"Few, very few books have made my heart thud with excitement. H.M.S. Surprise managed it." —Helen Lucy Burke, Irish Press In H.M.S. Surprise, British naval of

"The old master has us again in the palm of his hand." —Los Angeles Times Napoleon has been defeated at Waterloo, and the ensuing peace brings with it both th

Set sail for the read of your life! Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin tales are widely acknowledged to be the greatest series of historical novels ever written.

"The finest writer of sea-stories in the English language."--J. de Courcy Ireland

"A marvelously full-flavored, engrossing book, which towers over its current rivals in the genre like a three-decker over a ship's longboat." —Times Literary