Customer Reviews

Stand into Danger (Ulverscroft Large Print)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is the first Alexander Kent novel I have read (I skipped the first one because this one sounded a little better) and it was a very enjoyable read. I have read several other authors in this genre, and my favorite by far is Patrick O'Brian. None of the other authors I have read, including Kent, really even come close to O'Brian's brillant novels. I enjoyed this book, however, and I will definately read more of this series. Life in the royal navy is romanticized more in this novel than in the novels of Patrick O'Brian and Richard Woodman. For example, all of the Destiny's officers are completely top-notch professional men. In reality, a fairly high percentage of navel officers during this time were highly incompetent and owed their positions to the fact that they were born to a wealthy, influential family. The characters in this novel are not developed to any great degree except for Bolitho himself. In general, I suppose this novel is a little cheesy in many respects, but I got drawn into it and really enjoyed it none-the-less. The book's hero is very likable and seems very real; he's no superhero. The best thing about this book are the action scenes. There is a lot of action and it is very well described. We experience the fear and horror of battle through Bolitho's eyes and it comes across more powerfully than in any other sea novel I have read, including O'Brian's. The battle scenes in an O'Brian novel are exciting but they seem to be a little aloof; a little removed from the death and horror that the common seamen experienced. This is not the case with Kent. In sum, I would almost dub Kent's work "O'Brian lite", but his great battle scenes make his work a little more than that.

My family physician brought my attention, in the first place, to Patrick O'Brian's series of books about the adventures of Captain Jack Aubrey of the British Navy in the days of wooden ships and iron men.

I was not new to naval fiction. I cut my teeth on Howard Pease's stories of the merchant marine, which inspired me, directly, to ship out at the age of 16 on an 8,000 ton freighter, in the "black gang," as a fireman. Subsequently, I joined the U.S. Navy on my 17th birthday and eventually I built my own ketch-rigged sailboat, the "Wild Goose," and sailed her on the Pacific with my family.

I am somewhat of a connoisseur of naval fiction, especially as it relates to sailing vessels. The late Patrick O'Brian was a master of the genre, and his details of square riggers sailing rig and of life aboard vessels of the late 18th century were unsurpassed. Many of his actions were taken directly from admiralty records.

Alexander Kent is more of a storyteller, and he does not depend so much on detail of the sailing rig. He is more interested in the story, and his stories are superb! He keeps you reading far into the night to see how it comes out. I would read the books through in one setting, if my schedule allowed. My doctor recommewnded this series, also.

Like O'Brian, Kent (a pseudonym) follows the career of a single extraordinary seaman, Richard Bolitho, from Midshipman on to command. Bolitho began his career at the age of twelve, although the series pick him up at 16, a seasoned midshipman, in the first book of the series (which I have reviewed) "Midshipman Bolitho," in which he is assigned to a 74 gun ship of the line, the Gorgon. "Stand into Danger" picks him up as a third lieutenant on the Destiny, a frigate.

There is plenty of action in both stories. I have the third book in the series, now, and have the fourth on order. That should tell how much I like the series.

Joseph (Joe) Pierre, USN (Ret)

author of Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenance
and other books

Richard Bolitho, newly promoted to lieutenant comes close to death in this splendid yarn and he sustains the wound that leaves him with the scar on his forehead that he ever afterwards tries to hide by a lock of hair. We also learn how he first encounters his faithful coxwain Stockdale, displaying in the process the humanity and generosity that will characterise him in later life. The response of a young man to increasing responsibility, and to the aloof but careful guidance of a seasoned commander, is well conveyed in the story and with the assistance of a beautiful Portuguese Bolitho comes of age in more ways than one. Experience of a complex landing-operation on an island controlled by a renegade Royal Navy officer also yields experience that will stand him in good stead for future adventures. This was the first Bolitho story I read and it hooked me into tracking down all the others I could in the series. I have read them as far as possible in chronological order and this adds to the pleasure, as Kent handles Bolitho's maturing as a man and a commander skilfully and convincingly.

My father introduced me to Horatio Hornblower when I was in junior high and I've been a fan of Napoleonic-era sea yarns ever since. C. S. Forester is still the standard against which I measure later creations, and Alexander Kent stands up very well in that regard. I always try to work out a birthdate for the main character in such a series, so I'll have some idea of the future course of his history and what real events he's likely to bump into. Hornblower was born in 1776, Jack Aubrey around 1770 (I think), and Richard Bolitho in 1756 -- which pretty much takes him out of the later Napoleonic period except as a very senior officer (the last book in the series is set in 1806). Things were quite different at that relatively early period as regards press gangs, construction of ships, international politics, and lots of other factors, which adds to the interest. Specifically, Bolitho is eighteen years old and a newly-appointed Third Lieutenant aboard the Destiny, a frigate armed for war during a time of peace, whose captain is frothing to lay hold of a would-be revolutionary hiding out in the Caribbean. Which provides plenty of room for Bolitho to develop his naval and leadership skills, to become infatuated with another man's wife, and acquire friendships that will last a lifetime -- especially with Stockdale, who will later become his cox'n. The prose is workmanlike and the author spends almost as much time delineating the characters of Captain Dumaresq, First Lieutenant Palliser, and Second Lieutenant Rhodes, all of whom are interesting, and which greatly increases the reader's enjoyment.

Of the C.S. Forester followers, Alexander Kent has most closely followed the schedule that Forester set. Like Forester, Kent started the series in the middle and then wrote novels at the beginning and end to complete the series. Other series writers including Pope, O'Brian, Parkinson, and Woodman wrote their series in chronological order for the most part. Stand Into Danger is chronologically the second (or third) novel in his series but was published over a decade after the first Richard Bolitho novel hit the bookstands. Bolitho readers had the character down but Kent took them back to see their hero develop and develop he does in Stand Into Danger.

In Stand Into Danger Bolitho learns about leadership from his captain and first lieutenant. He enlists a stalwart companion in Stockdale, acquires a nasty scar and experiences love for the first time. He also has a series of thrilling adventures and breathtaking naval battles involving pirates. Stand Into Danger is a solid entry in the series.

Like other novels in these series, Stand Into Danger is written as an adult action adventure. It has a real feel to it. The Caribbean of 1774 was not the romantic vacation holiday setting of today. It was a place of illness, sweltering heat, violent storms and brutal pirates. None of it is romanticized although Bolitho is a good old-fashioned hero who manages to overcome against all odds. Men die and die horribly in naval battles. Kent does not gloss over this fact although he spares us the worst of the details.

Kent does an excellent job of describing young Richard Bolitho. To some extent his descriptions of Bolitho sound like the reminiscences of a middle-aged man. On the other hand, Bolitho's discovery of love as a young man rings true.

I did find Kent's description of the climactic battle a little confusing. A map at the appropriate chapter would help. There was also some intrigue in the novel that required some attention to detail. Also, a diagram of the ship would have been helpful. Stand Into Danger is a respectable entry into the series and a step up from Richard Bolitho and the `Avenger" but not as good as In Gallant Company, the next entry in the series.

I enjoyed this book far more than the first. the action was better described, it was done at a much faster pace and the characters are more defined and interesting. the book does have a couple of problems. it starts like was a book missing, events of an important nature have happened that we the reader were not witness to. there are a couple of inacuracies about things that happen in the book. however i find this book to be more action/adventure rather than a serious delve into naval history. so if you want action/adventure then give this a read. over all a good fun book.

This is the second installment of the "Richard Bolitho" series, about a fictional British naval officer during the 1700s. In this novel Bolitho is newly promoted to Lieutenant. The ship to which he is assigned has a secret mission involving intrigue and treasure (no spoilers here). The best aspect of this novel is the continued maturation and development of Lieutenant Bolitho. There is plenty of action in this novel, and it is an excellent read.

My favorite aspect of the "Bolitho" novels are the parts that deal with the American Revolution. This second Bolitho novel does not deal with that topic much. No matter; it is still an engrossing novel. Recommended. RJB.

Kent does not have the writing skills of Forester. I am a Hornblower devotee and after two readings of the series fifty years apart, was looking for more. The Bolitho series is like beef soup after having grown used to beef stew.

Bolitho does not flesh out as Hornblower does, POV switches without warning. A lover is introduced and snatched away as though she were no more than a 3X5 note card. A spy is unmasked with no warning they had one in their midst. And the confusion of battle seems more like something I'm watching on television than actually involved in. Bolitho is always being overwhelmed and suddenly rescued from death by the same person.

For all it's faults. The Bolitho series remains a fair to middling light read and I shall continue until I stumble on a better substitute for Hornblower.

He's a lieutenant at last, appointed to the frigate Destiny at a time when many of His Majesty's officers wish for a posting - any posting. For with no war going on, England has no need for many of her ships and their officers and crews. Still, Third Lieutenant Richard Bolitho must put some difficult personal memories behind him in order to concentrate on his longed for new job. So what's his first assignment under Captain Dumaresq? Taking a recruiting party ashore in an area where pickings are guaranteed to be slim. Where is the frigate bound, and what is her mission? Only Dumaresq knows.

For me this was a re-read of a book I enjoyed years ago. I enjoyed it this time, too. It combines adventure and the accurate depiction of an interesting historical era with the personal and career development of a sympathetic young hero. Its secondary characters, Bolitho's shipmates and the civilians they meet in the course of political intrigue that drives the plot, receive exactly the right amount of attention from the author. An exciting and well told tale.

--Reviewed by Nina M. Osier, author of "Granite Island"

I've read most of the great Sci Fi authors. Kent has become one of my favorite! Stand into Danger is an entertaining novel, rich with adventure, excitement and even a bit of romance. Since I live in the Caribbean and have been to some of the islands mentioned in the book, the novel was especially entertaining for me.

I've ordered the next two books of the series and can't wait to start them!