Richard Sharp is a rifleman in the Nepolinic wars. The series starts in India and takes him through to Waterlou and beyond. You can start anywhere in the group without having to read the prior books.
great as are all cornwalls books on richard sharpe
This is another swashbuckling story about Sharpe from Bernard Cornwell. The book continues with descriptions of the brutality of the fighting in Spain and Portugal. Which is all I'm going to say about the book, as I have another story to tell.
At one point in the book, during the French assault on the British and Portuguese at Bussaco, one of Sharpe's riflemen---Dodd---goes missing. Sharpe is concerned and later searches the battlefield for him. But Dodd is gone, with not even his body to be found.
I thought this a bit interesting, as Dodd isn't a major figure and why Cornwell had Sharpe do this, but then decided it was filler. Yet, I found myself wondering about rifleman Dodd at several points in the book, thinking he might make an entry later on. He doesn't.
About two-thirds of my way into the book, I thought about Dodd again. And then it hit me. I knew exactly who rifleman Dodd was and why he wasn't going to reappear in this book. C.S. Forester is one of my favorite military and naval action authors. Almost everything Forester wrote is page turning. Apparently, he is one of Cornwell's favorites too, and Cornwell was using Dodd to pay homage to Forester.
Decades ago---yes, that long---I read one of Forester's book which is titled "Rifleman Dodd." And I know for sure I have it in the house somewhere. In this book, rifleman Dodd is separated from his unit, during the fighting in Portugal, and finds himself alone behind French lines. He joins up with the local partisans and help them destroy the French supply lines. Dodd does as much destruction to the French, maybe more, than Sharpe does. Finally, Dodd is able to sneak through French lines and rejoin the British army---and "Sharpe's company"---but merely tells his superiors he was trying to get back to the army, and doesn't even mention what he did to the French.
I suspect if you want to know what Dodd accomplished, you'll have to read Forester's "Rifleman Dodd." If you enjoy the writing of Bernard Cornwell, you'll also enjoy C.S. Forester, because Forester is even better at this type of story than Cornwell is!
At one point in the book, during the French assault on the British and Portuguese at Bussaco, one of Sharpe's riflemen---Dodd---goes missing. Sharpe is concerned and later searches the battlefield for him. But Dodd is gone, with not even his body to be found.
I thought this a bit interesting, as Dodd isn't a major figure and why Cornwell had Sharpe do this, but then decided it was filler. Yet, I found myself wondering about rifleman Dodd at several points in the book, thinking he might make an entry later on. He doesn't.
About two-thirds of my way into the book, I thought about Dodd again. And then it hit me. I knew exactly who rifleman Dodd was and why he wasn't going to reappear in this book. C.S. Forester is one of my favorite military and naval action authors. Almost everything Forester wrote is page turning. Apparently, he is one of Cornwell's favorites too, and Cornwell was using Dodd to pay homage to Forester.
Decades ago---yes, that long---I read one of Forester's book which is titled "Rifleman Dodd." And I know for sure I have it in the house somewhere. In this book, rifleman Dodd is separated from his unit, during the fighting in Portugal, and finds himself alone behind French lines. He joins up with the local partisans and help them destroy the French supply lines. Dodd does as much destruction to the French, maybe more, than Sharpe does. Finally, Dodd is able to sneak through French lines and rejoin the British army---and "Sharpe's company"---but merely tells his superiors he was trying to get back to the army, and doesn't even mention what he did to the French.
I suspect if you want to know what Dodd accomplished, you'll have to read Forester's "Rifleman Dodd." If you enjoy the writing of Bernard Cornwell, you'll also enjoy C.S. Forester, because Forester is even better at this type of story than Cornwell is!
This is the chronological book 10 of the Richard Sharpe series.
This book felt different than the other ones, and I enjoyed the shift in tone. There is a brief battle at Bussaco in Portugal, followed by a hasty retreat to the Lines of Torres Vedras near Lisbon. In that time, Sharpe manages to alienate himself from a painfully incompetent rival officer, launch a murderous feud with a local family, rescue a woman, and get trapped behind the enemy lines. Twice.
In all, this book was much more about Sharpe getting in and out of trouble and less about the battles themselves. The book opens and closes with the details of a battle, and while its always a treat to read about Sharpe in action, it was nice to see him in slightly calmer times. I thought that this story wrapped up a little too quickly for my tastes, (so much was happening and then it all just stopped) but overall it was a great story with a welcome change of pace.
As with all of the other recent Sharpe books, I highly recommend it.
This book felt different than the other ones, and I enjoyed the shift in tone. There is a brief battle at Bussaco in Portugal, followed by a hasty retreat to the Lines of Torres Vedras near Lisbon. In that time, Sharpe manages to alienate himself from a painfully incompetent rival officer, launch a murderous feud with a local family, rescue a woman, and get trapped behind the enemy lines. Twice.
In all, this book was much more about Sharpe getting in and out of trouble and less about the battles themselves. The book opens and closes with the details of a battle, and while its always a treat to read about Sharpe in action, it was nice to see him in slightly calmer times. I thought that this story wrapped up a little too quickly for my tastes, (so much was happening and then it all just stopped) but overall it was a great story with a welcome change of pace.
As with all of the other recent Sharpe books, I highly recommend it.
