Customer Reviews

Seaflower

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an interesting novel, the main character being Thomas Kydd, a seaman in the Royal Navy during the 1790s. The novel is a little weak when it comes to describing action against the enemy (some actions seem a little superficial) but gives good accounts of fighting bad weather and generally surviving aboard a ship of war. John Nicol's autobiography, "John Nicol Mariner," is a good account of a seaman during that time period.

In actual fact, during that time there were more losses from disease, storms, shipwrecks, and accidents in general, than there were from enemy action. The description of Kydd's survival after coming down with yellow fever would be typical for the location and time period. Frederick Hoffman in his autobiography, "A Sailor of King George," related his experience aboard a ship where he was one out of 16 midshipmen, and one out of two who survived a yellow fever epidemic. The survivors lived to tell their tales, so stories are naturally about survivors. There was reputedly an old toast in the Royal Navy for "a long war or a fever season," i.e., others misfortunes opened opportunities for promotion.

While it may seem a little unreal for a ship or officer to have one success after another, such officers did exist at that time and many, including Nelson, achieved rapid promotion by their successes.

There were young men from well-to-do families who ran off to sea for various reasons (just as some later joined the French Foreign Legion). Some survived and achieved success. The character of Nicholas Renzi is believable.

Stockwin does an excellent job with the physical details of 19th century sailing and writes tolerably on the sentence level.

Two large elements of the novel don't work so well, though. The first is the plot, so-called. Kydd and his friends go through one apparent challenge after another, but all are easily resolved. Just as the drama starts to build, the characters solve the problem or the danger goes away, resulting in repeated anticlimaxes. The plot does not seem to have an overall arc or a structure of building tension... essentially, there's no point.

The second problem is with characterization. Though the characters are appealing enough in themselves, they're never challenged and none of their experiences seem to change them. They don't develop through the book.

I can't really recommend this.

The 3rd installment in the Kydd series following on from `Kydd' and `Artemis'. This was the book that I really expected to see a little more character development in Kydd. Unfortunately, the book fails in many ways, not just with the lack of Kydd's character. The worst area is in regards to the plot. Time and again we find the author building up a dangerous situation, i.e a sail in the distance.. only to turn the page and find that the crew has defeated the enemy and all is well. It seems to read like a collection of 20 short stories all with quick endings. The only exception to this trait is the final story.

The worst book of the series so far, but still ok to read and a must if you want to continue reading the series.

Enjoyed by my husband and he couldn't wait for the arrival of the next one!

Julian Stockwin tells it like it was for Jack Tars in the Royal Navy during the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars. Stockwin's Kydd series relates the climb of Thomas Paine Kydd, a young Englishman, who is pressed into the Sea Service and embraces the challenge of life between England's 'wooden walls' as he makes his way through the ranks.

Stockwin's Kydd saga, including Seaflower, is based on historic events, allowing Kydd and his friend Nicholas Renzi to be placed in situations which reveal the real-life world of below-decks sailors in Nelson's Navy. Seaflower takes the pair from Portsmouth Harbour and the trumpted-up court martial of an officer with influence to the Caribbean, where Kydd faces personal challenges which continue to mature and shape him. Aboard the cunning topsail cutter Seaflower, they sail against the French and the overwhelming forces of the tropical seas.

Stockwin is at his best in describing the eighteenth-century in which Kydd lives, including the ships, exotic areas of the world, and the sea. Seaflower brings Kydd's characterization to a new high. I cannot wait to read the next title in the series, Mutiny.

This is best new naval fiction during the Age of Sail to be published in recent years!

This is the third novel about the maritime adventures of Thomas Paine Kydd, only a couple of years before a young wigmaker in Guildford, pressed into the Royal Navy, and now, in 1794, not only a prime, intuitive seaman but a quartermaster's mate -- and at the end of this volume he's on the brink of receiving his step in the form of an Admiralty warrant as master's mate. The story begins exactly where the previous one left off, with Tom appearing as witness in the matter of his captain's loss of their previous ship. But then he and his surviving friends are bundled hastily off to the Caribbean; someone with influence obviously is being protected. Having lost his petty officer's rating with his ship, he soon regains it on the elderly TRAJAN, and proves his worth enough on arrival in the islands to be well set for further advancement. But then the French invade the island and Kydd is separated from Renzi, his particular friend, who must depart with a small vessel loaded with refugees. The story divides interestingly, with Tom putting in a stint managing the workforce of slaves in a small naval dockyard (another opportunity to increase his general maritime knowledge) and Renzi's education and knowledge of French coming in handy on the admiral's staff in Jamaica. They are rejoined, of course, and spend some time on the tiny cutter SEAFLOWER, which has a bit of luck in the matter of prizes. And there are several more episodes which keep things moving right along, not only naval but also in diplomacy and in family matters. The author is extremely knowledgeable about his subject and his characters, while heroic at times, are also entirely human in temper. The style has matured over the three volumes so far, with less of a tendency to elide the narrative, but Stockwin still has a tendency to cut to the chase -- not necessarily a bad thing, given his subject. And Stockwin isn't O'Brien. But still, I don't believe I would recommend this series for the novice reader of Napoleonic naval adventure, because a certain amount of settled understanding of ship-handling and technical jargon on the reader's part is necessary for full enjoyment.

In this third book in the series about Thomas Kydd, the pressed man who finds himself at home as a seaman, the pacing is less frantic than the last book but still full of adventure and suspenseful events, as well as depictions of the seafaring life that helps convey its wonder even to the most lubberly reader. Kydd was last seen shipwrecked along with his friend Renzi. The book opens with the court-martial looking into the responsibility of the one surviving officer. From there, Kydd and the surviving crew from the Artemis are off to the Caribbean, to face hurricanes, fever, stints upon land and actions upon the sea.

Kydd is slowly working his way up, from position to position--from able seaman to petty officer, so readers of this series get to experience the working of the ships and the seamen from the various ranks. At times Kydd seems to be just a bit too much of a prodigy, but he really has to be a stand-out if he's to dream of being promoted as quickly and hopefully as highly as he hopes. Renzi is a very curious counterpoint to the earnest and forthright Kydd, erudite and cryptic--and a bit of a deux ex machine at times, he remains an intriguing character.

I enjoyed this book more than the last one (although my favorite is still the first) and will definitely look forward to reading more in this series.

"Seaflower" comes after "Kydd" ,and "Artemis" in Mr Stockwin's series about Thomas Kydd ,a seaman in the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary Wars of the 1790's .It follows on from the second volume "Artemis " and opens with Kydd and others from that unfortunate vessel waiting to give testimony at a court martial into the loss of the ship.His testimony is damning to the officer responsible but that worthy still has influence ,so Kydd and others from the Artemis are sent on board the "Trojan "to the Caribbean there to wage a campaign to capture French occupied West Indian islands .
The first port of call is Guadaloupe ,where the French settlers are largely sympatheic to the British ,being anti Jacaobin .However agents of the revolution successfully stir the slaves to insurrection and "Trojan "is forced to abort its mission and put out to sea where after a fierce strom they eventually dock in the British island of Antigua.Kydd is assigned to supervising local labour in the dockyard repair crew and is taken in by the master carpenter ,the devoutly religious Zachary Caird ,whose puritanism proves a stumbling block for his full acceptance of Kydd .

Meanwhile Kydd's friend Renzi has wound up on Jamiaca where his brother is a substantial landowner,and where he is eventually re-united with Kydd and they join up with the cutter Seaflower which,under the inspired captaincy of the redoubtable Farrell .proves itself in battle ,before retuning to Jamaica.The final passage of the book details a long and arduous open boat voyage -vividly described -in which Kydd plays a vital role.

Returning characters from earlier novels include Kydd's sister ,who is now the comapanion of a tiled lady in Jamaica .

The book moves briskly and the actaion scenes are well described and vivid .This moves the life of Kydd along to its next stage with commendable vigour and only the increasingly tiresome musings of Renzi slow things down .

Those who liked theb earlier volumes will like this ,and those unfamiliar with the earlier books are advised to give this a miss until they catch up.

This is a detailed account of shipboard life in the late 18thC from the foremast Jack's perspective:- cramped conditions, disgusting food, undeserved punishment and unremitting toil. Sensitive writing and deft plot handling continue the good work started in 'Kydd' and Artemis'.
But, where 'Artemis' seemed to be a vehicle for establishing Kydd's commitment to the sea and his improvement in both nautical and social niceties, 'Seaflower' is packed with action on both land and sea.
In almost every sort of boat under every sort of captain, Kydd and Renzi suffer the highs and lows of life in the Caribbean - hurricanes, disease, self-loathing and shipwreck, as well as friendship, family, promotion and self-esteem.

Mr. Stockwin gets better with each book, his sea-knowledge comes across loud and clear. Combined with his 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 'Mutiny', and, as we have come to expect in this genre, a historical note outlining the facts behind the fiction.

As good as it gets. *****

Yes, the book does seem to be a series of episodes, but I did not find that as objectionable as did some readers. And, while I am sure that there are inaccuracies with regard to geography and leagues sailed and so on, these are not especially noteworthy or destructive of the plot. If there is one objection that might be reasonably raised, it is that of happenstance: whenever the going gets rough, an island appears--or, a long-lost relative just happens to show up in...Jamaica!

Stockwin's narratives stress action--the realistic tedium of the voyages (which was handled neatly and realistically in Hornblower and Aubrey/Maturin) seems distatsteful to the author. Nonetheless, I find the series largely appealling and sufficiently different from (say) the Drinkwater group to be worth reading.