The Disastrous Voyage of the Santa Margarita

Must have missed this new novel when it came out at the end of last year.

It's based on the factual journey of a Galleon wrecked near the phillipines. I've added it to the website here

Is it a new Drinkwater? I thought he had ended that series ...

No it seems to be a stand alone book. It's classed as fiction but from the reviews it seems to be closely woven into the factual history of the voyage set in 1601.

I'm surprised it was not mentioned in the interview he did with McBooks for the last quarterdeck

This is one of the grimmest (and, yes, boring) sea stories I have ever read. A Galleon leaves Manila bound for Panama and encounters a seemingly endless series of typhoons. The despotic soldiers in command of the ship clash with the sailing masters and crew. The perfervid priests/monks/nuns wail ceaseless prayers and the pampered passengers stir up bad feelings on every side. Potentially interesting back stories remain underdeveloped. There are long, repeated discussions about God's will and man's initiative. Are the serial disasters punishment for this or that person's sins? Misery and death mount to unimaginable heights and the resolution (such as it is) is unsatisfactory -- I suppose that's Woodman's point, but it doesn't make for an enjoyable read.

I hope it's better than pipester seems to think - I've just acquired this as an audiobook, read by Terry Wale and am looking forward to listening to it.

we await your report

Paul-B wrote:I hope it's better than pipester seems to think

No, it isn't! I have at last got around to reading it and agree with Pipester's assessment. It is unremitting doom, gloom, turmoil and conflict with few likeable characters. And, you just know from an early stage that it will have a nasty ending. Woodman never fails to write well, but this was not an enjoyable read for me. It's based on a real wreck, but it's unclear how much of the novel is actually true.