Victory

Thomas Kydd, Book 11

By: Julian Stockwin

Narrated by: Christian Rodska

Commander Thomas Kydd is eager to play his part in thwarting Bonaparte’s plans for the invasion of England. Joining Admiral Nelson’s command, Kydd and his ship soon find themselves at the heart of the action that leads up to the famous clash of the mighty British and French fleets at Trafalgar.

Kydd’s journey takes him from false sightings of the enemy and dramatic chases across the Atlantic, to the bloody annihilation of the enemy during the actual battle, and the heroic aftermath.

©2010 Julian Stockwin (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Victory

By far the best book in this series .The action at Trafalgar as realistic and gripping as being there!

Excellent!

Fantastic book! by far one of the best of the Kydd series! Very well done!

Stirring stuff

One of the best on the series IMO. The climax at the end was gripping and stirring. Excellent writing.

Nice blend of fiction and fact

The author masterfully combined the facts of the battle with the fictional characters. Well done

Odd Man Out

It appears to me, the author wanted to tell the story of Trafalgar, without the hero. Since the narrative breaks from the hero, to an on board midshipman, we have a good account of Nelson's death. But unlike the other naval series of this time, the hero has little to do with the battle, which leaves kind of a hole in the plot for me. Nevertheless, there is still sufficient merit to enjoy the book, and Rodska continues his great narration.

Trafalgar by proxy

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, if they had read the rest of the series and liked this sort of thing.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Well, I wasn't sitting so there's no 'edge of seat' going on. It moves along nicely enough, although there are some parts of the story that are 'given'. Perhaps we could have heard less of the internal agonies of Renzi. He's starting to develop Hornblower-like neuroses. I suppose the author wanted to make him more than a plot device and he went for sensitive and anxiety-riven. You want to slap his face sometimes.

Have you listened to any of Christian Rodska’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, he's always reliable and enjoyable. Pleasant and versatile voice.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Not possible, as it's fairly long.

Any additional comments?

I think I smoke it, as Jack Aubrey would say - why we have yet another naval saga where the hero doesn't fight his ship at Trafalgar. It's writing logistics, cully. If you want a long series, you have to start your hero young and junior. He has to be brave and able, or he's not worth writing about, By the time the war reaches its crisis, he must have had lots of gratifying promotions. He should get his 'step' to post captain before Trafalgar, as opportunities must have been thinner thereafter. He's not captain of one of the famous ships at the battle, because we know them, so he's in a frigate at the time and necessarily on the sidelines. This time, we have one of his protégés on Victory, as a proxy. It works pretty well, though perhaps the structural bones are more visible than usual.

It's clear the author knows his sailoring stuff and is willing to impart, in some detail. In that sense, it's more directly pitched at a nautical-hungry readership than the more ambitious O'Brians, where the sailoring is a tasty side-dish. I like that stuff though.

Great Read

What did you love best about Victory?

Midshipman Bowdens first hand narrative aboard Victory was very interesting.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Victory?

I enjoyed the fitting out of L'Aurore, It was facinating.

Have you listened to any of Christian Rodska’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Many. Chief among them the Falco series. He is as always, superb.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No Just content on a good read.

kind of expositional

ehh if you want a slightly more storyline version of the campaign that led to trafalgar than the Wikipedia entry this might be it, but otherwise for a historical fiction book it spent a lot of time in sweeping exposition with little going on than the historic campaign.