By the Mast Divided

Great nautical history book and it was very interesting with all the different POV's. In particular I liked the perspective of the men who had been pressed. (In case you don't know, being pressed means the British Navy knocks you on the head, kidnaps you and says "hey congrats, you're a sailor now")......more

This book has been lingering on my bookshelf for quite some time, waiting for the moment when it’s pages would get turned. That moment has finally happened due to me wanting some nautical fiction after getting hooked to the tv show Black Sails and video game Assassins Creed Black Flag. This however......more

Great story, even for landlubbers. I love seafaring tales, even though I wouldn't last ten minutes on one of Her Majesty's ships. The first of the John Pearce stories has me ready to read more. An engaging story, although it could have benefitted from some detail removal. Great fun.......more

I decided not to finish this book at Chapter 5. Spoiler ahead: The first reason is that I dislike alternating POV's. Just when I get on track reading about the pressed men and get vested into the story of John Pearce the book switches to that of Captain Barclay. Worse is that both storylines are mise......more

Having recently completed Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin series, I found myself hankering for some more salt water adventure. While I loved O'Brian's depiction of Captain Aubrey - such an affable fellow - Donachie's mongrel Captain Barclay provides a completely different look at 18th century naval......more