Lord Hornblower Is a Great Adventure in the Forester Tradition

Lord Hornblower
A Book Review
By Alan Eggleston, writer and editor, business books, leisure books


C. S. Forester’s Hornblower was the first Age of Sail series I’d read, and in 2002 I bought the last two books of the 11 book series. At the time, I didn’t realize there were other authors also writing Age of Sail books, and not wanting to run out of books to read, I set these aside for some future need. I’ve since discovered Patrick O’Brien, Dudley Pope, and now Julian Stockwin. So I’ve begun the final journey with Hornblower.


Lord Hornblower is Forester’s 10th masterfully written book. In it, Horatio Hornblower, now knighted and a Lord, married to his second wife, sister to people in high places, is living the high but un-seaman-like life on land. He gets the call from Admiralty to scuttle a mutiny on board a frigate off the coast of the enemy, France, that threatens to hand the ship over to the French if every man isn’t given amnesty and the Captain court martialed for cruelty. But discipline at sea requires the men responsible be punished without mercy. 


Lord Hornblower (Hornblower Saga)


Only Hornblower’s ingenuity can save a ship, her crew, and England from losing face to Napoleon. Yet this is only the beginning of a tale that takes Hornblower to service on land to confront Napoleon’s Army and face eventual death by firing squad. In the meantime, his wife goes off to Austria with her brother to reunite Europe against Napoleon, leaving Hornblower to fall in love with the daughter of an old French ally. These are the waning days of Napoleon’s attempt to build an empire, and you are there to witness the effects on the countryside and its people.


This story is full of brave sea tangles, edgy land battles, daring escapes on horseback, and dear friends lost. It’s a great adventure in the Forester tradition.


(I purchased these books and was not compensated in any way for this review.)

My next read in the series: 
(Links: commission may be paid on purchase)

Victory by Stockwin Wins the Day

A Book Review
By Alan Eggleston, writer and editor, business books, leisure books


Why do you read? Is it to rip through a book a day and move on to the next, or is it to lose yourself in a story with amazing characters living under incredible circumstances? For most people, I suggest, it’s the latter. And if you’re a reader like the latter, I suggest you read Victory by Julian Stockwin, his 10th novel in the rousing Thomas Kydd series.


• (Search Amazon.com for julian stockwin kydd sea adventures)


In Victory, Stockwin takes his two signature characters – and, thus, us – onto the decks of Britain’s most venerated flagship, the HMS Victory, to get to know her most famous leader, Lord Horatio Nelson, the Admiral who defeated Napoleon’s navy in the Battle at Trafalgar. We see him in the eyes of the nation who depended on Nelson for their survival, the men and officers who looked to him for inspiration and leadership, and the newly promoted frigate captain, Thomas Kydd, who looked to Nelson for mentorship. 


What you look to Stockwin for in his books is authentic description of battles, of the daily life at sea, of the language and attitudes of the men and officers in service, of what ships and seaports were like, of how people lived at the time and how they saw the world. In Victory, there is that aplenty and more. Right from the beginning there is a consequential battle whose description takes you in “living color” to the times of fighting sail. Then you’re transported to 19th century England and the life in Britain awaiting certain invasion by a menacing Napoleon whose massive and experienced army had already gathered across the English Channel. Finally, you’re swept to distant places with a British Navy pursuing a restless enemy desperate to be unleashed from blockade to gather strength for invasion, and once unleashed difficult to track despite their size. It culminates in the build up to and action in the Battle of Trafalgar, told from the eyes of a young Midshipman serving on Victory and Kydd whose frigate provides intelligence. You’ll live life at sea and in those times throughout this novel.


Much has been written about the Battle of Trafalgar. Much has been said about Lord Nelson. Be there, meet him, in the pages of Victory by Julian Stockwin.
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For the sake of transparency, I’ll admit at the outset that I’m a big fan of Stockwin. I have been disappointed on occasion and have written about it in my reviews, but on the whole I find Stockwin gives great value for the money you pay for his novels. He has written that he spends 50 percent of the time he devotes to writing a story to research, which results in deep levels of authentic detail to his stories. He travels the world visiting the places in which his stories take place, where he runs into diaries, letters, and historical records, facts and artifacts from which appear as observations or intimate details in the stories.  In addition, Stockwin served in the British Navy, so he is knowledgeable about the history and traditions of British seamanship, which is a rich part of the detail of each novel.
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Julian Stockwin publishes a monthly fan newsletter. In it he held a drawing for a free copy of the book for anyone willing to write a review. I was one of the lucky winners. Thus, I didn’t purchase the book for this review. However, if I hadn’t won I would have purchased it. 


Links to Victory: Commission may be paid for purchase.
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BiAlien: You Need to Look at this New Book

Book Preview for
BiAlien by Vlane Carter

There’s a new book I think you should take a look at: BiAlien. Admittedly, I’ve only read the first chapter myself, for lack of adequate time with my other writing and editing duties. But if you’re interested in science fiction and like science fiction art, or if you have been thinking of exploring science fiction or science fiction art, this is a book you should see. You can do so easily through the author’s very imaginative website and Facebook page. 

The author, Vlane Carter, has tried very hard to make it a space adventure readable for every kind of audience.  Says Carter, “My novel was written for the non-science fiction, fiction and sci-fi book readers. My facebook friends who don't read sci-fi, the novel is well explained and even has a glossory of definitions at the back of it.” He also isn’t shy about trying new techniques to engage the reader, such as using the present tense rather than the typical past tense to give you a sense of watching the action in-the-now, like watching a movie. The artwork, which Carter personally art directed, is very creative and lends to the unique flavor of the storyline.  See samples on the BiAlien website, including a link to chapter 1. 

In addition to the book website, Carter is very active on his Facebook page. There he frequently interacts with readers discussing the book. This is a great attribute for an author. Every author ought to be accessible to his or her readers. I know that’s sometimes difficult, especially when an author’s fandom reaches into the hundreds of thousands, but Carter, from New York State, currently has just over 160 members and manages the exchanges well. He’s erstwhile about his creation, and readers can catch – and enjoy – his enthusiasm there.

Take a few minutes and browse the site and the Facebook page, and give the book a look. Let me know what you think.


Update: The author, Vlane Carter, put together a superb video showing some of the incredibly imaginative artwork from the book. Have a look.

(Not a paid or compensated endorsement.)

written by

Alan Eggleston

writer and editor, business books and leisure books

say hello on Twitter: @booksville

A Note to Spammers

I moderate the comments on this blog for a reason, which is to avoid posting spam. This blog continues to be inundated by commenters entering Chinese text accompanied by long sets of periods, each period with its own link to various kinds of spammy links. Presumably they link to illicit sites for sex or phishing expeditions or identity theft or viruses. I don't post those or any similar comments -- ever! Try as you might, I read the comments and if I suspect foul play -- spam -- I delete the comment and report it as spam. So, you might as well save yourself some time and effort, because your entry will never make it onto my pages.

Twain Autobiography Re-released Unedited for Brand

Mark Twain Autobiography Re-releases November 15 


Did you read the article in this weekend's New York Times about the new Autobiography of Mark Twain? It's worth your reading (available online) if you haven't.


Twain (Samuel Clements) recorded the material in 1910, then had it heavily edited to protect his image at the time. He hoped that in time it could be re-released in its original form to show the real Twain, in an era when he could be viewed as himself without degrading his brand or his family. Today is that time.


Twain fans and history mavens should be delighted. This is as close as we will be so long after Twain's passing to get to know the real Mark Twain and his times.


Alan Eggleston
Writer and editor, business bookseller, leisure bookseller
Follow me on Twitter: @booksville or @a_copywriter

"Sex Dungeon for Sale!" Rates a Movie

Patrick Wensink's "Sex Dungeon for Sale!" Is Now a Film
By Alan Eggleston, writer and editor, business bookseller, leisure bookseller


Back in November, I wrote a review of Patrick Wensink's new book, "Sex Dungeon for Sale!" Seems this well received humor title has also attracted the attention of some filmmakers. Says Patrick, "I thought you would also get a kick out of this. Some filmmakers took the title story of my book and made a hilarious film." Courtesy of the author, here's "Sex Dungeon for Sale!" Let us know what you think.


Follow me on Twitter: @booksville

First million e-book author

According to his publisher, U.S. thriller writer James Patterson is the first novelist to sell more than one million electronic books (e-books). His titles have frequently shown up on Amazon's bestseller list in the Kindle store. More and more readers are investing in e-book technology, including iPads, Kindles, and Nooks. See the full Yahoo News article.


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...
Examples of popular Patterson e-books
(commission paid on purchase)