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Most Helpful Reviews
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Liked It “After more than a year's hiatus from my favorite maritime series, all I can sigh is: I love these stories. Patrick O'Brian may well be the most brilliant man to ever put pen to page. This installment easily bears up to its predecessors, with its subtle humor, nuanced characters, and balanced...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “The story is in the South East Asia. In my humble opinion this part of the globe doesn't suit very well with Jack's stories. I prefer him engaged in Europe, against the French or Spanish. That's more like it. Overall the book is slow. One of the books I like the least” see full review » see other reviews » |
Newest Reviews
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“After more than a year's hiatus from my favorite maritime series, all I can sigh is: I love these stories. Patrick O'Brian may well be the most brilliant man to ever put pen to page. This installment easily bears up to its predecessors, with its subtle humor, nuanced characters, and balanced pacing. Can't wait for the next one!”
K.M. Weiland wrote this review Tuesday, October 23, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“of course I loved it; can hardly wait to start the next book in the series!”
Shelby W wrote this review Friday, March 25, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I love all of the books in this series. This is the second time I'm reading them all.”
S.K. Keogh wrote this review Sunday, January 23, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Another fun book in the series. In this one Aubrey and Maturin are side-tracked on another ship, the Diane, to near Sumatra to try to procure a treaty with the Sultan before the French do. It takes a good third of the book to get out to sea. Once they arrive in SE Asia, the setting is interesting and there is a lot of intrigue, although it is not always clear how or why things happened. This is particularly true of Steven's accomplishments, which are of major importance. The book ends in an unusual way. The Diane sails around for quite a while looking for a rendezvous with the Surprise. This fails and then the ship gets caught in a typhoon and ends with everyone shipwrecked on a small island. Enjoyable if you like the series.”
Parnell wrote this review Tuesday, November 2, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“The story is in the South East Asia. In my humble opinion this part of the globe doesn't suit very well with Jack's stories. I prefer him engaged in Europe, against the French or Spanish. That's more like it. Overall the book is slow. One of the books I like the least”
Robi wrote this review Sunday, September 12, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Somehow Patrick O'Brien brings me back to this rather straight-laced, adventure-rolling world of the British Navy. Having not read the book before or the book after this particular one, I wasn't that far lost, as Patrick brought me up to speed. It was an enjoyable adventure, but I wished it had reached a definitive end, instead of making a sequel... not only obvious, but necessary.”
Albigensia wrote this review Tuesday, October 20, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“starcrossed said: Rated: 4 stars
Play Book Tag Shelf wrote this review Sunday, October 26, 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
The Thirteen Gun Salute by Patrick O'Brien takes place in the Napoleonic Era. Number 13 in a long series of nautically based novels, on which the movie Master and Commander was based.”
“Liked this one though it had very little action. Has more of a psychological focus as they have to carry an oddball envoy to and from a mission to the Malays. Does have quite a lot of natural history for the Doctor.”
TheophileEscargot wrote this review Tuesday, June 17, 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“(book 13 of a 21-book series, published 1989):
Teduardo wrote this review Tuesday, May 15, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
6980 pages of pure joy - culturally & linguistically immersive historical literature, set on the sea of the Napoleonic Wars. Ah, so captivating, I sincerely miss plunging from one book to the next now that they're complete. Yes, this was an adventure my Mom started me on, buying one of the first books as a present based on a review she read. The language, the leadership, the relations, the sea, rich with characters one learns to love. I'll look back with fondness on my 21 weeks of sailing with O'Brian across his inspired imagination.”“It took some tugging from my friends to get me into Patrick O'Brian's Age of Sail novels. I have no particular interest in ships, war, or anything to do with the men involved. But these books are simply amazing.
jwaneeta wrote this review Wednesday, December 12, 2007. ( reply | view 1 replies | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
The writing is breathtakingly brilliant. T
here is no resisting the characterizations -- if you enjoy novels at all, you'll be hooked within a few chapters. O'Brian is incisive and unsparing as he introduces Stephen Maturin and Jack Aubrey, and you love them anyway.
O'Brian's descriptive powers are without peer: his ability to covey smell, taste -- and even motion -- are almost uncanny. And dearest to my heart is his Austen-like wit: bone-dry and sneaky.
You can start anywhere in the Aubrey novels and have a great time, but if you want the full experience go for Master and Commander. It just gets better from there.”
