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eososray's review against another edition
4.0
I tend toward rating this series more for their overall enjoyment rather than their individual attributes. I'm not sure if this one really earned its 4 star rating, I thought it spent way too much time with Maturin and his ramblings and not enough time with Jack and his action.
Still, this is a stellar series and I highly recommend it.
Still, this is a stellar series and I highly recommend it.
mdunnbass's review
4.0
So, as usual, a note first about the narrator(s) of this series. Patrick O'Brian wrote 20 (and a half) Aubrey/Matchurin books before his death, and only 2 men have narrated all 20, Patrick Tull, and Simon Vance. I listened to Tull narrating the first 5 books of the series, because those were the versions my library had. For Desolation Island, I could only get a hold of the Simon Vance version. He is a highly capable narrator, but has no concept of the characters in this particular series (and his women's voices were shrill and painful). For example, One of the 2 main characters, Dr. Stephen Matchurin, is a highly respected, highly intelligent Physician and Naturalist, as well as a British Spy, and grew up predominantly in Ireland. As such, Tull narrates his as being thoughtful, humorous, and with a decided Irish accent. Vance narrates him as a thuggish Peter Lorre on quaaludes. It goes on from there. Not my style. So, as much as humanly possible, I plan to stick with the AMAZING narration of Patrick Tull for the rest of the series.
As for the books themselves, I am really liking them a LOT! I never had any interest in the Royal Navy and the Age of Sail in the past, but after reading some of these books, I am hooked on it! I am so sad that I squandered opportunities to really closely look at the USS Constitution in Boston Harbor in the past. It really meant nothing to me back then. But now, I really want to wander it's decks, take in the feel of the ship, and smell it, just to get closer to this world. It's not one I ever want to have lived in, but I want to experience it vicariously again and again.
O'Brian is masterful at wry humor, and his characters are amazing and vivid. The first few books in the series were more or less stand-alone adventures, but now we're getting into books that very much immediately follow the previous books in terms of consequences and plots. It's amazing how well he is weaving his fictional narrative in with the actual Napoleonic Wars. Very Highly Recommended, but Read them in Order!
As for the books themselves, I am really liking them a LOT! I never had any interest in the Royal Navy and the Age of Sail in the past, but after reading some of these books, I am hooked on it! I am so sad that I squandered opportunities to really closely look at the USS Constitution in Boston Harbor in the past. It really meant nothing to me back then. But now, I really want to wander it's decks, take in the feel of the ship, and smell it, just to get closer to this world. It's not one I ever want to have lived in, but I want to experience it vicariously again and again.
O'Brian is masterful at wry humor, and his characters are amazing and vivid. The first few books in the series were more or less stand-alone adventures, but now we're getting into books that very much immediately follow the previous books in terms of consequences and plots. It's amazing how well he is weaving his fictional narrative in with the actual Napoleonic Wars. Very Highly Recommended, but Read them in Order!
matteo_of_eld's review
adventurous
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
njk125's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
escragg92's review against another edition
adventurous
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? No
4.5
toddjohnson1187's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
heritage's review
4.0
Captain Jack Aubrey of the British Royal Navy is promoted to Commodore and, along with secret agent Dr. Maturin and a couple other captains, is tasked with capturing two French islands in the Indian Ocean.
Book 4 in the series starts off slowly with Aubrey languishing with domestic life in his English cottage before he gets his commission to head to South Africa. Then we compare that to the enthusiasm and challenges of being in command of a ship, and then a squadron, on the sea. We see more of Dr. Maturin's work as a secret agent this time round, but only through second-hand accounts and reports, never from his own point of view in the narrative. We also get to learn new aspects of naval maneuvers, particularly the use of infantry when attacking land from the sea. The narrative is somewhat cumbersome as it is written in a style consistent with the times. And, while I don't pretend to understand all the movements made by the ships and crew, there is enough information for landlubbers to follow along while the sailors among us rake in the details.
All of this would only make it a 3-star read for me. What makes this novel something special is what it has to say about command, leadership, and decision-making. Aubrey has an admiral above him, captains of other ships under him, and sailors on his own ship to deal with. All of these must be factored into the decisions he makes. There are a multitude of issues at play here. Captains vie for recognition. Egos abound. Communication is difficult. What role should your own agenda play in the greater picture, not only in a larger group of people, but in a larger organization? How much do you allow immediate feelings of retribution to affect your long-term strategy? How do you handle disappointment and loss? Where do you find opportunities?
In almost all of these leadership aspects, Aubrey is a model for people to follow. I can think of only one area regarding communication where Aubrey falls short, with disastrous consequences. The first two novels in the series can be slow and tedious (particularly the second one), but things start to get good with the third book. I highly recommend this novel to anyone as a subtle study of leadership. Even I wasn't prepared for this little gem.
Book 4 in the series starts off slowly with Aubrey languishing with domestic life in his English cottage before he gets his commission to head to South Africa. Then we compare that to the enthusiasm and challenges of being in command of a ship, and then a squadron, on the sea. We see more of Dr. Maturin's work as a secret agent this time round, but only through second-hand accounts and reports, never from his own point of view in the narrative. We also get to learn new aspects of naval maneuvers, particularly the use of infantry when attacking land from the sea. The narrative is somewhat cumbersome as it is written in a style consistent with the times. And, while I don't pretend to understand all the movements made by the ships and crew, there is enough information for landlubbers to follow along while the sailors among us rake in the details.
All of this would only make it a 3-star read for me. What makes this novel something special is what it has to say about command, leadership, and decision-making. Aubrey has an admiral above him, captains of other ships under him, and sailors on his own ship to deal with. All of these must be factored into the decisions he makes. There are a multitude of issues at play here. Captains vie for recognition. Egos abound. Communication is difficult. What role should your own agenda play in the greater picture, not only in a larger group of people, but in a larger organization? How much do you allow immediate feelings of retribution to affect your long-term strategy? How do you handle disappointment and loss? Where do you find opportunities?
In almost all of these leadership aspects, Aubrey is a model for people to follow. I can think of only one area regarding communication where Aubrey falls short, with disastrous consequences. The first two novels in the series can be slow and tedious (particularly the second one), but things start to get good with the third book. I highly recommend this novel to anyone as a subtle study of leadership. Even I wasn't prepared for this little gem.
alexsiddall's review
4.0
Read again in Sept 2016. Found it just as gripping and insightful as previously. First read March 2008.
ielerol's review
3.0
This one is heavier on the specifics of naval strategy and battles than the previous two books in the series, which is part of why I didn't enjoy it as much. Also Stephen is for sure m favorite character, and while I still liked his scenes with Jack, they spend more time apart in this one, and between that and Stephen's very evident depression, there's just not as much humor and it feels like overall everyone spends more time unhappy and stressed out. Granted there was a lot of tension between Stephen and Jack over Diana Villiers, but that was a compelling conflict. Stephen in this book is just...sad, in a way that makes me sad. The secondary characters are also mostly unpleasant. I still liked it, but it was less fun for me. In a way the naval battles were a relief even if I never am going to be able to follow the action closely or feel any real suspense over the outcome, because I listened to the audiobook and Simon Vance reading a bunch of incomprehensible naval jargon is honestly very soothing to me.
The writing quality is still excellent, and there were some moments I enjoyed very much, like Stephen's precious dodo feathers, the wry commentary on the vague "benefits" of being an English colony, Jack Aubrey trying very hard to come up with a brilliant pun. Overall I think one of the things I appreciate the most about this series as a work of historical fiction is the way O'Brian depicts characters whose beliefs are historically appropriate but uncomfortable to a modern perspective, while clearly not endorsing those beliefs himself. Characters will occasionally question or challenge each other on those points in relatively low-key ways (also historically appropriate! the world has never been uniformly racist, sexist, etc at a given point in time), or rhetorical asides in the narration will undercut a character's thoughts or words. It's a tough needle to thread, and O'Brian does so with consistent ease.
The writing quality is still excellent, and there were some moments I enjoyed very much, like Stephen's precious dodo feathers, the wry commentary on the vague "benefits" of being an English colony, Jack Aubrey trying very hard to come up with a brilliant pun. Overall I think one of the things I appreciate the most about this series as a work of historical fiction is the way O'Brian depicts characters whose beliefs are historically appropriate but uncomfortable to a modern perspective, while clearly not endorsing those beliefs himself. Characters will occasionally question or challenge each other on those points in relatively low-key ways (also historically appropriate! the world has never been uniformly racist, sexist, etc at a given point in time), or rhetorical asides in the narration will undercut a character's thoughts or words. It's a tough needle to thread, and O'Brian does so with consistent ease.