Desolation Island
Published: 1978
Author: Patrick O'Brian
Book 5 of 21: Aubrey/Maturin Novels
Genres: Action, Adventure, British & Irish, Family Life, Fiction, Historical, Literary, Literature, Medical, Military, Navel, Saga, Sea, Suspense, Thriller, Travel, War
Check the summary of this book here:
Desolation Island Summary
The Review:
Even though “Desolation Island” is the fifth novel in the Aubrey/Maturin series, I believe this is when Patrick O'Brian truly found his form in terms of both stories and characters. Both Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin have a wonderfully nuanced depth of character by this point, far more so than nearly any other character I've encountered in hundreds of years of reading novels, and especially so in the case of age-of-sail storylines. This might be due to the fact that they are both flawed. You'll find yourself laughing at certain elements of their characters, seeing great intelligence and humanity in others, and disliking some features of each. To put it another way, they resemble actual humans.
Patrick O'Brian writes to appeal to almost any taste among those willing to learn a little 18th-century language and elegance, but I know that anyone expecting uninterrupted action from these works would be disappointed. Although there is some truth to it, "Desolation Island" fills that need for those who require it, particularly mariners and sea lovers.
In the realm of maritime history, Mr. Patrick O'Brian leaves nothing to chance, and all of his works are packed with the type of marine knowledge and vocabulary that will make any sailor - especially antiquarians - grin, but "Desolation Island" takes things to a new level.
Captain Aubrey controls "the dreadful old Leopard" in this novel, the same HMS Leopard that nearly sparked the American War of 1812 before its time in the Leopard-Chesapeake Affair, but with a different Captain in command.
The events of the novel culminate in a beautifully constructed story of cat and mouse between HMS Leopard and the Waakzamheid, a far more dangerous Dutch 74. I won't tell you how it ends, but the Waakzamheid's pursuit of the Leopard across and beneath the ocean is by far the greatest suspenseful page-turner I've ever read from the Age of Sail.
The focus appears to alter in this work as well; although Aubrey was the dominant character in the earlier volumes, with Maturin progressively becoming more prominent, the tale is much more centered around Maturin in Desolation Island, which is all the better for it.
I'd want to talk about something that is virtually unavoidable in a maritime saga: the fight with the Dutch 74-gun Waakzaamheid was the most exciting sea battle I've ever read about, partly because it was so different from the usual clashes. I'm not going to say much more since I don't want to give anything away to other readers about this hidden treasure. However, it must be noted that, at the time, Patrick O'Brian's writing was on par with literary greats such as William Golding and Graham Greene.
Other events in this superb novel make it one of the most exciting in the Aubrey/Maturin series at this point, although sailors will probably like it even more than the average reader. That is if extreme horror is considered a sort of entertainment. Once again. This was a fantastic read!
Final Thoughts:
Maturin's clever "handling" of American and French spies was a masterstroke; it took longer than the conflicts, but the intensity never dropped throughout the tale.
I usually read five to ten novels at a time to avoid becoming bored or used to one type, but every now and then I come across books that I simply cannot put down, and I read them until I am through, as occurred with Patrick O'Brian's Desolation Island and then the cliffhanger ending of Desolation Island drew me straight to Fortunes of War, the sixth book in the series.
If you are not a naval person, the books may be difficult to read, but the narrative flow is so captivating that you will be compelled to continue, and I am confident that as you proceed, you will get familiar with the terminology. You only need to read the first book in the series and verify the terminology as you go, and by the time you're done, you'll be ready to understand and go through the rest of the series.
I'm not going to go into detail about the plot; instead, I'd recommend these volumes to anybody looking for a fantastic adventure series with excellent writing. Start with the first book in the series Master and Commander and keep going since they grow better as the series progresses.
Synopsis:
“"The relationship [between Aubrey and Maturin]...is about the best thing afloat....For Conradian power of description and sheer excitement there is nothing in naval fiction to beat the stern chase as the outgunned Leopard staggers through mountain waves in icy latitudes to escape the Dutch seventy-four." —Stephen Vaughan, Observer
Commissioned to rescue Governor Bligh of Bounty fame, Captain Jack Aubrey and his friend and surgeon Stephen Maturin sail the Leopard to Australia with a hold full of convicts. Among them is a beautiful and dangerous spy—and a treacherous disease that decimates the crew. With a Dutch man-of-war to windward, the undermanned, outgunned Leopard sails for her life into the freezing waters of the Antarctic, where, in mountain seas, the Dutchman closes.”
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Rating: 95/100
Recommended: 95/100 Yes.
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