Sharpe's Trafalgar

Sharpe's Trafalgar is one of Cornwell's most ambitious Sharpe novels to date. Filled with the Cornwell trademarks of heroism, graphic violence, romance and vivid evocation of the period, its portrayal of Sharpe at sea is convincingly done and Sharpe's encounter with Nelson himself, alongside his previous encounters with historical figures such as Wellington, is particularly effective--the frail Admiral characterised as asking "nothing from life except to be seated with his good friends Chase, Blackwood and Richard Sharpe". Sharpe's Trafalgar finds Bernard Cornwell on top form; Sharpe fans will not be disappointed. --Jerry Brotton

Reader Reviews:

Powerful and wonderful (0/0 people found this helpful)

Again - forget A Starbuck Fan's review - its not a review - its a pigheaded opinion that that person writes on every Sharpe Prequal.

Trafalgar is a different book but certainly not a different feel.
Sharpe is at sea; not land, but the unrelenting pace and wonderful characters are still there.
Its a touching tale and the battle of Trafalgar will leave you wanting more.
The only downside is the silling killing of one of the passengers (Sharpe does it) and yes he could and would murder someone, it wasn't necessary.

Not a typical Sharpe book, but still good (0/0 people found this helpful)

Sharpe doesn't get up to much in this book he is more of a spectator than a lead character, but the the book is still worth reading if you want to find out about Trafalgar in a fun, fictionalised way.

The story is a bit slow in places such as the beginning of the sea battle as the ships line up to fight, but eventually some good action does take place. The book was written after Sharpe's Prey and is a self contained story that does seem like an add-in.

Nothing is said in the book about the side plots in the Sharpe series such as Hakeswill or Sharpes rise through the ranks. Although Sharpes jewels make an appearance and Sharpe also does something very immoral which you wouldn't expect from him.

Overall a good book about Trafalgar, but not really about Sharpe. Could be missed out if your reading through the series in chronological order without losing any of the story.

Sharpe at sea & in love (1/1 people found this helpful)

An unusual Sharpe-novel in that it largely takes place at sea (aboard the frigate Pucelle which is taking Sharpe from India back to England), and has fairly little action except for the battle at Trafalgar which ends the book.

Nonetheless, I read this with great pleasure (if only for the love story, it's strange to encounter a love-struck Sharpe) and even without pitched battles every other chapter Cornwell knows how to keep you engaged in the story and always wanting to find out what'll happen next. On to Sharpe's Rifles!

Cornwell continues his betrayal (0/8 people found this helpful)

I read all of the original Sharpe series in the eighties and thought that the series had come to it's natural conclusion with Sharpes Waterloo in 1990. I was very suprised to see Sharpes Devil a couple of years later and to my mind this was a book too far in the series. Cornwell was always writing other books including the excellent Redcoat as well as his nautical thrillers. When he started the Starbuck chronicles I was delighted and followed Nates adventures in the same manner as I had Sharpe's. Then, after the Sharpe series had been shown on tv Cornwell abandoned "The Starbuck Chronicles" mid-series (after four books)and resurrected Sharpe. Not to sound too cynical but the only reason for this betrayal of fans who had bought the new books and were following Starbuck could only have been money...Cornwell betrayed and sacrificed the Starbuck fans for a newer and more lucrutive market...the new Sharpe fans worldwide who came to the books after the tv series. In order to continue to cash in along came all the new books each one inserted in a different period of Sharpe's career. If you have read the original series you won't recognise Sharpe's description in the new books..because it's Sean Bean!...Thanks Bernard, how's the yacht?

On the way home from India Sharpe gets caught up in Trafalgar (3/3 people found this helpful)

Only Richard Sharpe could get caught up in a fleet battle on the way home from India and find romance on a Royal Navy line-of-battle ship. But he does, and it's a highly entertaining read.

Sharpe's Trafalgar is set at the conclusion of the trilogy of novels in India in which he obtains some treasure, gets promoted to be an officer after saving the life of General Wellesley (the future Duke of Wellington, and deals with the traitor Dodd. Shipping home to join the 95th Rifles, Sharpe initially takes passage on an East Indiaman, and finds an old opponent as one of the passengers. Treachery follows and the ship is captured by the French. (Not by pirates, and there is no shipwreck.)

However, as the story is about Sharpe's Trafalgar, we know that he will not remain a prisoner of war for long. And sure enough, after an involved series of events, including the obligatory rescue of a lady in distress, Sharpe and his fellow passengers find themselves guests on a Royal Navy '74 gun ship of the line, chasing a French battleship half-way round the world. Until both ships arrive off Cape Trafalgar on 21st October 1805 ...

As usual Bernard Cornwell has done a great deal of research so that the Napoleonic era battles he describe seem real, and in the historical note at the end he explains that many of the events described during the battle of Trafalgar were based on things which really happened.

The next novel after this in the chronological sequence is "Sharpe's Prey," the main action of which is set two years later in 1807 when Napoleon's continental blockade results in was between Britain and Denmark. That book also tells you what happens to SHarpe's relationship with Grace, the heroine of "Sharpe's Trafalgar".

If you liked the other Sharpe books, you will like this one.

Bernard Cornwell

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