The Commodore

Aubrey - Maturin Series, Book 17

Patrick O'Brian

April 17, 1995 · Hardcover · W. W. Norton & Company · 282 pp

First edition · Edition 1st American ed. · ISBN 9780393037609 · English · Dewey 823.914 · LC PR6029.B55 .C66 1995

Historical Fiction · Sea Stories

Hardcover

Having survived a long and desperate adventure in the Great South Sea, Captain Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin return to England to very different circumstances. For Jack it is a happy homecoming, at least initially, but for Stephen it is disastrous: his little daughter appears to be autistic, incapable of speech or contact, while his wife, Diana, unable to bear this situation, has disappeared, her house being looked after by the widowed Clarissa Oakes. Much of The Commodore takes place on land, in sitting rooms and in drafty castles, but the roar of the great guns is never far from our hearing. Aubrey and Maturin are sent on a bizarre decoy mission to the fever-ridden lagoons of the Gulf of Guinea to suppress the slave trade. But their ultimate destination is Ireland, where the French are mounting an invasion that will test Aubrey's seamanship and Maturin's resourcefulness as a secret intelligence agent. The subtle interweaving of these disparate themes is an achievement of pure storytelling by one of our greatest living novelists.

More in Aubrey/Maturin

Master and Commander (Vol. Book 1) (Aubrey/Maturin Novels) 1990 · Ebook

Post Captain (Vol. Book 2) (Aubrey/Maturin Novels) 1990 · Ebook

H. M. S. Surprise (Vol. Book 3) (Aubrey/Maturin Novels) 1991 · Ebook

The Mauritius Command (Vol. Book 4) (Aubrey/Maturin Novels) 1991 · Ebook

Desolation Island 2004 · Audiobook

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1973HMS Surprise
1979The Fortune of War
Sixième épisode des aventures maritimes du capitaine Jack Aubrey.
1980The Surgeon's Mate
1981The Ionian Mission
1983Treason's Harbour
1984The Far Side of the World
1986The Reverse of the Medal
First edition in Polish.
1988The Letter of Marque
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.
1989The Thirteen-Gun Salute
1991The Nutmeg of Consolation
1992Clarissa Oakes
1993The Wine-Dark Sea
1st American ed.
1996The Yellow Admiral
Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin tales are widely acknowledged to be the greatest series of historical novels ever written. All twenty books are being re-issued by Harper Perennial with stunning new jackets.
1998The Hundred Days
1999Blue at the Mizzen
2004The Final Unfinished Voyage of Jack Aubrey