush provides a good foil to Hornblower's leadership skills and heroism by being more of an average (albeit conservative and unimaginative) guy. It's not really mind-blowing or incredible literature but I still had a fun time reading this. It's fast-paced, entertaining, and engaging and that's mostly all it's trying to be.
I think the thing that really makes this book are the characters Hornblower and Bush and their relationship. Hornblower continues to be a fascinating and amusing character and it's nice to finally see the poor sod get a friend. A major focus of this book and probably its most compelling theme is its deconstruction of toxic masculinity (I don't think I've ever said "what is wrong with men??" more times than I did while reading this novel). The way the Bush/Hornblower relationship develops within this framework of male emotional repression was handled masterfully: at first there's uncertainty, competitiveness, and jealousy, and you can't really tell if they like each other or not, but subtlety their fondness grows and seeing them become best friends and genuinely tender with each other by the end of the novel was so satisfying and had me grinning like a crazy person. Also, it's homoerotic as hell, some scenes almost shockingly so. Great stuff.
An issue I had with the first book was that the action scenes were too numerous and difficult to follow. I don't have the same complaint here - the action in this was much more engaging and held proper weight to the narrative. I will say I was slightly disappointed by how the novel engaged with the broader war stuff: This is set in 1802 Santo Domingo and it goes without saying there was potential for a much more interesting story somewhere, but Forester purposefully avoided engaging too much with the real history and made Bush an intentionally ignorant character. On one hand I get it, Forester just wanted to write a fun adventure story and it's better for a writer to know and set their limits than biting into more than they can handle, but I do think I'd maybe enjoy this more if it was more ambitious. The few parts of this book where Bush actually self-reflects on what it means to be apart of the British navy and the moral and existential quandaries regarding that were some of the more interesting parts of the book but Forester always pulls away before it can get too deep (though I guess, given when this book was written, the fact that there is a degree of self-awareness at all is nice to see lol).
Plot-wise, this book was fine. It honestly isn't that remarkable or memorable, but it was a serviceable backdrop to the development of Bush and Hornblower's characters and their relationship. The structure was a bit awkward - I think the climax really occurs around the 80% mark once everything is resolved in Kingston and the rest of the book (the parts in England) read much more like it's supposed to be the beginning of the next novel as it starts introducing completely new characters and conflicts. The ending is a bit of an abrupt cliffhanger. Though I guess it does its job at making me want to read more, because despite my criticisms with this series I really do love it and have found myself terribly invested in these young men... onto Hornblower and the Hotspur it is!
[Edit: I originally gave this book three stars but after reading more of the series my fondness for this one has grown so I'm upping it to four. I recommend reading this after you’re already familiar with Hornblower’s neurotic inner monologue because it makes Bush’s POV more interesting as a contrast.]
This was a strong sequel to Midshipman Hornblower. I enjoyed it quite a bit more actually - unlike the first book, it's one continuous story (if you've seen the TV series, episodes 5, 6 and the beginning of 7 follows the events in this novel pretty closely). It's also told from the point of view of William Bush so we get to meet Hornblower from somebody else's eyes, and Bush provides a good foil to Hornblower's leadership skills and heroism by being more of an average (albeit conservative and unimaginative) guy. It's not really mind-blowing or incredible literature but I still had a fun time reading this. It's fast-paced, entertaining, and engaging and that's mostly all it's trying to be.
I think the thing that really makes this book are the characters Hornblower and Bush and their relationship. Hornblower continues to be a fascinating and amusing character and it's nice to finally see the poor sod get a friend. A major focus of this book and probably its most compelling theme is its deconstruction of toxic masculinity (I don't think I've ever said "what is wrong with men??" more times than I did while reading this novel). The way the Bush/Hornblower relationship develops within this framework of male emotional repression was handled masterfully: at first there's uncertainty, competitiveness, and jealousy, and you can't really tell if they like each other or not, but subtlety their fondness grows and seeing them become best friends and genuinely tender with each other by the end of the novel was so satisfying and had me grinning like a crazy person. Also, it's homoerotic as hell, some scenes almost shockingly so. Great stuff.
An issue I had with the first book was that the action scenes were too numerous and difficult to follow. I don't have the same complaint here - the action in this was much more engaging and held proper weight to the narrative. I will say I was slightly disappointed by how the novel engaged with the broader war stuff: This is set in 1802 Santo Domingo and it goes without saying there was potential for a much more interesting story somewhere, but Forester purposefully avoided engaging too much with the real history and made Bush an intentionally ignorant character. On one hand I get it, Forester just wanted to write a fun adventure story and it's better for a writer to know and set their limits than biting into more than they can handle, but I do think I'd maybe enjoy this more if it was more ambitious. The few parts of this book where Bush actually self-reflects on what it means to be apart of the British navy and the moral and existential quandaries regarding that were some of the more interesting parts of the book but Forester always pulls away before it can get too deep (though I guess, given when this book was written, the fact that there is a degree of self-awareness at all is nice to see lol).
Plot-wise, this book was fine. It honestly isn't that remarkable or memorable, but it was a serviceable backdrop to the development of Bush and Hornblower's characters and their relationship. The structure was a bit awkward - I think the climax really occurs around the 80% mark once everything is resolved in Kingston and the rest of the book (the parts in England) read much more like it's supposed to be the beginning of the next novel as it starts introducing completely new characters and conflicts. The ending is a bit of an abrupt cliffhanger. Though I guess it does its job at making me want to read more, because despite my criticisms with this series I really do love it and have found myself terribly invested in these young men... onto Hornblower and the Hotspur it is!
[Edit: I originally gave this book three stars but after reading more of the series my fondness for this one has grown so I'm upping it to four. I recommend reading this after you’re already familiar with Hornblower’s neurotic inner monologue because it makes Bush’s POV more interesting as a contrast.]
lalalioon's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
frudzicz's review against another edition
Why did Sawyer fall?
Save the ship and take the fort.
Now, beat to quarters.
Save the ship and take the fort.
Now, beat to quarters.
possessdbychaos's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
deegee24's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The second book in the Hornblower series, it has a more continuous plot than the first one. The main plot concerns Hornblower proving his leadership qualities as a junior officer during a British campaign against the Spanish in Haiti. The Haitian slave revolt is mentioned in passing but not dealt with directly. Much of the book is from the point of view of Bush, another officer who has more seniority than Hornblower but who recognizes him as a superior strategist and soldier. The book is plot-driven, but the main characters do develop gradually. The biggest flaw is with the late introduction of a female character, Maria, the daughter of an innkeeper and Hornblower's love interest. She isn't much more than a plot device here, though I suspect that Forester is setting up this relationship as a main plotline for the next book.
wispywasp's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
cseibs's review against another edition
4.0
Good, old-fashioned storytelling. A rather ingenious twist in having the story told from Bush's point-of-view, not Hornblower's, and one that oddly gives you more insight into Hornblower's character.
cc_modeler's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0