Hornblower off to the Caribbean

This book was written in 1952 and is different from the prior books in that the story is told from the view point of Lt William Bush rather than from Hornblower's. The story begins with Lt Bush coming aboard the ship as a new officer and is meet greeted aboard by Lt Hornblower. There are determining which Lieutenant is senior by date of rank when Captain Sawyer comes aboard and accuses Bush of deliberately boarding the ship ahead of him. Turns out that Hornblower is the most junior (5) Lt and Bush is the number 3. So begins a voyage to the Caribbean with a paranoid schizophrenic Captain. The trip shows what power of life and death the Captains had in those days. There is lots of action both ship and land fighting as well as seaman skills. The book also goes to demonstrate what leadership skills and ability are needed to lead men. Christian Rodska does a great job narrating the book. This is a great story and has a bit more meat to the story than prior ones. Looking forward to reading the next in line.

4 people found this helpful

Great story; great narrator

My title says it all. This is Hornblower at his most swashbuckling. The narrator, Christian Rodska, is quite superb, as usual.

4 people found this helpful

Great stuff if you like naval warfare under sail.

Where does Lieutenant Hornblower rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The top 3.

What did you like best about this story?

The historic frame is great. The story itself is predictable but that doesn't matter since the 'how' is more important then the 'what'.

What does Christian Rodska bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Great job.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

it makes you feel heroic :-).

4 people found this helpful

Post Watch

I grew up reading about Horatio Hornblower in the Saturday Evening Post. How I waited for a new story to arrive. Later, I purchased the books and read and re-read them.
How delightful to be able to listen to them now. To visit scenes not well remembered and have my memories renewed. It's almost like a family reunion.
Hornblower is the most dashing cousin a girl could have. He's brave and ruggedly good-looking and inspires the most romantic dreams. Unfortunately, he is in love with his ship ... but I have never minded playing second fiddle.
I am in my second listening now. The first a hurry to catch the story, the second to enjoy more of the flavor and character development. The third will be just to enjoy a story well written and well told.

8 people found this helpful

Started a little hesitantly but quickly changed.

When I first started listening to Lieutenant Hornblower, I didn't like the crazy Captain abusing his men and was concerned this was either going to spend most of the time with his abusing the crew or turn into Mutiny on the Bounty. But Forester quickly remedied the situation in such a way that the backdrop of "mutiny" was there yet the story was able to continue with only a subplot involving what had befallen the Captain.

In the end, I really enjoyed the story and the insights into the characters. This is my first time experiencing Hornblowr and Bush together as I've never read the books nor seen an episode of the show based upon the first several chronologically and I am "reading" them in Horatio's chronological order from Midshipman forward and this is, of course, the second book chronologically speaking.

I still love Captain Jack Aubrey and Dr. Maturin better, but these are quite excellent.

3 people found this helpful

Worth Considering for Patrick O'Brian Fans

If you've exhausted Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series and miss tales of the British navy in the 18th-19th centuries, then the Hornblower books seem to be a worthy way to get your fix. The main character is appealing and the naval arcana is well-told, but this book lacked the sly social commentary that lace the O'Brian books. Nevertheless, it's a series I shall continue with. Excellent audiobook narration, with a variety of upper and lower class British accents delineating the characters.

3 people found this helpful

An excellent listen.

If you could sum up Lieutenant Hornblower in three words, what would they be?

Well worth it

What did you like best about this story?

Good plot

What does Christian Rodska bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Not sure but an excellent narrator.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

No

Any additional comments?

Order the first in the series after hearing this one.

3 people found this helpful

Leftenant Bush, actually!

This book has always struck me as an odd one in the series; not bad at all, just odd. Told more from Bush's point of view almost, or certainly focused more on him. I suppose to get you ready for Bush as the best friend.
I didn't like the narration quite as much on this one, as the characterizations slipped a bit between Bush and Hornblower causing a bit of confusion, but not anything to cry over.
A solid part of the series though, and well read all in all.

1 person found this helpful

Another Excellent Adventure

Any additional comments?

This book is another entertaining book by this author, and well read. I use these books to keep my interest while driving, and have not been disappointed.

1 person found this helpful

Give it a chance

I was a bit put off at the beginning due to The perspective not being from Hornblower but please give it some time and you will come to appreciate this new adventure!