Artemis - Softcover

Julian Stockwin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0743214617 ISBN 13: 9780743214612

Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2003

Synopsis

With "Kydd," Julian Stockwin introduced us to a young wig-maker from Guildford who was kidnapped and pressed into duty with the tempestuous crew of the "Duke William" battle ship. Now, Thomas Paine Kydd is back -- with a vengeance -- in the latest installment of Stockwin's thrilling naval adventure series."Artemis" is the eighteenth-century crack frigate that Kydd and sea-mate Nicholas Renzi are set to sail all the way to the fabled Far East. In this great age of fighting sailing ships, Kydd's voyage promises to be a perilous undertaking. But not even shipwreck, mutiny, or a confrontation with a mighty French frigate manages to thwart "Artemis" and her crew. It's only when Kydd receives an urgent message from home -- one that threatens to cut short his career and trap him on shore forever -- that "Artemis's" real journey begins.Filled with mesmerizing suspense and vivid details of Napoleonic-era seafaring, "Artemis" is classic, page-turning storytelling at its best.

About this title

Review:

It's remarkable how quickly the interest in colourful naval adventure has grown in recent years. Foremost among able practitioners is Julian Stockwin and his new book, Artemis, builds on the solid achievements of the much-acclaimed Kydd; here again is the same flinty characterisation, stunning narrative skills and (most of all) considerable imaginative skill in evoking the wind-lashed atmosphere of the best nautical novels: full of sharp detail and keenly evoked atmosphere.

It's the great age of fighting sail, when the seven seas are stalking grounds for prey and prize money. Aboard the crack frigate HMS Artemis, life can be invigorating--and short. Now a fully fledged Jack Tar, Stockwin's doughty hero Kydd returns to Portsmouth and a hero's welcome after cutting a bloody swathe through French ships. But urgent family matters force him to return to Guildford where he finds himself less able to cope than he was at sea. Soon, land-bound life is chafing him, and Kydd is happily back on the Artemis setting out for the Far East, and encounters with some lethal opponents. After a grim encounter with slavers, Kydd finds himself facing his own mortality in the waters of the Great Southern Ocean. Stockwin's particular ability (among so many) is his fastidious evocation of life aboard a sailing ship and the tensions that exist between the men locked into this dangerous life. The dialogue may take a little getting used to, but it's quickly apparent that this is one of the author's key strengths: this, you feel, is how these men really spoke. Most of all, though, it's the exhilarating recreation of the sailing life and its attendant dangers that keeps the reader transfixed.--Barry Forshaw

Review:

"The Guardian (UK)"In Stockwin's hands, the sea story will continue to entrance readers across the world.

About this edition

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0743214617
• ISBN 13: 9780743214612
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 352