|
|
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Great Fun, But No O'Brian, Mar 30 2001
When I was younger, I picked up "Sloop of War" after I had run out of Hornblower novels. With the death of Patrick O'Brian, I returned to the Kent novels which I had stopped reading at "Signal -- Close Action !" Bolitho hasn't changed. Sentimental -- brave -- generous -- loyal -- self-critical -- larger than life. Whereas Gene Roddenberry pictured Kirk as a 23rd century Hornblower, reserved, self-doubting, internally tortured, brilliant, and brave despite himself, Kent writes Bolitho the way William Shatner played Kirk. The results are usually entertaining, as here. Kent draws ship-to-ship, cutting-out, and fleet actions as expertly as anyone who writes in this genre, plus he slips in an amount of sentiment that would make O'Brian or Forrester cringe, but it works because we know what a softie Bolitho is underneath. Kent draws the relationship between Bolitho and his officers, especially his nephew Adam, his flag captain Keen, and his cox'n Allday, affectingly (although the conflict with his old friend Herrick, now also a flag officer, seems contrived). The return of Catherine Pareja is a great move, as it allows Kent to write himself out of the hole he got into when he killed off Cheney, Bolitho's great love, then brought back her shadow in the form of Belinda, her look-alike cousin. Catherine brings back a little danger and spunk in the female lead. But Kent's problems show between battles. There are occasional non-sequiturs in the writing. The dialogue can be stiff. Characters can act inconsistently with the way they were originally drawn, when it serves the plot. The final plot twist this time is awkward and falls flat. Kent handles ships, lines and sails well, but his knowledge of the rest of the history of the period seems sketchy, and his research regarding the workings of the Royal Navy at the time is nowhere near the level of Forrester or O'Brian. If you're interested in the period and great characters, start with those two. If you love action, start with Bernard Cornwell. If you've read all of those, despite the flaws, Kent is well worth reading -- but we miss ye, Jack and Stephen !
|
by Alexander Kent
by Alexander Kent
by Alexander Kent
by Alexander Kent
by Alexander Kent
