Reviews

The Angel's Command by Brian Jacques

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memento_mori's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

basbleu_dans_labiblioteque's review

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I liked the beginning, on La Petite Marie, more than the first book, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the second half.

rachelmariereads's review against another edition

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5.0

It’s been a very long time since I read this second book in the series! There’s so much that I had forgotten, but it was such a pleasure to re-discover some of my favorite stories from the trilogy!⁣
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Like the first book, this one contains two of Ben and Ned’s adventures in time. Ben and Ned are our boy and dog duo, blessed with immortality and the ability to communicate with each other in exchange for traveling the Earth and helping those in need. Their escape from the Flying Dutchman is still fairly recent, less than a decade has passed when we pick up the story. ⁣
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The pair are traveling through South America and end up at a port frequented by pirates. There they befriend the good-hearted Captain Raphael Thuron, and hastily join his pirate crew. But their ship is being pursued by a rival, Captain Rocco Madrid! Whilst the two pirate ships attempt to outrun each other, they catch the attention of another vessel, a ruthless English privateer! What ensues is a wild sea-chase, Thuron’s ship trying to outmaneuver the other two as they escape across the Atlantic. It’s hilarious and exciting and so enjoyable to read. The author spent time at sea himself, and you can tell in the way he explains sailing and ship mechanics; it makes the story very immersive.⁣
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The second tale follows up the first, as our duo is now traveling through France, having left the seas behind for the moment. There they befriend Dominic, a highly skilled artist known as the “Facemaker of Sabada,” and Karay, a pickpocket, singer, and all around clever girl. The group has teamed up to rid the area of the Razan, a terror-provoking cult of thieves that hide themselves in the Pyrenees mountains between France and Spain. Their most terrifying adventure yet, they’ll have to survive gun fights, avalanches, and bears to make it out of this one alive.⁣
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What I love most about this novel is how it comes full circle. The final scenes find Ben and Ned back on the ocean, paying homage to Raphael Thuron and their origins on the Flying Dutchman. It’s a very satisfying ending, and an incredible story.