The Evening Gun (War of 1812 Trilogy, Volume 3) [Paperback]

William H. White (Author)

Book Description

Series: War of 1812 Trilogy | Publication Date: October 22, 2001

The year is 1814, the final year of the War of 1812. With the Atlantic seaboard closed by the British blockade, Isaac Biggs, Jack Clements, and Jake Tate, fresh from their harrowing adventures in Canada, find berths with Joshua Barney's Gunboat Flotilla in the Chesapeake Bay. These swift and shallow-draft vessels have become a thorn in the side of the British fleet, and the British command is determined to destroy them. Barney's Flotilla is eventually chased up the Patuxent River to find temporary refuge in Benedict, Maryland, where Isaac falls in love with the daughter of a militia colonel. After several exciting forays against the British fleet, the flotilla must be scuttled and burned. Its men are called ashore to fight at the Battle of Bladensburg in an futile effort to halt the invasion of Washington, then are sent to defend Baltimore against the British siege of the harbor. Isaac, Jack, and Jake witness the historic and horrifying bombardment of Fort McHenry from the outer harbor, aboard a British warship in the company of Francis Scott Key.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

William H. White is a former U.S. Naval officer with combat service, a life-long sailor, and maritime historian specializing in Age of Sail events. He lives in Rumson, New Jersey.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Tiller Publishing (October 22, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1888671459
• ISBN-13: 978-1888671452
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,020,502 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #77 in Books > History > Military > War of 1812

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Disappointing Conclusion, December 18, 2005

By 

John A Lee III "jal3" (San Antonio, TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Evening Gun (War of 1812 Trilogy, Volume 3) (Paperback)

This book is a disappointment not because it is poorly written but because it does not show the same improvement that the second showed over the first. In fact, I think it is at about the same level of the first, A PRESS OF CANVAS. What suffered in that one and this is not the actual writing, it is the story telling. It seems to wander along without much excitement and without getting much done. That is disappointing in that the second volume of the trilogy, A FINE TOPS'L BREEZE, did do a better job of story telling.

Even so, there is material of interest to be had here. Nautical fiction, especially of a naval bent, takes an American point of view all too rarely. Material concerning the War of 1812 is even more scarce. This book covers both of those issues from the point of view of Isaac Biggs, an American sailor pressed into the Royal Navy. He makes his escape in the first book, serves as a privateer on a rescue mission in the second and acts as the captain of a gunboat in a flotilla of such operating in the Chesapeake Bay during the closing days of the war in this one.

The descriptions of small boat operations has some interest as does the inclusion of such events as the burning of Washington and the writing of the Star Spangled Banner. The interest, however, does not translate into any drama.

This is a fair book for aficionados of the genre but is nothing special.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The best of the trilogy, February 7, 2002

By 

Fred Camfield (Vicksburg, MS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Evening Gun (War of 1812 Trilogy, Volume 3) (Paperback)

This third book of the trilogy could possibly be read as a stand alone novel, although it does make some references to incidents and people in the previous books. The story is set in 1814 in Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. It is a good description of the conflicts between the British and Americans in that setting including the burning of Washington and the attack on Baltimore, although it seems to omit the British attack on Havre de Grace. Like some previous authors, this author has included helpful maps of the scenes of action.

The description of the small boat operations using sloops and gunboats is very detailed. The author notes in his own "Author's Note" that he changed some locations, etc., from the real ones, although it is not clear why he did that. Most locations are accurate, as are the real people who were involved and the major incidents.

The War of 1812 was a peculiar war that started because of slow communications, had various raids or other actions that served no military purpose, and neither side gained anything of substance except a mountain of debt to pay for the costs of the war. The Peace Treaty was signed in December 1814, but the last military action was on 30 June 1815, again because of slow communications. See "The Lost Ships of the Royal Navy" for details of British ships captured by the Americans in 1815 after the war had ended.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A big finish to this fine Trilogy, October 28, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Evening Gun (War of 1812 Trilogy, Volume 3) (Paperback)

Superb - I may have liked it better than the other two in the series. The big dog and Isaac's love interest added greatly to my enjoyment. The parts about the buring of our capital and the bombardment of Baltimore were particularly timely in light of the September 11th attack on our country. Most people, me included, have little understanding of these events and White's book - and the others in this series - have brought them to life. A really easy way to learn some history about our great country. I even checked a few of the details for historic accuracy and they were right on. I hope there will be more of these historically accurate stories from this writer.