Malta, in 1813, is ostensibly a safe harbour, yet the island is a nest of French spies, and even those in authority are not to be trusted.Malta, in 1813, is ostensibly a safe harbour, yet the island is a nest of French spies, and even those in authority are not to be trusted.As Captain Jack Aubrey cools his heels in a Maltese harbour, awaiting repairs to his ship, war rages on. Fearing that hostilities will end before he has any further opportunities for fame and fortune, Aubrey accepts several secret missions, but all is not as it seems.Will a double agent be the undoing of both Jack Aubrey and his friend, ship’s surgeon Stephen Maturin?‘This is O’Brian at his brilliant entertaining best. When he is on this form the rest of us who write of the Napoleonic conflict might as well give up and try a new career.’BERNARD CORNWELL‘Captain Aubrey and his surgeon, Stephen Maturin, compose one of those complex and fascinating pairs of characters which have inspired thrilling stories of all kinds since the Iliad.’IRIS MURDOCH & JOHN BAYLEY‘If O’Brian’s novels have become a cult, this is because they are truly addictive. . . They are, quite magnificently, adventure yarns whose superb authenticity never distracts from the sheer thrill of the action.’Caroline Moore, Sunday Telegraph‘The Aubrey–Maturin novels, by Patrick O’Brian, are so addictive that after I finish one I have to hide the next from myself for a little while in order to do anything else but read.’Louise Erdrich‘In Aubrey and Maturin, Patrick O’Brian has created two of the most enjoyable characters in twentieth-century fiction. Their relationship sustains an absorbing and thrilling sequence of naval stories, unrivalled in their complexity, full of impeccable detail and psychological insight. O’Brian switches from the intimate to the epic with equal assurance. One of the greatest authors to sail with.’Michael Palin‘My hero is Patrick O’Brian. It’s basically impossible to write that well.’David Mamet‘One of the most compelling and brilliant novelists of his time . . . Beyond his superbly elegant writing, wit and originality, Patrick O’Brian showed an understanding of the nature of a floating world at the mercy of the wind and the sea which has never been surpassed.’Max Hastings, Evening Standard‘I devoured Patrick O’Brian’s twenty-volume masterpiece as if it had been so many tots of Jamaica grog.’Christopher Hitchens‘Written with most engaging enthusiasm that can’t fail to give pleasure to anybody who enjoys historical adventure flavoured with more than a dash of realism.’The Sunday Times‘One of the most brilliantly sustained pieces of historical fictional writing this century.’James Teacher, Spectator‘Patrick O’Brian brings depth to his sea-stories with outstanding dialogue, characterisation, humour and a golden thread of romance. You don’t have to love books about naval battles to become entranced.’Katie FfordeUniquely among authors of naval fiction, Patrick O’Brian’s characters develop with experience, and although the Jack Aubrey of 'Treason’s Harbour' has a record of successes to equal that of the most brilliant of Nelson’s band of brothers, and is no less formidable or decisive in action, he has grown wiser, kinder and gentler too.Much of the novel’s plot concerns intelligence and counter-intelligence, the field in which Aubrey’s friend Stephen Maturin excels, and there is action and excitement aplenty, but it is the atmosphere of Malta that is so freshly and vividly conveyed here, crowded with senior officers waiting for news of the French and wondering whether the war will end before they get their turn for prize money and fame.Patrick O’Brian was born in 1914 and published his first book, Caesar, when he was only fifteen. In the 1960s he began work on the idea that, over the next four decades, evolved into the twenty-novel long Aubrey–Maturin series (with an extra unfinished volume published posthumously). In 1995 he was awarded the CBE, and in 1997 he received an honorary doctorate of letters from Trinity College, Dublin. He died in January 2000 at the age of 85.Requires internet connection for purchase, plus iPod or other Audible-compatible player or iTunes software on Mac OS X or Windows• Available for the first time as a downloadable audio file.• Massive press and consumer interest in O’Brian. He has been hailed as the greatest historical novelist writing today and as ‘Jane Austen, sur mer.’• O’Brian’s profile has also never been higher. He was the first recipient of the Heywood Hill Prize for a lifetime’s contribution to literature. Interest in him continues unabated both in the UK and the US (he is Norton’s top-selling novelist).• New $150m movie based on the series due for release in 2003Competition: clarissa oakes;post captain;master and commander;desolation island;sharpe’s assassin;war lord;the last kingdom. by;bernard cornwell;julian stockwin;david gilman;alexander kent;allan mallinson;dean king;c. s. forester;dewey lambdin;jay worrall;diana gabaldon
Pubblicato da: HarperCollins Publishers