Too many story lines and the ships jumping from the Med to Engalnd to Africa to the Med with people jumping in and out and and a new woman thrown in. Can't anyone in this series fall in love over a period greater than one day? THe action is limited and the book doesn't stand alone. Unless you have rtead the first 24, don't start here

This novel is tagged as a Richard Bolitho novel. It's not. Mr. Kent chose to kill Richard Bolitho off two novels ago and left us with his whining nephew, Adam, who annoyed me from the very beginning. I'd been reading of Richard's many and varied adventures for 25 years and Mr. Kent kills him off in one paragraph!? How did faithful, loyal Allday feel? Who knows? Mr. Kent chose to totally disregard his friendship with Richard. I was so disgusted I donated the book to my local library. Adam is a whiner. The women in Kent's latest novels have the men wrapped around their little fingers. Geez! Where's the fabulous comraderie of the earlier novels, the triumphant battles and the agony of defeat? Also, he killed off most of the wonderful characters I so enjoyed (thank goodness dear Allday was spared, the *only* character left I can empathize with). So no. I will not read another Adam novel.

Alexander Kent is now depicting the Royal Navy without a defined enemy and the impact this is having on it. Without a belligerent France across the Channel, the strength of the navy is slashed to the bone and beyond.

Adam Bolitho is still in command of the frigate Unrivalled only now is dealing with ships packed to overflowing with Africans en-route to slavery and with North African pirates. Neither of these opponents are giving much concern to politicians and merchant bankers of Great Britain, except in so far as they are accumulating wealth from the transport and auction of slaves. The man in the street knows little about this and cares less.

It is this apathy of the public that the Royal Navy in general and Adam in particular must battle. It might be easy to die for your country when the enemy is French or Spanish, but when it is a slave runner, the concept becomes a little vague. Fighting in the Bay of Biscay is one thing, fighting in the Bight of Benin is something else entirely.

Kent creates the atmosphere of these times with great care. You are faced with seamen, tossed onto the beach without thought, after being through tremendous hardship and danger. You are also faced with the families that they had left behind and now must support in some form or fashion. Also, there is the aristocracy, both of society and the Royal Navy that must be maintained. These features never go away. One would think that the needs of the Naval aristocracy would decrease as the Navy shrinks - far from it!

Adam Bolitho is a complex man and as I learn more about him, I can see this. From a bastard orphan to a successful naval officer, we have seem him evolve. Yet he is still dogged by his origins - he has never forgotten the days as a youngster fending for himself as his mother became unable to care and support him.

This is a book without the flash and thunder of a fleet action. Now it is a series of actions between schooners and sloops and oared launches. Adam's ship is too big and powerful to be of decisive value except as a resevoir from which to draw men to man the smaller ships. It is this type of action that is honing the skills of the men of Unrivalled and preparing them for the ultimate combat with African pirates.

Throughout the book, we are reintroduced to charecters of the past, Thomas Herrick, Daniel Yovel, Graeme Bethune and others. We see an appearance by Richard's daughter Elizabeth as she starts to connect to Adam for after all, in spite of birth situation, he is her closest surviving relative and vice versa.

This book is a continuation of the Bolitho family saga. It continues to add to what we know of the family, even if it is only in small details, such as the name of Adam's mother. I found it thoroughly enjoyable and a fine addition to my library. I would recommend it to anyone who has read even a few of the preceeding books on the Bolitho family.

Alexander Kent (Douglas Reeman), a prolific writer, spends an entire novel in maudlin reminescence of a character's life to prepare us for that character's death. This last installment of Richard Bolitho's life deserved far better. Set around Napoleon's escape from Elba, the novel never really gives Sir Richard anything to do, except remember those he has known and act as though he is ready to die. The series, which already went about 8 books too long, is left to trickle off, instead of a spectacular finish and transition to Adam becoming the main character. I read all 23 of the set (though not the 24th, where Adam carries on) and I wish I'd stopped around 15 or so. Skip this one and continue on to Adam's first solo adventure.

I read this book in a U.K. print as it is not yet in the States and I found it to be one of the better efforts of Mr Kent ne Reeman. The historical events of Napoleon's escape from Elba and the battles that ensued give this book the drama and flaver that I have come to love in the previous 22 books in this line. I could not put it down, and read it straight through. I have over the years intoduced over 15 of my friends to the Bolitho saga, and the only bad thing about this book is the death of Admiral Sir Richard, but with the presence of Adam Bolitho, I feel that this saga can continue with no loss of interest for all of us whom have come to love all of the people that have been intorduced and been brought alive in the past 23 books. I only hope that Lady Sommerval is not left out of any forthcoming books.

This is a book for and by bird-watchers. The sightings of rare or unique Antarctic birds, their descriptions, actions and nesting practices make up the body of the book. On a cruise with eighty people the first author makes it seem a voyage of five, with a few crew members for convenience or local color.

The inset descriptions of wildlife by Ronald Lockley, a (then) seventy-seven year old well-respected ornithologist are very scientific, but he has also made them interesting to the uninitiated. His love for all species makes his science human.

Adams' writings are human, too, but in a less endearing way. Whatever is right, noble and just happened in this world because of the Englishman. The disgusting practices that threaten extinction of a species are being carried out by the Japanese, the Argentines, or other non-Brits. The practices he describes are truly disgusting; the fact that he attaches these actions to a nation and describes them as typical of that nationality puts me off. In fact, I was so offended by his biases that my enjoyment of the book was dimmed.

I learned an immense amount about penguins and other birds native to the antarctic. Having Lockley and Adams each alternate a chapter made the book quite enjoyable. A consummate naturalist, in the old sense of the term, Adam's does display his anthropomorphic side, which is evident in all his work (witness Watership Down, Traveller, Plague Dogs, etc.) and which he has never kept secret from the public. I appreciated him sharing the adventure with us.

While this small book is just right as an introductions to the questions one should ask about ancient civilizations in the Americans, it is not good for someone with some historical background. Indeed it best serves scholars interested in the ancient Americas better than anyone else.

I was dissapointed with this book. It covered a lot of material, but seemed to skim many subjects and didn't provide very helpful suggestions. Ideas were mainly things like "avoid impulse purchases" and "look for discounts and sales." I suppose if you wanted a basic guide about budgeting and an introduction to different types of investments, this book would be good. But if you are looking for something more in-depth, then keep on looking!

This book was a wonderful selection of well Drawn pictures from the film Watership Down. The books text is just quotes from the movie. That's why I rate it a three. A good thing about the book is that the pictures on their own really tell the story of Watership Down. The book is not really for reading but it is a beutiful display of art. It is great for a book collection. All in all I thought it was a wonderful book.

I was looking for a practical guide to school nursing, to helpease my transition from hospital practice to community health. Thisbook is fine for the school nurse who is starting a clinic literallyfrom the ground up. It even has floor plans for school clinics. The assumption is that the schools have unlimited funds, large space and unlimited time to provide healthcare, and the focus is very administrative. Treatment of everyday shcool nursing issues is very cursory. The extensive treatment of sexual-orientation issues renders the book very suspect--there is an agenda here. There are lots of reproducible forms which can be useful. However, the fact that this book was written by an MD should have been a red flag: Not for nurses who live in the real world and need practical advice. END

Ideal handbook for a new school nurse
offers many forms to utilize, ideas for your office, and updates on school health. Helps you get started with one easy book

This is an alright book i suppose. I had to read it for english class so you can understand my disgust with it. I found it very confusing and hard to understand....... Give it a go though for your own. I hate reading most books. Sad to say I find manuals more interesting thatn reading novels....Laugh as you may..o well

bob

I bought this book on the recommendation of a 1st year pharmacology professor who must be getting a kickback from the authors. I did not like the layout which is not user friendly. Also I could not always find drugs I was looking for in the index. Plumb and the Allen book are far more useful - and CHEAPER!

Poor reproduction of photographs (poor contrast, etc.). One even has big spots on the image. Adams would turn over in his grave if he saw this book!!!