A review by escan
The Mauritius Command by Patrick O'Brian

5.0

Jack and Stephen spend a lot of this book apart (Jack wrestling with his first time commanding not just one ship but a whole fleet of them, and Stephen really showing what he can do as a secret agent while also beginning to show slightly worrying symptoms of depression and addiction), while Sophie remains at home and Diana is absent completely, and I do feel that there's a bit of a lack of warmth at times in this one. However, I can't really bring myself to mind, because all the naval strategy and battles were literally that enthralling. Clonfert and McAdam just made me really, really sad (Clonfert is at times relatable and at times infuriating and McAdam is brash and rude but not bad) and their potential similarities to Jack and to Stephen in particular were dark.