To Glory We Steer, by Alexander Kent

July 12, 2009 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Alexander Kent, book review, historical fiction, Main character, naval fiction, Richard Bolitho 

This is a truly magnificent novel of the sea, set in the West Indies during the last years of the AmericanTo Glory We Steer, by Alexander Kent Revolution. To Glory We Steer was the first novel published in the series. Alexander Kent’s forceful narration, his excellent penmanship and command of dramatic incident made it clear immediately that at last a genuine contender had emerged for the throne left empty by C. S. Forester.

The time is January 1782, and British Captain Richard Bolitho is ordered to take the frigate Phalarope to the Caribbean. His is a difficult command. A tyrannical previous captain has driven the crew to the edge of mutiny, and as Bolitho sails for the West Indies his own crew is as much a threat to him as is the enemy. As well, a very skilfully handled American Privateer almost brings Bolitho’s career to a premature end. And the identity of its captain is such as to rub salt in the wound. It is a rough start for the hero, showing promise for the series.

Bolitho does what he is best at – he battles back with intelligence, courage, indomitability and his own brand of humane leadership, and thus forges his crew and ship into a hardened weapon that comes victoriously through the decisive Battle of the Saintes, the last of the war, where the hard-pressed royal squadrons are fighting for their lives against the combined fleets of France and Spain and the upstart American privateers.

Bolitho is no ordinary man. His efforts to give the ship back her pride sets him apart from his contemporaries. As the little frigate sails under the blazing sun and fights her inner battles as well as faces the bloody broadsides of the enemy, Bolitho spares neither himself nor his men. An excellent start for the series, well plotted and brilliantly executed by Alexander Kent.

Read more about Alexander Kent and the Richard Bolitho series!

Links to Alexander Kent’s books at amazon US, amazon UK, and amazon CAN.

Praise:

“…follow the wake of Hornblower into 18th-century seas, where a crew of shanghaied valiants kicks the stuffing out of all comers… a salty testament to the mystique and the brutality of the square-rigger.” — The New York Times

“…guarantees interest and suspense that sweeps the reader from one page to the next…. To the final intense moment of the English Victory over the French in a naval engagement unparalleled in vividness and description.” — Saturday Evening Post

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