Sails on the Horizon

A Novel of the Napoleonic Wars

By: Jay Worrall

Narrated by: John Lee

Dientes de Diablo, 1797 - With his first historical high-seas adventure chronicling the exploits of Naval Commander Charles Edgemont, Jay Worrall sets sail in the rousing tradition of C.S. Forester and Patrick O’Brian.

The year is 1797. Napoleon Buonaparte is racking up impressive wins in the field against the enemies of revolutionary France. On the seas, England is putting up a staunch resistance. When a modest fleet of British ships off the coast of Portugal encounters a larger force of Spanish vessels on their way to rendezvous with the French, the English are quick to seize the opportunity for a victory - even at the risk of a calamitous defeat.

Twenty-five-year-old Charles Edgemont is second lieutenant aboard the HMS Argonaut, the smallest ship in the British line of battle. When orders come for the Argonaut to engage in an all-but-suicidal maneuver to cut off the escape of the Spanish ships, he leads his gun crews bravely - until the death of the captain and the first lieutenant elevates him to command of the stricken vessel. In the chaos that follows, his defiant refusal to yield under enemy fire earns him a permanent promotion.

Thanks to the purse awarded him by the Admiralty after the fight, Charles is wealthy beyond his wildest dreams. But there are challenges when he returns home after years at sea. His newfound riches will prove no help when it comes to winning the heart of Penelope Brown, the feisty Quaker with whom Charles falls in love. Even more of a hindrance is his profession, for Penelope regards war as sinful and soldiers as little better than murderers.

Changing Penelope’s mind may just be the hardest battle Charles has ever fought - at least until fresh orders send him back to sea, where he faces a more traditional and equally formidable adversary in a series of stirring battles of will and might.

©2005 Jay Worrall (P)2005 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Fans of seafaring military sagas will welcome this latest addition to the genre." (Booklist)

Rousing love/sea tale

Jay Worrell does a masterful job of weaving a somewhat improbable sea adventure and a more probable love story together. Clever twist is inserting an event from the life of the fictional hero Horatio Hornblower during his Spanish captivity at Ferrol, Spain. If you love a good sea story during the age of sail then this is for you.

Ripping Yarn

I'm a fan of the O'Brian novels. Worrall has given us the promise of a fine alternative for anyone who has exhausted their supply of Aubry/Maturin tales. Good narration, clear characterizations using different regional dialects. I also liked the way he laced-in the Hornblower scene.

Takes you away

Yes, I agree with the previous reviewers. This is a relaxing fun adventure story based in the age of sail of the Napoleonic era. Any nautical fiction fan will surely enjoy this one as well as a first-timer to the genre. The author has taken care to make this readable for those not use to nautical fiction novels. I've read just about all the nautical fiction authors and while it cannot be compared to quality of O'Brian's novels (who can?) it was a really enjoyable listen. Let's hope audible will add more for this genre!

Great story

I wish Jay Worrall would write some more great books like this one.
I would get them all.
Murph 2015

well told story great flow

I love the story Easy smooth reading The characters have strong personalities. There is a surprise cameo visit. of one of my favorite fictional characters.

Enjoyable Listen

I've read Kent, Forrester, Obrien and Pope and I very much enjoyed this bit of naval fiction.

Compassionate commander

Refreshing to read a story with war and compassion. Sails on the Horizon is a good read, the plot line complicated by a Quaker character.

Muster and Commandeer

Not Patrick O'Brian... in a very good way. All of the naval action and concise rigors, condensed and crafted into a readable, enjoyable tale. A bit too "all's well" in the denouement... no lingering loose ends to keep one's excitement high for the next installment, yet such thoroughly enjoyable characters as to at least ensure interest. Well-read, good production.

I'll keep reading them!

I did enjoy this book, even though it's not nearly as good as O'Brien or Forster. I've read lots of books set in the time of the Napoleonic Wars, and there were a number of events that I didn't think would have really happened in the day, but when you suspend a little belief, the characters are by in large engaging, and I'm interested to find out what happens to them in the next volume.

Good but a bit hurried, occasionally predictable

The thing that's missing from this is a feeling for the time it takes to get from sighting a sailing ship to arriving at gun range. This tends to gloss over that in a few paragraphs, so it lacks tension. There's not a great deal of atmosphere or scene description either.

There was one point where I said "and here comes the love interest" and without spoilers she arrived exactly in the expected mode and at exactly the expected time. This was never going to be a book about the Royal Navy getting thrashed, so that part is forgivable.

My remaining impression is that this lacked breadth.