 "Simply amazing books!" | 2009-09-03 |
| - Reviewed By stephenbanks |
How did I not know how amazing these books were until now?! Typically I lean to scifi & fantasy & some historical or contemporary fiction. But over the years I would hear about the "Sharpe" series - and that there were something like 18 of these books. Didn't sound like my cup of tea really. But then I caught part of one of the ITV tv episodes and it was well, just ok. Not great - but I understood more of what the series was about. An "everyman" enlisted soldier who had risen thru the ranks thru bravery and action. Plus Sean Bean was a terrific Richard Sharpe. I mean talk about perfectly cast.
So I started with Sharpe's Tigers - the first chronological of the series - and I devoured it. I was speechless at Cornwell's craft. The book seemed so... real. So vivid, this wasn't history - this was real. These characters leapt off the page and into action. Sharpe is amazing character. We see ourselves in him, from humble birth, but given a chance he takes control of his life. Loyal to his friends, charming to the ladies and never afraid of a fight. Who wouldn't follow this man into hell!
This is the third of his India series and frankly its hard to not want to sit and read this with a few strong cups of coffee and do nothing else. His revenge is at hand, the dastardly Hakeswell and Dodd are within his grasp! There is a scene towards the end when Sharpe comes up with a plan to storm the impregnable fortress and he rallies his former light company to action and its simply fantastic to watch him work. How he inspires the men, gives them confidence, he was one of them and they know it.
The detail in these books is simply fantastic. When the soldiers fire their guns or cannons, we learn quickly and succinctly thru Cornwell's deft hand what type of guns they are using and the difference say between a musket and a rifle in the art of war. We lean about 16 pounders and grapeshot and cannister! Every page has a word I've never heard of before and I am just soaking it up. Its like being there! Well ok not really but every now and then I shake my head in sadness at what the British soldiers endured. Amazing. |
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 "Sharpe conquers India" | 2009-02-17 |
| - Reviewed By mksmith1 |
| This is the third volume of the "India trilogy" that comprises the opening segment of this first-rate series about Richard Sharpe of His Majesty's army during and after the Napoleonic wars. Originally a private in a light infantry company, Sharpe made it to sergeant four years ago, in 1799. At the end of the previous book, only a couple months before, an act of heroism in action (which also saved the life of his general, Sir Arthur Wellesley) brings him a battlefield commission to ensign. Not that the majority of his fellow officers are very welcoming, because Sharpe isn't even remotely a gentleman. This time he manages to involve himself in the climactic act of the British conquest of India, the attack on and capture of the great fortress of Gawilghur, high in the mountains and protected by steep cliffs and ravines, where the traitorous Dodd, now commanding a regiment for the enemy, is ensconced, and where Sharpe also is seeking revenge on his longtime nemesis, the psychopathic Sgt. Hakeswill, who once had him lashed nearly to death and has tried to kill him several times since, and has also stolen Sharpe's previously looted fortune in gems. As always, Cornwell has the historical and military details of the Napoleonic era down pat. The verisimilitude is matched by his portrait of Sharpe, a very rough character indeed but (mostly) an admirable one. He's a soldier's soldier -- and now he's heading back to England to join a newly-formed regiment of green-jacketed riflemen. You should start at the beginning of the series, though, so you won't miss any of the cumulative details of this remarkable saga. |
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| "An Officer's Life Has Its Drawbacks for Richard Sharpe" | 2008-11-24 |
| - Reviewed By happypatriotsandredsoxfan |
Sharpe's Fortress is the third of the stories about Richard Sharpe in India. If you haven't read Sharpe's Tiger and Sharpe's Triumph, I strongly urge you to read those books before this one. You'll like them, and they provide very helpful background for the events in Sharpe's Fortress.
After saving Sir Arthur Wellesley's life at the Battle of Assaye (described in Sharpe's Triumph, book two in chronology in the series), Richard Sharpe was raised out of the ranks into the officer class as an ensign. In Sharpe's Fortress, it becomes obvious that he's arrived in no man's land in a Scottish unit. The Scots don't want any English in the unit; most ensigns are about 12 years old and don't do anything except watch; and men in the ranks are jealous of Sharpe's promotion.
It is kindly suggested that Sharpe either sell his commission or join a new unit, one based in England. Sharpe doesn't want to do either one, and he's even more depressed when he is asked to take a temporary assignment helping get the supplies up to the front lines.
Arriving at his new assignment, it's clear that something is badly wrong. Needed supplies are being stolen left and right. Sharpe quickly gets to the bottom of the thefts and develops new enemies. Meanwhile, his old enemy Sergeant Obadiah Hakeswill has survived Sharpe's last attempt to do away with him in Sharpe's Triumph and has new plans for Sharpe.
The main focus of the story is on the continuing war between the British and their allies and the Mahrattas in India. Turncoat William Dodd has gained every higher rank in the Mahratta forces and is looking forward to a huge victory when the British come to attack the seemingly impregnable fortress of Gawilghur. Much of the story is taken up with various defenders imagining how they will destroy the British in the different traps that await them in the high fortress.
Those extremely detailed descriptions of the fortress become more than a little tiresome. You do have a reward, however, because you'll better understand the story that Cornwell tells about how the battle is won. Actually, the fictional report isn't terribly far off from the actual experience as the historical note indicates. It is only the exaggerated role for Sharpe that misleads . . . while providing a good way to help you understand the battle.
The battle scenes are terrific in this book. It's only the tedium of the redundant musings that keep this book for being a five-star effort.
As usual, Sharpe finds that while he has temporary conquests with the ladies, he isn't going to be the one who takes them home permanently.
Enjoy!
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| "Great historically based fiction" | 2008-01-16 |
| - Reviewed By jsh5603 |
I really enjoyed this book. While the Sharpe's Rifle series (which I've read about 1/2-2/3 of) is sort of testosterone filled and militaristic I really do like how Cornwell uses the real settings and history in his books. Sometimes it seems like Sharpe is shoe-horned in to too many improbable situations, but hey if you can suspend disbelief long enough to watch 24 on Fox then why not do so here and learn some real history along the way.
If you like this book you'll also want to check out Sharpe's Tiger. You might also consider a book called "Revenge of the Jaguar King" by a new writer named Jay Hersh. It's set in Belize and does a similar sort of thing in combining history of the Maya with an action adventure. |
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| "Another great Sharpe book. Altogether enjoyable." | 2007-10-04 |
| - Reviewed By scrybble17 |
Another great book in the Sharpe series. In this one, our hero is now Lt. Richard Sharpe and hating it. Having received a battlefield commission from the future Duke of Wellington after saving his life at the Battle of Assaye, Sharpe languishes amid gentlemen who resent his commoner presence and enlisted men who resent his elevation above them.
With his commander pressuring him to sell his commission and leave the Army - a tempting offer to one of Sharpe's impoverished background - he is transferred to a backwater supplies unit. It proves a den of corruption and Sharpe soon finds himself a fugitive.
That doesn't stop him from joining the assault on the daunting fortress of Gawilghur, a mountain fastness never conquered and the key to British power's northward thrust in India. Even positioning artillery to shell it is a daunting task. Defending it now is the forbidding and formidable Colonel Dodd, the mercenary commander we met in "Sharpe's Triumph", who schemes how to use Gawilghur's defense to depose his Indian masters, and rule himself.
Helping Sharpe along the way are cavalry Sergeant Eli Lockhart; the brave Arab servant boy Ahmed; and Sharpe's old pal, the engineer Major Stokes. Altogether enjoyable.
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| "Sharpe - Siege of Gawilghur" | 2007-03-18 |
| - Reviewed By jscholtes2 |
| Bernard Cornwell is the absolute best military fiction author there is. This installment of Sharpe's adventures is excellent (as expected). |
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