Scan barcode
dotorsojak's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
jeffreyk's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
juliasilge's review against another edition
4.0
Here we have the 17th installment in this wonderful Napoleonic-era naval adventure series. I've been away from this series for over a year (and am not entirely sure why) and it has been such a delight to again immerse myself in the funny, super-smart, high-stakes world of Jack Aubrey, now a commodore of a fleet of ships, and Stephen Maturin, everyone's favorite illegitimate Irish/Catalan doctor/spy. This book is notable for Maturin meeting his daughter (I did not think I could love Maturin anymore than I already did but WOW), for the stomach-turning horror of the African slave trade (this is post-Wilberforce and Aubrey's fleet has been sent to disrupt the slave trade), and for making me feel yet even more resentful toward Diana than I already did. The unfeeling floozy!
greybeard49's review against another edition
5.0
Second time reading this series.
O’Brian is a genius. Masterful in every way.
O’Brian is a genius. Masterful in every way.
wearsteel's review against another edition
5.0
It’s difficult to find more ways to praise the series but you should start in any book & enjoy them all. This shone a more malevolent light on the family but still crackled with its unerring energy.
leesmyth's review against another edition
4.0
This ends on a wonderfully optimistic note; it'd be a great end to the series.
octavia_cade's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
4.0
I think this is the first of these books I've given four stars - it's the best of the lot so far! A strong focus on Maturin, the end to that interminable voyage, more politics than sailing, and finally we get to see little Brigid Maturin. That's a touching storyline, though I do think her recovery comes very quickly. Oh well, I don't care, at least it's not been dragged out.
I think the real improvement here, though, is the pacing. It's not as glutinous as it has been for the past few volumes, and the whole feels like a much quicker read because of it. I think it may also be that there's a lot more focus on people than ships... even when they're sailing up and down West Africa, the focus is on the (often combative) relationships between the ships and their captains, and this is far more interesting to me than reading about any other nautical detail.
I'm going to finish this series, and (with the odd exception) I've enjoyed it, but until I came to this book I hadn't thought I'd ever bother to reread any of them. This one I might.
I think the real improvement here, though, is the pacing. It's not as glutinous as it has been for the past few volumes, and the whole feels like a much quicker read because of it. I think it may also be that there's a lot more focus on people than ships... even when they're sailing up and down West Africa, the focus is on the (often combative) relationships between the ships and their captains, and this is far more interesting to me than reading about any other nautical detail.
I'm going to finish this series, and (with the odd exception) I've enjoyed it, but until I came to this book I hadn't thought I'd ever bother to reread any of them. This one I might.
sandin954's review against another edition
3.0
Another fun entry in the Aubrey/Maturin series. Stellar narration, as always, by Patrick Tull.
fflf's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0