Book Reviews
This section contains reviews of books by David Hayes and members of the forum
Review: Gather the Shadowmen by Mark M. McMillin
- Details
- Book Reviews
- Created on Monday, 23 January 2012 00:00
- By David Hayes
When someone mentions attacks on British shipping in home waters during the American Revolution usually one name springs to mind, John Paul Jones. I was surprised to learn therefore that there was someone possibly even more successful who I had never heard of, Luke Ryan.
Ryan was an Irish smuggler operating out of Dunkirk who became a privateer sailing with an American Letter of Marque from Benjamin Franklin and went on to command the Calonne, a 400 ton ex-French naval frigate of two decks and 36 guns with a crew of nearly 250 men of Irish, French, American and Dutch nationalities. A small band of ships sailed under his overall command.
In a new three book series Mark M. McMillin is relating a fictional story based on the exploits of this remarkable man and I have just finished the first of these Gather the Shadowmen: The Lords of the Ocean which covers the period he was smuggling through to the decision to become a privateer.
Alaric Bond Review: The Perfect Wreck by Steven E. Maffeo
- Details
- Book Reviews
- Created on Friday, 06 January 2012 00:00
- By Alaric Bond
The outcome of the meeting between Constitution and Java is well known, and there is a danger with any story which has a forgone conclusion that tension or excitement can be either missing, or contrived. This is definitely not the case with A Perfect Wreck; from the start, with Constitution active and potent at sea, and Java working up at Portsmouth after her capture from the French, the story pulls the reader forward with a pace that is quite compelling. Maffeo adds poignance by fleshing out the historical characters, making them real, three dimensional, and totally believable while the wealth of detail that is present throughout the book, gives a fascinating background to the story, without slowing the plot or becoming in any way instructional.
In short we have a well researched and excellently written book; one that reads as easily as any novel, and yet carries the accuracy and credibility of a good reference work. A difficult trick, but one that Maffeo has pulled off perfectly.
Alaric Bond Review: The War For All The Oceans by Roy Adkins & Lesley Adkins
- Details
- Book Reviews
- Created on Friday, 06 January 2012 00:00
- By Alaric Bond
The War for All the Oceans covers all major, and some less well known, naval actions from the latter part of the revolutionary war, to the end of the Napoleonic. As is always the case with the Adkins's work, it is meticulously researched, well presented and very hard to put down.
Although it is crammed full with information, and could certainly be used as one, I consider this more than just a reference book: the term conjurers up lists of details and dates that can make for dry, academic reading. The War for All the Oceans tells a story, and tells it well, with a blend of authoritative commentary and original reference material that almost involves the reader in the research. It is a style that the Adkins are masters of, and makes their work extremely readable.
Extensive maps, illustrations (many of which were new to me), a comprehensive index and bibliography, and a selected reading list finish off the package perfectly. Fascinating and compelling reading: highly recommended.
Review: The Astreya Trilogy by Seymour Hamilton
- Details
- Book Reviews
- Created on Tuesday, 29 November 2011 00:00
- By David Hayes
The Astreya Trilogy will appeal to fans of both nautical fiction and fantasy. The first book, Astreya: The Voyage South, follows the story of a young man who sets out to discover his heritage. He is the son of a mysterious shipwrecked sailor who died before he was born and about whom his mother, and the people of the village where he lived, knew little. We follow his journey, partly by sea and partly by land, as he starts to get some clues as to his ancestry and inheritance, a bracelet with a green stone which glows when he puts it on and seems to have some power.
In the second book, Astreya: The Men of the Sea, he finds himself aboard the three masted ships of his father's people, the Men of the Sea, who have been wandering the oceans for years and are feared by those on land.
The author makes full use of a fictional timeline and whilst the mysterious green stones form an element of fantasy the stories will have a familiar feel to readers of nautical fiction set in the Age of Sail. The books feature a pirate (though not the much caricatured Caribbean kind), knife fights and much more as factions within the ruling family of the Men of the Sea struggle for supremacy.
Mr Hamilton has produced a set of well rounded characters who you can empathise with and they are pacey novels which are hard to put down. I look forward to reading book 3, Astreya: The Wanderer's Curse.
EDIT: In book 3, Asteya: The Wanderer's Curse, the author does a skilful job of keeping the suspense going as the many mysteries surrounding the back history of the characters are revealed to bring the series to it's final conclusion. The various family members are soon in a sea chase aboard their ships and boats as they plot for supremacy over the Men of the Sea, until Astreya reaches his final destiny. The individual books and the series as a whole are recommended.
Review: The Glorious First of June by Sam Willis
- Details
- Book Reviews
- Created on Monday, 07 November 2011 01:00
- By David Hayes
When we look back at the Age of Sail our view is often overshadowed by Napoleon's control of continental land and Nelson's climactic battles at sea. Each in their own way built a legend of invincibility on land and sea respectively. This hindsight however pushes the early strugglesof the French revolution into the background and causes us to view earlier sea battles against Nelson's later success, often on the basis of the number of prizes taken.
In the early years of the French Revolutionary War things were far less clear cut and of course nobody knew they were embarking on almost two decades of conflict. On land France was going through the convulsions of the Terror under Robespierre and at sea the Royal Navy, which had suffered defeats during the American War of Independance, notably causing the surrender of Cornwallis at York Town, was still gathering it's forces.
It is against this background that the English and French met at the battle, lasting several days, which came to be known as the Glorious First of June. In his new book, Sam Willis, studies not just the battle, as you would expect, but also the political situation that led to it, expectations of the general public, how the news of the battle was received and its results.
Richard Spilman Review: Jack Tar: Life in Nelson's Navy by Roy & Lesley Adkins
- Details
- Book Reviews
- Created on Tuesday, 25 October 2011 00:00
- By Richard Spilman
Originally published on the The Old Salt Blog
Over the next several weeks, we will be reviewing a series of books about what life was like in Nelson's navy. The first is Jack Tar: Life in Nelson's Navy by Roy & Leslie Adkins, subtitled "the extraordinary lives of ordinary seamen in Nelson's navy." A fascinating and well written book.
One of the criticism of many books addressing Nelson's time are that they either romanticize or are overly harsh is their descriptions of conditions aboard the ships of the Royal Navy. Jack Tar does neither. It provides a wealth of detail and description, which neither glorifies nor vilifies the complexity and contradiction of life aboard a man of war. The image that emerges is full and nuanced, sketching the mix of culture and rank in the teeming and cramped society that was a King's ship.