The First Nathaniel Drinkwater Omnibus: Eye of the Fleet, King s Cutter, Brig of War
£4.00
A worthy successor to Hornblower - I am a massive fan of the genre and think that Forester s Hornblower is pretty much the pinnacle, but Woodman s Drinkwater is, to my mind, the best of his challengers.After 15 or 20 novels of O Brien or Pope i found my interest beginning to wane, but Drinkwater kept me hooked all the way (about 12 or something books, if i recall). The nautical terminology is there, of course, and the author is very good at creating the atmosphere of the period and of the wooden sailing ships of Nelson s time. Something is always happening to keep the reader interested and, while it is true as has already been noted, that the same english villain and french villain remain pretty much throughout the series, i did not have too much of a problem with this. Authors should be given a little leeway when it comes to coincidences, as long as they are not too far fetched.In summary, i would recomment giving Drinkwater a chance if you have exhausted the Hornblower series and are looking for something else to dull your withdrawal symptoms.
A Disappointment - I like many naval authors - Forester, Stockwin, Nelson, Lambdin, to name my current favorites. Woodman, unfortunately, is not in the same class at all. I found the books boring, to say the least. Very little ever happens, and when something does happen, it is flashed-back to again and again.There is also an astounding lack of characters. The main English villain is introduced in Book 1 and is *still* the main English villain in Book 3, 15 or 20 years later. Anytime Drinkwater has to do with the French, the *exact same* Frenchman appears, year in, year out.
Brilliant Stuff! - Brilliant stuff! As first novels, these are almost as subtle and enigmatic as P.O B s later works, but just as gripping as his early stuff, similarly based on historical fact, they are definitely a cut above the rest. Excellent descriptions of below-decks and battle actions take you right inside the ship, an acquaintance with nautical terminology helps, but is not vital, to understand the gist of the action or the day-to-day management of the ship - e.g. the handling of sails is particularly well-described, far better than any other book I ve read. and succinct descriptions of wind, weather and tide preface each event, the stage is already set - action soon follows.None of the incidents or fortunate strokes of luck seem contrived, rather they develop naturally as Nat matures from innocence into almost cynical youth.In The Eye of the Fleet (first book in this volume), the hard life below decks is brought horrifically home in thefirst few pages - the impotence of the younger gentlemen in the face of overbearing bullying is brought sharply into focus, as is the rough justice of the foremast jacks - stark reality is served up in healthy measure here, with a side salad of intrigue and a dressing of young love.Ten years on, A King s Cutter sees Nat married - the early promise of promotion has not materialised and he is stuck in a boring navigational job on Admiralty Yachts. Suddenly, an influential old comrade offers him a commission in a clandestine operation on a speedy cutter, where his skills will be put to the test helping the Aristos to escape the Terror of the Revolution. In an about-face, Britain is assisting her traditional enemy, in an attempt to avert the greater threat of anarchy, but has to cope with the potentially worse threat of the infamous Nore Mutiny ... Divulging any more would be a spoiler - suffice to say that espionage and political intrigue make this a very different book from the first episode. Nat is older, wiser and more experienced, but there is still the same pace, tension and honest-to-goodness readbility. In particular, the descriptions are superb, conveying in a few apt words all the reader requires to envisage the scenes accurately - one knows the exact position of ships and exactly where the action is, one is THERE, in the thick of it - which adds immeasurably to one s enjoyment.Book 3 A Brig of War sees Nat dashing round to the Red Sea to subvert Napoleon s suspected attack on India. A tense sea-chase ensues, brilliantly tense, there are some on-board intrigues which keep one guessing, an old enemy returns to haunt Nat, plus the minutiae of running a ship make this immensely enjoyable reading.We see more details of Nat s long-time colleagues, in particular the misanthrope Appleby, whose didactic prolix is an undercurrent of humour which endears him to both Nat and his ailing Captain.I devoured this omnibus in a weekend - good job I d already bought the follow-on, because this is addictive reading.
A Master of Naval Fiction - For those disconsolate souls who have read all of O Brian s masterful works, travelled with the moody but adventurous Hornblower, and have sought a new master to chart a course through the seas of early 19th century British naval fiction, I can warmly recommend Woodman. Woodman tells a good tale, only occasionally lapsing to the mediocre in his plotting, but none can surpass his ability to sketch the feel of living in the navy of this time. A warning: these are not for the neophyte. Woodman assumes a solid background in nautical terminology (or a very good dictionary). Nevertheless, they are works that merit high recognition among the lovers of naval fiction.
Among the best of the historical naval genre - Woodman is treading familiar ground - Patrick O Brian, Alexander Kent, C.S.Forester, Showell Styles to name but a few. Nevertheless his are worthy additions to the genre. His style lacks the everyday detail and his characters lack the depth of Patrick O Brian s, but the narratives are gripping, the nautical detail appears accurate (I am no expert!) and if you prefer to cut to the chase you will find these books very much to your taste.