Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies [Paperback]

C. S. Forester (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Bantam Books; 2nd printing edition (1963)
• ASIN: B000OU5LU0
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)

More About the Author

C. S. Forester (1899-1966) wrote several novels with military and naval themes, including The African Queen, The Barbary Pirates, The General, The Good Shepherd, The Gun, The Last Nine Days of the "Bismarck," and Rifleman Dodd. But Forester is best known as the creator of Horatio Hornblower, a British naval genius of the Napoleonic era, whose exploits and adventures on the high seas Forester chronicled in a series of eleven acclaimed historical novels. Over the years Hornblower has proved to be one of the most beloved and enduring fictional heroes in English literature, his popularity rivaled only by Sherlock Holmes.

Born Cecil Louis Troughton Smith in Cairo, Egypt, Forester grew up in London. At the start of World War II he traveled on behalf of the British government to America, where he produced propaganda encouraging the United States to remain on Britain's side. After the War, Forester remained in America and made Berkeley, California, his home.

The character of Horatio Hornblower was born after Forester was called to Hollywood to write a pirate film. While the script was being drafted, another studio released Captain Blood, starring Errol Flynn, based on the same historical incidents about which Forester was writing. Rather than seek another movie project, and to avoid an impending paternity suit, Forester jumped aboard a freighter bound for England. By the end of the voyage he had outlined Beat to the Quarters, which introduced the now legendary character Hornblower, Bush, and Lady Barbara.

Forester died in 1966 while working on Hornblower During the Crisis.

Back Bay's editions of the Hornblower novels are numbered according to the chronology of Hornblower's life and career, not according to the sequence in which they were written. The series is comprised of the following titles:


Mr. Midshipman Hornblower
Lieutenant Hornblower
Hornblower and the Hotspur
Hornblower During the Crisis
Hornblower and the Atropos
Beat to Quarters
Ship of the Line
Flying Colours
Commodore Hornblower
Lord Hornblower
Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Book, But a Low Point in the Series, September 20, 2000

By 

Cody Carlson (Salt Lake City, UT United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies (Hornblower Saga) (Paperback)

Like the first novel in the series, 'Mr. Midshipman Hornblower,' 'Admrial Hornblower in the West Indies,' is a collection of short stories rather than a single novel. And, like 'Mr. Midshipman,' it is one of the lower points in the series. 'Admiral Hornblower,' is the only Hornblower novel to take place during peacetime and so the action, where it is, seems a little forced. Lacking is the adventure of Hornblower braving the odds to meet an impossible objective. Instead, many of the stories focus on much more trivial aspects of Her Majesty's Navy. Of course this is still a Hornblower book by the master, C. S. Forester, and he doesn't leave the reader competely high and dry. The first story, by far the best, deals with Hornblower's attempt to intercept a French vessel bound for St. Helena. Hornblower must use all his cunning to stop the would-be liberators of Napoleon Bonoparte from his island prison. Also there are a some moving moments as Hornblower takes the time to relect on his brilliant career and years of service. A must read for fans of the series but certainly not Forester's best.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars More An Epilogue Than a Coda, August 7, 2001

By 

Craig Montesano (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies (Hornblower Saga) (Paperback)

While reading Hornblower is always refreshing, this final (chronological) installment of the series simply does not generate the excitement that crackles in the earlier works.

The arc of the Hornblower series begins with 'Beat to Quarters' and reaches its zenith with 'Commodore Hornblower.' For readers still giddy with the aftereffects of those books, 'Admiral Hornblower' may be a bit disappointing. More an epilogue than a coda, this book finds Horatio at his last post as commander-in-chief of His Majesty's squadron in the West Indies.

It may be that Forester simply had no exploits to offer on par with Horatio's earlier adventures. Without the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars, one finds a distinct lack of urgency to this book. That said, it's worth noting the first adventure in 'Admiral Hornblower' brings back the old magic of the earlier books and manages to quicken the pulse.

Still, no first-time Hornblower reader could resist reading any installment. Nor should he. These are the greatest sea stories ever written; each one to be savored. Read, enjoy, and bid farewell to Admiral Lord Hornblower.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Post war duty at sea, November 6, 2002

By 

Sonterro (Lakeland, Florida USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies (Hornblower Saga) (Paperback)

This is really a collection of short stories. Not really a book.

It has been several years since the end of the Napoleanic Wars. Hornblower is assigned to the squadron in the West Indies (Carribbean) as the commander in chief. A frigate is his largest ship. Most of the squadron consists of sloops and brigs.

A lot of politics and philosophy going on. A couple of historical incidents.

Overall, this feels like the end of a career. Not real graceful, but worth the reading.