HMS Surprise: Book 3 - Patrick OBrian

Author: Patrick OBrian

Publisher: HarperCollins GB

Cover Type: Paperback

Pages: 416 pages

Language: English

Genre: Literature & Fiction, World Literature

Genre Class: Fiction, Literature, Action, Adventure

How far will a man go in the name of revenge, honour, love or simple survival? Far from familiar seas, Captain Jack Aubrey and his crew must test themselves to the very limits of human endurance.Following a daring rescue, Jack Aubrey accepts a new command and a new commission to a far-flung destination. Ahead of him and his crew are the new sights and smells of the Indian subcontinent, and the terrifying hazards of an archipelago of islands in the East Indies, where their French enemies have near overwhelming superioritybines adventure and the art of the novel with an astonishing finesse.FRANCIS SPUFFORDFew, very few, books have made my heart thump with excitement. HMS Surprise managed it.HELEN LUCY BURKE, Irish Times

P>Review If OBrians novels have become a cult, this is because they are truly addictive. . . They are, quite magnificently, adventure yarns whose superb authenticity never distracts from the sheer thrill of the action.Caroline Moore, Sunday TelegraphThe AubreyMaturin novels, by Patrick OBrian, are so addictive that after I finish one I have to hide the next from myself for a little while in order to do anything else but read.Louise ErdrichIn Aubrey and Maturin, Patrick OBrian has created two of the most enjoyable characters in twentieth-century fiction. Their relationship sustains an absorbing and thrilling sequence of naval stories, unrivalled in their complexity, full of impeccable detail and psychological insight. OBrian switches from the intimate to the epic with equal assurance. One of the greatest authors to sail with.Michael PalinMy hero is Patrick OBrian. Its basically impossible to write that well.David MametOne of the most compelling and brilliant novelists of his time . . . Beyond his superbly elegant writing, wit and originality, Patrick OBrian showed an understanding of the nature of a floating world at the mercy of the wind and the sea which has never been surpassed.Max Hastings, Evening StandardI devoured Patrick OBrians twenty-volume masterpiece as if it had been so many tots of Jamaica grog.Christopher HitchensWritten with most engaging enthusiasm that cant fail to give pleasure to anybody who enjoys historical adventure flavoured with more than a dash of realism.The Sunday TimesOne of the most brilliantly sustained pieces of historical fictional writing this century.James Teacher, SpectatorPatrick OBrian brings depth to his sea-stories with outstanding dialogue, characterisation, humour and a golden thread of romance. You dont have to love books about naval battles to become entranced.Katie Fforde About the Author: Patrick OBrian, until his death in 2000, was one of our greatest contemporary novelists. He is the author of the acclaimed AubreyMaturin tales and the biographer of Joseph Banks and Picasso. He is the author of many other books including Testimonies, and his Collected Short Stories. In 1995 he was the first recipient of the Heywood Hill Prize for a lifetimes contribution to literature. In the same year he was awarded the CBE. In 1997 he received an honorary doctorate of letters from Trinity College, Dublin. He lived for many years in South West France and he died in Dublin in January 2000.

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