{"product_id":"the-letter-of-marque-paperback","title":"The Letter of Marque - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003ePatrick O'Brian\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCaptain Jack Aubrey, a brilliant and experienced officer, has been struck off the list of post-captains for a crime he did not commit. His old friend Stephen Maturin, usually cast as a ship's surgeon to mask his discreet activities on behalf of British Intelligence, has bought for Aubrey his former ship the \u003cem\u003eSurprise\u003c\/em\u003e to command as a privateer, more politely termed a letter of marque. Together they sail on a desperate mission against the French, which, if successful, may redeem Aubrey from the private hell of his disgrace. A nighttime battle with an unusual climax, a jewel of great value, and Maturin's fondness for opium make this segment of Patrick O'Brian's masterful series both original and profoundly exciting.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePraise for the Aubrey\/Maturin Series and Patrick O'Brian\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"The best historical novels ever written.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--Richard Snow, \u003cem\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/em\u003e \"I love these books.... [They offer] the same sense of lived experience as Hilary Mantel.... They will sweep you away and return you delighted, increased and stunned. If the phrase 'Napoleonic war fiction' fills you with anticipation, then you don't need me to convince you to read [Patrick] O'Brian. But for the rest of you.... [P]lease, just trust me.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--Nicola Griffith, NPR\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"A few books work their way... onto [bestseller] lists by genuine, lasting excellence--witness \u003cem\u003eThe Lord of the Rings\u003c\/em\u003e, or Patrick O'Brian's sea stories.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--Ursula K. Le Guin\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Like John LeCarré, [O'Brian] has erased the boundary separating a debased genre from 'serious' fiction. O'Brian is a novelist, pure and simple, one of the best we have.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--Mark Horowitz, \u003cem\u003eLos Angeles Times Book Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"[Patrick O'Brian has] the power of bringing near to the reader... savagery and tenderness, beauty and mystery and boldness and dignity.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--Eudora Welty\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"O'Brian's eloquent admirers include not merely distinguished critics and reviewers but... thousands upon thousands of fervent readers who thank the gods for him.... [H]is work accomplishes nobly the three grand purposes of art: to entertain, to edify, and to awe.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--Stephen Becker, \u003cem\u003eParis Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"For escapist reading, I especially like the sea novels of Patrick O'Brian.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--Bill Bryson\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"O'Brian's narrative... provides endlessly varying shocks and surprises--comic, grim, farcical and tragic. An essential of the truly gripping book for the narrative addict is the creation of a whole, solidly living world for the imagination to inhabit, and O'Brian does this with prodigal specificity and generosity.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--A. S. Byatt\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"I prefer the Aubrey-Maturin series to all others.... Every book is packed to absolute straining with erudition, wit, history, and thunderous action.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--Joe Hill\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"All of the Aubrey-Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian [is on my shelves].\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e--Mindy Kaling, \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 288\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.76 x 8.34 x 5.57 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e March 29, 2022\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51767429103904,"sku":"9781324020523","price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/66dfb7abff354754208e1812322d3d03.webp?v=1780310702","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/the-letter-of-marque-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}