Greatly enjoyed the first half of the book. The second was more like our heroes' feelings aboard the sea-going pig, Lys, six knots was her top speed. My favorite line in the book: Paquita, the housekeeper, as nearly spherical as anything can be in this imperfect world. To learn what happened to Captain Cheap and the mutineers who returned to London, read The Wager by David Grann. ( )

Pretty good novel with two characters that are a lot like the later Capt. Aubrey and Dr. Maturin in the series. Survival after a shipwreck near Patagonia. ( )

One of O'Brian's early novels, which contains what seem very much like preliminary versions of Aubrey and Maturin. An utter delight to read, with O'Brian's wonderful mix of wry humor, maritime shenanigans, and well-paced story. ( )

Great precursor to the Aubrey-Maturin series. Not as good as the series itself, but you can see O'Brian starting to get everything in place. Lots of fun. ( )

The narration hardly ever cracks - a pretty astounding thing, given how drawn-out the descriptions can be. The dialogue's formatting is really masterful, but I didn't appreciate the lazy and often unclear way O'Brian would occasionally start chapters in medias res. The plot drags 2/3rds the way through, and the pacing falls off a bit, but generally it's an enjoyable story with a couple really exciting and funny scenes. ( )