Ramage [Paperback]

Dudley Pope (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1981

In the first Ramage novel the special orders came direct from Nelson himself, and contain news of a mission close to young Lieutenant Ramage's heart. In a daring foray, under the very nose of the French Mediterranean fleet, he is to sail his tiny cutter close into the Italian shore and rescue a party of stranded aristocrats from Napoleon's fast-advancing army. He does not know that one of them, the beautiful Marchesa di Volterra, will soon capture his heart...

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Fontana; 5548 edition (1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0006155480
• ISBN-13: 978-0006155485
• ASIN: B000C5DWDA
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

49 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not a bad little book, but not the greatest, June 12, 2002

By 

J. Angus Macdonald "bibliovore" (Concord, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ramage (The Lord Ramage Novels) (Volume 1) (Paperback)

This is the hardest kind of review to write, I find. The first of the Dudley Pope "Ramage" series is not bad as an adventure-at-sea novel, but it is not great either. It is fun, but not amazingly exciting. Pope is knowledgable, but heavy-handed. So the book rates 3 stars.

First some background. I have read the Horatio Hornblower & Aubrey/Maturin series, as well as a couple books by Kent, "Two Years Before the Mast", and scattered other bits of nautical lore and adventure. I enjoy the genre as a whole. Thus at a friend's suggestion I picked up "Ramage".

The action in this book can get pretty heavy, but often to the point of strained credulity. As this is a historical novel, I don't really expect to see sections that strike me as "What an AMAZING bit of luck!" every 20-30 pages, but that does happen here. Ramage begins his career (at least as far as the book is concerned) by coming back to consciousness after being knocked about by an explosion. Luckily he has not noticable concussion... He is the only officer left on board his ship. Luckily he can find the captain's secret orders... Luckily they directly involve skills he has... And somehow he is able to convince his heavily battered crew that he is NOT abandoning them by leaving the ship in the ship's boats. This is only the opening sequence, so I am not giving much away here.

His adventures take a much more believable turn on land and the pace really picks up; unfortunately things drag later during a courtmartial scene. I want to get involved with the adventures and the excitement, but I keep thinking, "How much blind luck can one fellow have?"

Another disappointing aspect of the book revolves around the nautical lore. It is always tricky as to how much to include in a given book and how to present it. Patrick O'Brian was the great master of being able to spoon bits of knowledge of sailing vessels to his audience without making it seem like a long lecture. Unfortunately Pope is much more heavy-handed in his approach. When he wants to explain something about the management of ships, he very obviously places a non-naval person in the scene and then proceeds to have Ramage give a mini-lecture. This is not only clunky in execution, it becomes woefully predictable. The only time this didn't happen, Ramage thought all the steps out in his head, sort of like a Shakespearean soliloquy on naval maneuvers.

Ramage himself is a rather nice character, with some little quirks, an interesting background, and rather too much luck. Gianna, his lady love, is a standard head strong young woman who comes to love the hero. Jackson, Ramage's American sidekick, is also rather nice, but a little too Johnny-on-the-spot, as if all he is at times is an extension of Ramage's luck.

Pope knows the period very well. He knows the sea, the commanders, the action, and the politics. As this was his freshman effort I have every hope that the later books become less heavy-handed. In the end "Ramage" is not a bad book, but it is not a great book of the genre either.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific opening salvo from the masters pupil-5 broadsides, August 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Ramage (Hardcover)

Ramage is the first installment in the Hornblower like Ramage series. The jacket cover states that Pope was encouraged to write the series by C.S. Forester and Ramage was published in 1965, just before Forester died. Ramage is about the same age as Hornblower and Pope even pays homage to his mentor by having Ramage recall his midshipman days with Horatio Hornblower.

Unlike the first Hornblower installment, Ramage begins with the hero in command. He is unconscious in the middle of a furious sea battle and is roused by the enlisted men to assume command. Can Ramage assume command in a desperate situation, carry out his orders, gain the confidence of his men, overcome the political enemies who destroyed his father and would destroy him, and find the woman of his dreams? Of course he can! Mind you this is the first installment in the series and Ramage's position has plenty of room for subsequent insecurity. However, I have a feeling that whatever ill fortune is thrown Ramage's way, he will find a way to overcome it. What more can one ask of this genre?

Pope has a thorough knowledge of sailing which shows in his writing. Unlike O'Brian, he does not bog us down with details. His writing is simple and effective. He also got the message from Forester about the importance of the American market and included a trusty American seaman as Ramage's right hand man. Nicholas Ramage may be a little too perfect and the novel is formulaic but Pope has followed the formula well. I am sure that Forester was pleased.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Highly entertaining, July 17, 2000

By 

Roger Lee - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ramage (The Lord Ramage Novels) (Volume 1) (Paperback)

This was the first novel I have read by Pope and I throughly enjoyed it. It gets off to a very fast start, which is unusual for a sea novel. It slows down somewhat in the middle but never gets boring and the ending is very suspenseful. Ramage is an interesting and likable character. The book is well-written, for the most part, although there are lines here and there that struck me as a little corny. The tone of the book is mostly serious, but there are a couple of scenes that are pretty funny. One of the things that I particularly liked about this book was the way Pope does not romanticize the Royal Navy. He presents the Royal Navy with all its flaws; such as its tendency to promote incompetent officers from wealthy and influential families while far better officers get stuck in the lower ranks. This book shows the tremendous pressure that Royal Navy officers were under to succeed in their missions, or die trying. Pope compares very favorably with the novels I have read by Alexander Kent and Richard Woodman. In fact, I like him better than Kent. Pope is not nearly as good as Patrick O'Brian, though. Anyway, I am looking forward to the next book in this series.