The Letter of Marque

by Patrick O'Brian Narrated by Patrick Tull

Overview

In The Letter of Marque, Jack is once again aboard his beloved Surprise but stripped of his post captaincy for a crime he did not commit. Bought by Stephen, the Surprise has become a privateer. Sailing into French waters, the two concoct a desperate mission which, if successful, may redeem Aubrey from his state of disgrace. A nighttime battle with an unusual climax, a jewel of great value and Stephen's fondness for opium make this segment of O'Brian's masterful series both original and profoundly exciting.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

Unlike its competitors, who are usually linked to major book publishers, Blackstone specializes in giving new audio life to classics—using prize-winning readers like Vance to bring new and exciting life to neglected works. This is Vance's 17th reading of one of O'Brian's superb seafaring novels about Jack Aubrey and Dr. Stephen Maturin, and it's the first time that anyone has made new versions since O'Brian's death in 2000. Vance (who also reads under the names Robert Whitfield and Richard Matthews) is absolutely perfect for O'Brian's sad and stirring tale about Post Captain Aubrey's unjust punishment: Aubrey has been stricken off the Admiralty's list, usually the end of a man's career. But Dr. Maturin uses his own money to buy Aubrey's old ship, HMS Surprise, and turn it into a privateer—a letter of marque. Vance catches the subtle differences between the land-owning Jack, his rough-tongued crew and the Spanish/Irish Maturin. O'Brian fans should relish this excellent audio outing as should anyone with a love of adventure, history, the sea and fine writing. (Reviews, July 6, 1990). (Dec.)

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Stephen Vaughan

These novels, thoroughly steeped in their Nelsonic period, were originally hailed as Hornblower's natural successors, and in certain respects—humor, characterization—have succeeded in stealing the wind from that paragon's sails.
—Stephen Vaughan, Observer

Guardian - Lucy Eyre

"There are two types of people in the world: Patrick O’Brian fans, and people who haven’t read him yet."

London Review of Books - Peter Campbell

"Both serious and light-hearted, true and sentimental, as comic opera can be."

Los Angeles Times Book Review - Mark Horowitz

"O’Brian’s books are as atypical of conventional sea stories as Conrad’s. Like John le Carré, he has erased the boundary separating a debased genre from ‘serious’ fiction. O’Brian is a novelist, pure and simple, one of the best we have."

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170557738
Publisher:	Recorded Books, LLC
Publication date:	03/06/2008
Series:	Aubrey/Maturin , #12
Edition description:	Unabridged

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