Sparrowhawk III: Caxton [Hardcover]

Edward Cline (Author)

Book Description

Series: Sparrowhawk | Publication Date: April 1, 2004

Third in the popular historical series, Sparrowhawk Book Three follows Jack Frake (Book One) and Hugh Kenrick (Book Two) as they meet in Colonial Virginia. Jack is a successful planter who has gained a lifetime of experience since he was brought to Virginia as an indentured felon. Hugh, after completing his education in Philadelphia, decides not to return to England but, instead, to buy a plantation. Both take extraordinary actions to preserve their lives, fortunes, and moral independence in the turbulent period following the French and Indian War.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 223 pages
• Publisher: MacAdam/Cage; First Edition edition (April 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931561532
• ISBN-13: 978-1931561532
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,286,569 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Edward Cline (1946 -) was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. After graduating from high school (in which he learned nothing of value) and a stint in the Air Force, he pursued his ambition to become a novelist. His first detective novel, First Prize, was published in 1988 by Mysterious Press/Warner Books, and his first suspense novel, Whisper the Guns, was published in 1992 by The Atlantean Press. First Prize was republished in 2009 by Perfect Crime. The Sparrowhawk series of novels set in England and Virginia in the pre-Revolutionary period has garnered some critical acclaim (but not yet from the literary establishment) and universal appreciation from the reading public, including parents, teachers, students, scholars, and adult readers who believe that American history has been abandoned or is misrepresented by a government-dominated educational establishment. He writes regularly for such political and cultural blog sites as Rule of Reason and The Dougout. He is dedicated to Objectivism, or Ayn Rand's philosophy of reason in all matters.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable, but slow movement from and to bigger things, May 23, 2004

By 

Tom Glass (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sparrowhawk III: Caxton (Hardcover)

This third book in an epic series of what will be six should not be read until you have read the first two in the series.

The first two Sparrowhawk books are what hook you on this series. This third book develops the characters, moves their lives on, fills in important historical details, but it does not stand alone as either of the first two books do. Once hooked by the first two books, however, this third book is an enjoyable, leisurely ride. One gets the feeling that the action is about to pick up in the next book, though.

I love the Sparrowhawk series and am eagerly awaiting the remaining three books in the series. The series has everything I want in fiction - heroes who are thinking men of action, heroes who have worthy ideals, great characterization, and set in the most romantic era possible - that of the American Revolution. I have learned lots of history, as well.

If you like the fiction of Ayn Rand or Robert Heinlein, or if you like the American Revolution, or if you like history, in general, you should get the whole series.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sparrowhawk: Book Four is on the way, May 23, 2004

By 

Edward Cline "Cline" (Yorktown, VA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sparrowhawk III: Caxton (Hardcover)

For those of you who are curious, the official publication date of Sparrowhawk: Book IV-Empire, is Pearl Harbor Day, Dec. 7th. Book V - Revolution, will be published in the spring of '05, and Book VI - War (and the last of the series) will be published in 2006.

The Author

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The portrayal of Man the hero continues...., December 6, 2004

By 

J. Kane "AbleKane" (Balad, Iraq) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sparrowhawk III: Caxton (Hardcover)

Excellent continuation of the Sparrowhawk series! I am hooked!

Quick recap:
Book One introduced Jack Frake living on the fringes of a tyrannical society and family. He overcomes the petty evil of his family to find himself facing the equally evil and tyrannical government that ends up unjustly trying and hanging his friends and mentors.

In Book Two we meet Hugh Kenrick, born into a life of privilege, he nonetheless develops into a self-made person far exceeding the deeds and honor of his ancestors and peers.

In Book Three tensions are created and developed. Hugh Kenrick is now a man. He is moving to Caxton to buy a tobacco farm and to learn how to be master of his own property. One of his neighbors is Jack Frake. It quickly becomes obvious that the two men are cut from the same cloth even though Hugh is an aristocrat and Jack was formerly an indentured servant. They meet in America as equals. One of the fascinating and satisfying aspects of Book Three is to watch the relationship between Jack and Hugh develop. There is no petty jealousies between them even though they vie for the affections of the same woman. Between England and the colonies the tension increases as the inevitable clash of philosophies nears. Will the crown hear the cries of its suffering colonies?

The portrayal of Man the hero continues to be one of the most enjoyable aspects of this series. Though the primary characters are fictional they are a true representation of the kind of intellectual and moral giants that existed during the gestation and birth of the greatest country in the history of the world.