His Majesty's Ship

Interesting article in the Mid Sussex Times indicates another book in the series 'His Majesty's Ship' will be out in 2009

I recently had the great privilege of reading an advanced copy of His Majesty's Ship, Alaric Bond's new novel. I wont be giving any secrets away (so don't ask), but will say it was an excellent read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Alaric is however making the first three chapters available for members. If you would like to read them they are available here. (Please note it may not be available indefinitely)

He would welcome any comments you may have and will therefore be made aware of any replies to this thread.

EDIT:As the novel is now with the publisher link removed.

His Majesty's Ship is now available for purchase from Fireship Press, Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk

I have just finished reading this novel for the second time, having read an advanced copy some 3 months ago, and enjoyed it just as much. It's always good when a second reading is just as enjoyable.

Alaric Bond once again grips readers with his detailed knowledge of the Georgian navy. In this prequel to The Jackass Frigate the earlier careers of crew members we have become familiar with are developed. From gundeck to quarterdeck, from powder monkey to Captain, we follow all divisions of the crew of HMS Vigilant, a 64 gun ship-of-the-line, as she is got ready for sea and then escorts a convoy. Ending in a climactic battle, the book, first in the 'Fighting Sail' series, fulfils the authors promise to “give an insight into the world of the seamen and naval officers who fought during the Revolutionary war” and will delight all readers of historic naval fiction.

I really enjoy the gripping action and I appreciate the detailed descriptions of the ship's workings, but, as in the Jackass Frigate, Alaric Bond gets my highest marks for bringing to life the crew and officers of Vigilant. By mastering the tricky technique of shifting Point-of-View, Bond successfully makes readers privy to the thoughts and opinions of a thorough cross-section of the crew. Before Vigilant is at sea, we meet no fewer than twenty-three named characters. (I counted the second time I read the book.) The number climbs above forty by the novel's climax. It is a tribute to Bond's craft that by the time Vigilant joins battle we feel a personal connection to some 10% of the ship's company. I am grateful to Bond for creating this new paradigm for Historic Naval Fiction.

Very nice to see you back pipester. Bond has gone onto my list of must-reads ... but he will have to wait until my library gets a copy.

Thank you, reb. It's good to be back.

Thanks to the generosity of a fellow shipmate, I have been given the opportunity to read this book, and my first reaction is: what a great read!!

• characters that evolve and whom I can care about
  
• gripping action sequences that are very well-described so I never have the sense that I don't know what is happening
  
• strong grasp of naval tactics along with the ability to describe them clearly
  
• prose that pulls me along and makes me dread reaching the last sentence, rather than forcing me to make the effort to slog through it
  
• shocking twists and turns in the plot to make me forget any thought of attempting to predict what's going to happen next

That's not to say it's without minor flaws: it could certainly have used a list of characters. Several times I found myself skimming through the first few chapters to remind myself who Jeremy was, or what rank Flint held. But in retrospect, that did allow me to enjoy the opening scenes several times ...

In conclusion, I have to say that this could very well be the next great HNF series that would certainly rival the Bolithos, Ramages et alia. My appetite is well and truly whetted for The Jackass Frigate. It's a shame it hasn't been picked up by a major publisher. It's a bit more expensive than what I would typically consider spending on a book, especially a softcover, but it's going onto my birthday wishlist.

Ooh, I've really goofed here - I was under the impression that the price shown in the ebay auction for the Jackass Frigate (28 pounds) was the list price. I now find that the price listed on Amazon is much more reasonable. I hope no one has been deterred brom buying that book because of my mistake here.

I have just down loaded this book to my NOOK from B&N for $12.00. I am into the frist part of the book, and I must say the detail is fantastic. You get to know the crew from "Boy" to "Cap'n". I am finding it more fun to keep notes as I go along for the cruise.

I recently finished reading His Majesty's Ship which I greatly enjoyed for its panoramic portrayal of "the wooden world" and a cross section of its people. Bond has a keen eye and ear and his characters come alive for me. He writes with authority so that I lose myself in the story. Looking forward to reading more of his series!

I recently started reading this book, and so far I am enjoying it very much. Such a breath of fresh air after that last god-awful novel I just read.

I've not read any of his books, but this series looks interesting and I can see I'll have to try it out. Is it possible to download any of the series, other than in Kindle format?

Links to sites selling the various e-versions are available on his own site www.alaricbond.com/html/purchase_my_books.html#ebooks

Many thanks for the link. What a helpful forum this is.

Thought I'd share my review of this enjoyable book on my writing blog: Review

Finally got round to this, thanks to my new Kindle, and can safely say ... wow, what a brilliant read! Of all the new or recent additions to the HNF fold, this I have found to be the most impressive by some margin because of its different approach. We experience the plot-line from a number of different perspectives rather than from a single heroic figure and we really get a feel for the many characters at different levels on the ship. Like O'Brian, Bond doesn't pack his pages with a breathless succession of action events, yet the build-up of tension is gripping as we move toward the climax and, as someone else mentioned already, Bond's pacing is superb.

Thanks, Joolz, even more reasons to get the book. Just out of interest what Kindle do you have? I'm thinking about buying one myself, not sure whether to get the basic one or the all-singing all-dancing model.

Joolz, I'm glad to hear you like Bond's writing, as do I. I am now reading True Colours (book three in his Fighting Sail series. I began with book one, then read 4, then read The Jackass Frigate which I believe is book 2I tend to read book series as I have lived my life, that is to say, all out of order, all ahoo, but a good series writer writes a stand-alone in each one and Bond has done that. You can jump in anywhere.

Enjoy!

And to Paul-B, for what its worth, I have the basic model kindle, and I find it very serviceable. I would be curious to hear what someone else has to say about the "all-singing all-dancing model."

Thanks for the kind words, guys.
With regard to kindles I have the "la-de-dah" model, given to me as a present. Not sure if I would have shelled out the extra, however, as I am usually in range of Wi-Fi. Certainly for travelling it would be good as, in addition to being able to download virtually anywhere, it can also surf the net (very basically), and send and receive emails. They have a new "standard" model out in the UK for under £90, which is considerably less than the earlier offerings; who knows, they might get cheaper still?
My only complaint about kindles says a lot about me, and my style of reading. When lying flat on your back, it ain't that easy to hold, and change the pages. But then the same could be said about books...
(Maybe I should buy a chair?)

My Kindle is the new basic one, which here in Britain is just called ... Kindle! It's brilliant - small, light, easy to set up, easy to use etc. It would be nice to have a keyboard, but I wouldn't use it enough to justify the extra expense bearing in mind I don't use talking books and don't need 3G. I think, sometime ahead, if the Kindle's general web browsing facilities improve to the point it becomes viable as a book-reader's tablet PC [currently it has a very primitive browser in development], then a keyboard will be a must.

I finished the first book on Friday...vial Kindle app on my Ipad, and really enjoyed it. Appreciated the way explanations were slipped into the text, and the little asides of historical interest. Good strong characters throughout. Lovely stuff!

Now 30 pages into second book (this time a real book which I actually purchased first!) and not disappointed!

Thanks for this, Leonidas; it is good to see that HMS has got as far as NZ! Book five is getting ready to roll. I'm letting it rest for a month or so, then will go through for the final polish. Hope to deliver for publication June/July time.

Got hooked over the weekend and devoured the second book, and got ebook copies of 3 and 4! Plenty to do ..

Have now read all books. Loved them. Always something new and the appetite for more is set!

Well done Alaric!

Thank you, Leonidas, I really appreciate your support.