“Armchair seadogs will welcome this first salvo in a new Horatio Hornblower-styled series about Junior Lieutenant Nicholas Ramage.” — Kirkus Review
“Hornblower has a rival!” — Horn Book Magazine
“Ramage is a grand tale written with panache, glitter and awesome authority, one can only rejoice that a crying need has been filled.” — New York Times
User Ratings and Reviews
4 Stars Launching the Series Against a Headwind
For readers wondering where Pope’s star is to be found in the firmament of the historical novels dealing with the naval campaigns of the Napoleonic Wars, it lies betwixt Polaris, representing C. S. Forester and Ursa Major’s Patrick O’Brien. It is the fate of any writer of historical fiction undertaking this era to be rated among his literary kin. C. S. Forester was a naval historian and his writing reflects his passion for historical accuracy, giving his novels a dignified, scholarly feel. O’Brien writes of relationships, and is unlikely to be surpassed for his portrayal of sailors’ feelings and their internal struggles. The voice Dudley Pope shows in this first of eighteen books in the Ramage series is the booming and crashing of violent naval action. For readers fascinated with the handling of fighting ships in hostile action, and by the heroism emerging from that carnage, Pope’s Lieutenant Ramage is your man.
Pope himself invites the comparison with Forester, by mentioning Ramage’s meeting with “that fellow, Hornblower.” Unaccountably, though, the second reference comprises exactly the same phrase, “that fellow, Hornblower.” It’s most remarkable that his editor failed to notice the repetition. But Pope’s repetitiveness doesn’t stop there. Several times he refers to the Marchesa di Voltera’s “raven-black hair.” There are also some “Tom Swifties,” as when a character says something “excitedly.” Again, blame the editor.
But the more fundamental flaw in this book is decidedly Pope’s, an insipid story line. Ramage faces a court martial for cowardice in the face of action, which the reader knows to be a false charge, which cannot be proven by the accuser, and which would not in a more historically accurate telling even be subject to military adjudication. Moreover, it is just too much that he has Lord Nelson himself giving the junior lieutenant a dispensation, even interrupting Ramage’s court martial to do so. Pope should have waited until he came up with a more compelling plot to launch his series. The action is compelling; the protagonists are compelling; but the weakness of the plot launches the series into a headwind.
1 Star Does not compare with others in the genre
I love great dialogue and clever plot twists. I love a rich, woven tapestry of historical events, daily life, nautical detail and nuance. I love multi-dimensional characters who speak and act always in ways entirely consistent with their personalites.
Unfortunately this book has none of these things. The characters are one dimensional despite cliched attempts and adding dimension. The dialogue is painfully stilted and the primary plot device is the thought balloon. It reads more like an outline or a first draft than a novel.
Comparing this book (I also read the second book to see if it improved – It most decidedly did not) to other Series of Nautical fiction I see it like this:
#1. Patrick O’ brien – Brilliant. Great Dialogue, characters, plots, nuance, Nautical detail etc.
#2: C. S. Forester – Excellent but not quite as good as O’Brien.
#3: Alexander Kent – Not bad but definitely not up to the quality of the first two. Decent characters and plots. Good summer reading for the first 20 books or so but becomes a soap opera after that.
Dudley Pope is a far distant #4 on this list. If you have not read O’brien or Forester, please read them first. I won’t buy another in this series. What a disappointment.
3 Stars Good for vacation reading
Rather than reviewing this single book, I’ll comment on the entire series. Pope’s Ramage lacks the edge of O’Brian’s Jack Aubrey and evolves less over the course of the series than Forseter’s Hornblower. In short, the characterization of Ramage is less mature. Likewise, the writing itself is slightly ponderous at a number of points, with Pope feeling the need to remind the reader of a list of character traits and events in the protagonist’s life that the reader of the entire series already has in mind. Pope does, however, give the reader a more robust set of recurring characters to enjoy reading about than dose Forester in his Hornblower series (who really only gives you two significant recurring characters other than Hornblower himself). Also, Pope’s Ramage has nobility (both in title and in character) that O’Brian’s Aubrey lacks and readers who prefer protagonists with greater moral clarity will find this appealing in Ramage. Pope also has sprinkled throughout the series a number of court martial scenes that are well done and entertaining. The series makes for good reading during vacations, business trips or during your daily train/subway/bus commute. A solid three stars. Suggest O’Brian’s Master and Commander series and Forester’s Hornblower novels as better over all reads if you enjoy the style of the Ramage books.
5 Stars Lots of excitement in this book!
This book starts out right in the thick of battle! Plenty of good action here. Pope can tell a great story. The book is an easy read–not so much detail or naval jargon that the reader gets lost. This book reminds me a little of Hornblower, but Ramage, as both a book and character, is a LOT more interesting than Hornblower. Whereas Forester gives us some action and then 90 pages at the whist table, Pope gives us more action. Hornblower spends every moment lamenting his decision to marry Maria; Ramage thinks periodically about his Truelove, but it’s quickly back to planning how to get out of the next scrape. Good action, good story, good reading. Highly recommended!
4 Stars A really good British sailing navy Napoleonic War era novel.
If you like the O’Brian series of novels you’ll like this one. This is just number one in Pope’s series of Ramage novels so there are more to look forward to. I am glad of that since I have read all of the O’Brian novels including the latest unfinished one and have no more to look forward to now.
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