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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exciting book!, April 14, 2006
This review is from: Mutiny: A Kydd Sea Adventure (Kydd Sea Adventures) (Paperback)
Book four in the Kydd series is fantastic! (see my reviews of _Kydd_ , _Artemis_ and _Seaflower_) Kydd helps an Italian nobleman escape Italy before the arrival of the French. Later, Kydd becomes embroiled in the fleet mutiny at the Nore where he must decide whether his loyalty to the navy or his mates is stronger (no spoilers here!). His decision is not as obvious as it might seem. How he gets extricated from the mutiny reads like a thriller! Lots of good intrigue. The book ends with Kydd taking charge of a gundeck at the battle of Camperdown. The description of the battle is fantastic. Stockwin puts the reader right in the thick of the action. The imagery is amazing:
p. 316 Renzi saw a midshipman, then the signal lieutenant drop in their tracks, and over at a disabled nine-pounder a corpse exuded blood that made tracks on the deck as the ship rolled and heaved.
Also, Stockwin's writing style is a real joy to read:
p. 318 Her guns opened again with a thunderous broadside, which was answered with equal venom by their opponent-but having practiced over long weeks at sea the English guns spoke faster and truer.
Not only has this series grown on me, but I have come to appreciate Mr. Stockwin's writing. His knowledge of ships and sea, languages, dialects, history and other things is impressive. A tremendous amount of research has gone into these books. The series was slow for me at first, but it has become interesting and exciting. Taken as a whole, it's a great story. At first, Mr. Stockwin set the table; now I'm feasting. I look forward to the next book.
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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gets better with each book., February 22, 2005
The pairing of down-to-earth Kydd with the intellectual Renzi continues to lift this series above the run-of-the-mill (although Kydd has lost most of his gaucheness by now).
Promotion within the ranks has come to both, as a result of the Caribbean experience in 'Seaflower', and they are part of the Mediterranean Fleet - although in different ships.
While Renzi is 'enjoying' the battle at Cape St.Vincent, Kydd is stuck in Gibraltar 'suffering' the attentions of the Town Major's wife. His new confidante Cockburn tries to warn him off - to no avail, so Renzi drags him off to Venice, where they are trapped by Boney's invading forces. They escape, thanks to an 'ex' of Renzi's, but a tough decision by Renzi seems to signal an end to the friendship as they return to Blighty - and the Nore mutiny. Kydd is in the forefront, but miraculously earns a pardon (thanks to Renzi), then finds himself in the thick of the bloody battle at Camperdown.
Altogether a seeming mish-mash of events ... but after all, this is exactly what a seaman's life would be like: no plan; no greater purpose; no battle tactics; no 'story'; just go where the Admiralty sends the ship and do what the captain commands ... This is what the author is trying to convey in this series - the story is in life's little details.
And very good detail it is; the author's personal research into the locations produces a highly-believable account of little-known events in the most volatile period in British naval history. There follows a taster of the next book 'Quarterdeck', and, as we have come to expect in this genre, his sources of the facts behind the fiction.
This is the most in-depth depiction of the infamous mutiny that I've read, as - for the last time - through Kydd's eyes we see more of the behind-the-scenes machinations than if he were an Aubrey or Hornblower. *****
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you enjoyed O'Brian..., October 21, 2004
If you enjoyed reading the fabulous Jack Aubrey series of naval adventure novels from the late Patrick O'Brian, then you will love the Kydd Series by Julian Stockwin. Nothing can replace O'Brian, of course, but these come surprisingly close in some ways. The strength of this series is the sailor's dialogue, as created by Stockwin, a former officer in Her Majesty's Navy. Picture this scene: The press gang has just busted into a busy tavern and the leader of the group has to shout to get the attention of the befuddled customers...Stockwin's dialogue can be very funny..."So, who's fer a life on the rollin' seas?" That's from memory--it had me laughing for a day or two--but you get the idea. I have read all of Forester, Kent, Cornwell, and a few of the others, and the Kydd series is right up there with the best of them. In my opinion, the dialogue is a match for O'Brian, or even superior, although, in total, O'Brian's work remains the best that has ever been published in this genre. Moreover, Stockwin's knowledge and descriptions of the technical details of running a King's ship at the end of the 18th century is absolutely on a par with O'Brian, in my opinion.
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