Lieutenant Putnam and the Barbary Pirates (A Bliven Putnam Naval Adventure)

Having only recently read, “Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten War That Changed American History” by Brian Kilmeade, James Haley’s book was going to be predictable. But, I was looking for a historical novel built around the events concerning America’s experience with the Barbary pirates. Something that would bring the story to life. Haley did not disappoint with “The Shores of Tripoli: Lieutenant Putnam and the Barbary Pirates.” The book was fast-paced and filled with action. I highly recommend it.

This book, apparently well reviewed by the NYT, is best fit for twelve year old boys still wrapped in the naïve sentiments of youthful patriotism and romance. It is unimaginable that it would satisfy an adult reader, a less well written and more immature version of the Walter Scott genre. There are too many proud and tearful flag and country moments, too many dark foreign villain scenes, and too many sappy romantic moments of the sort that recall a younger age. Characters are limned from two dimensions and fall as flat. Dialogue is stilted and conventionally modern with daubs of period speech. Some reviewer spoke of this as an American parallel to the Patrick O'Brien books Embarrassing if it is. Uggh! Give it a pass or use it to start a chimney fire.

The Marine Hymn begins with the well-known (to many) lines From the Halls of Montezuma/ to the Shores of Tripoli James L Haley's newest novel The Shores of Tripoli: Lieutenant Putnam and the Barbary Pirates (TBP November 2016 by GP Putnam and Sons) gives us the story behind that line with a well detailed piece of historical fiction that weaves together both historical persons as well as the key character of a young lieutenant named Bliven Putnam.

The first in a new series, the story begins with the young Midshipmen Putnam going aboard the USS Enterprise and engaging in hand to hand combat to save both his life and the life of one of his fellow Midshipmen, Sam Bandy. Upon his return the young and more emotionally sober Putnam returns to his Connecticut home and finds himself, as did other sailors, waiting for orders to return which did not come for a year and half.

In the meantime, Bliven develops an affection for young woman who pledges herself to Bliven in marriage at a future point. With tensions on the rise between the Kingdom of Tripoli and the US, Bliven again sails into the fray and as part of the legendary cross desert march to take the city of Derna and end the conflict.

The Shores of Tripoli is an engaging and well told story filled with colorful characters, very detailed descriptions of those early American warships and naval tactics combined with a descriptive narrative of a young nation in which the stress and strains of issues like slavery cast shadows over relationships among the main characters.

I liked this book because though it is historical fiction, it provided me with some background on a period of US history that I have not been fully acquainted with. I think that this novel would be a wonderful addition to an American History class studying the time period covered by this book. I also liked this book because Haley does a wonderful job of story telling.

One of the joys of reading is being transported into the life in a different time and place. Novels written during the last few hundred years can capture events and attitudes of the day, but historical fiction has the added advantage of hindsight, making it easier to compare, contrast and explain substantive events in a current context. James Haley does this well and couples it with a fine grasp of inner human life—an element that transcends history. The result is a well-written story that enlightens and engages. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in naval combat, American history, and a yen for adventure.

Most avid readers have a bucket list for books they intend to read but never seem to get to. I have long been fascinated by naval history and have enjoyed historical accounts of naval battles, from the Spanish Armada to the Battle of Midway, with occasional stops along the way to visit the lives of Lord Nelson, John Paul Jones and William Halsey. In that vein of reading, I also have a few fictional naval adventure books that I fully intend to read. Several volumes of the Horatio Hornblower series by C. S. Forester and the Master and Commander series by Patrick O’Brian are somewhere on my bookshelves, but I have yet to get to any of them.

Thus it was with great pleasure that I received a copy of THE SHORES OF TRIPOLI by James L. Haley. It is a novel of historical seafaring fiction that promises to be the first in a series of books that introduces readers to 14-year-old Bliven Putnam, commencing his service in the U.S. Navy as a probationary midshipman. Haley is a historian, with award-winning biographies of Sam Houston and Jack London to his credit. He plans to chronicle Putnam’s career beginning with THE SHORES OF TRIPOLI and moving forward to the War of 1812 and then on to the Civil War. Factual events will guide these future novels as he explores Putnam’s rise from midshipman to captain of his own vessel.

The Barbary War was the first foreign action of the infant U.S. Navy created as a deep-water force after the new Constitution authorized the creation of American fighting forces. THE SHORES OF TRIPOLI is exhaustive in its treatment of the infant U.S. Navy. Historical novels often can be just stories with minor historical references, and names and places from a bygone era, but Haley does far more here. First, he creates very authentic scenes as the young crew of U.S. Enterprise embark upon a voyage across the Atlantic to confront the Tripoli pirates, who are attacking American merchant ships and imprisoning citizens and crew. There are exhaustive and thorough descriptions of life aboard the ship. Putnam, barely a teenager, is introduced to readers as he is trained to command guns and taught to use a saber and pistol. In his first battle, that training will come into play. The portrayal is vivid and educational but never dull.

With great attention to detail, Haley continues the story of the naval foray. Putnam acquits himself courageously in battle, earns a promotion to the U.S.S. Constitution, and eventually fights in the deciding battle of the Tripoli expedition, the battle at Derna, memorialized in the Marine Corp anthem’s “to the shores of Tripoli.” Along the way, Haley is true to many historical facts, including President Thomas Jefferson’s concern over his constitutional authority to deploy the Navy as well as misgivings by many Americans over his Louisiana Purchase.

Haley has started his series of naval adventures with a different perspective from the Hornblower or Master and Commander novels. Those books were never intended to be part of a series. However, after their success, the authors were forced to write prequels and sequels to expand the stories and create a series. Haley began his novel with the plan of writing a series, so he knows where Putnam is headed. The second book will be set during the War of 1812, and Haley plans to send Putnam to Hawaii in 1819 for volume three. Of course, there may be some changes based on reader response. Whether the series continues as planned or not, Haley’s talent as a historian coupled with his skill as a novelist make THE SHORES OF TRIPOLI a wonderful debut novel.

Reviewed by Stuart Shiffman

I've generally shied away from historic military fiction set on the high seas, simply because I don't understand all the nautical stuff as well as the land-bound tactics. However, I picked this series debut up because it tackles the American naval engagements with the Barbary city-state pirates at the turn of the 19th-century, and having grown up in Algiers, I've always meant to learn more about this history.

As is the standard form in such series, we are introduced to a likable teenager who joins the military to find out what he's made of. There are the usual young midshipmen's trials and tribulations involving nasty senior officers, and here they are mixed in with a whole host of historic figures with whom he sails. The author is a historian, and he appears to have gone to great lengths to detail all the political diplomatic machinations that were at play in this historic first foray into international warfare by the United States. Some readers might find some of the info dumps to be a bit much, but I didn't mind them.

There's plenty of action and romance along the way, from various naval encounters, all the way to assault on Derna by US Marines (and Egyptian mercenaries), that marked the first land battle by US troops on foreign soil. All in all, the mix of history and swashbuckling military adventure is about right, and I'll definitely be looking for the next in the series. If you like Hornblower, Sharpe, and the like, this should suit your fancy.

Following the Revolutionary War and in the independence of the United States, the Tripoli is one of the first to recognize the new sovereign nation. They recognize the the bribes paid by the British to protect their ships from the pirates no longer cover the merchant ships from the US. The Barbary Pirates are pillaging the US merchant ships and the newly built-up navy is sent to put an end to it.

Bliven Putnam is a very young man when he enlists and first sees action against the pirates, but his boldness, loyalty and his sharp intelligence impress his commanders and he soon finds himself rising in the ranks. The Shores of Tripoli by James L. Haley brings life to the exciting story of Lieutenant Putnam and his adventures at sea.

The novel covers an absolutely fascinating time period and I enjoyed learning more about the history. Liven Putnam turns out to be a great character to follow. He's young and sees the war as an adventure but is also wise enough to be fearful for his own life. He offers fresh, not yet jaded eyes. He's curious about the North African enemy but also wary. He employs cunning stratagem to win the battles and is frustrated by the backroom politics. Over the years, Putnam matures and earns more commissions and responsibilities.

The writing in The Shores of Tripoli is solid and Haley excels at bringing the at-sea battles to life. There are times during the political discussions and wrangling between officers and ambassadors that it gets a little long winded. Overall, it was thrilling to read about a US Navy war hero on the sea and through the desert. I will definitely pick up the next books in this exciting series.

I'm a history buff, enjoy historical fiction, and this was about a time in history that I knew little about, so I was looking forward to reading it. Did I like it? Well, yes and no. In the end I felt like there was a really good book hiding behind all of the literary mistakes. Frankly, I was shocked that something so rife with literary faux pas could have made it past Putnam's editors. As any school kid will tell you, history books are usually heavy on historical minutiae and light on drama. Mr. Haley seemed to be trying to give us both a history book and a dramatic narrative, which meant, in my opinion, that both suffered.

I noticed other reviewers have complained that the naval protocol presented in Mr. Haley's book was incorrect in a few places, but honestly I know so little about these issues that this didn't bother me. I really enjoyed learning about the operation of a naval vessel in that era, and Mr. Haley's description of all of this was fascinating.

My complaints have more to do with his literary ability. He failed to consistently present Mr. Bliven's world through the eyes of Mr. Bliven. Yes, there are authors who present a world through the eyes of multiple characters--George R. R. Martin comes to mind--but Mr. Martin separates these points of view by chapters, whereas Mr. Haley jumps between differing points of view within chapters, and often within paragraphs. This prevents his reader from getting to know the protagonist and championing their goal. It was obvious from the beginning that Mr. Haley wanted Bliven to be his protagonist, and it was obvious he wanted the pirates to be his antagonist. The pirates did remain consistently evil, but Bliven was crowded out by other characters. This approach might work in nonfiction, but is deadly in fiction.

My other complaints were: Mr. Haley attempted to show the bigotry and prejudice of the era, but these attempts came across as naive, awkward, and not very well written. Even though I enjoyed some of the details about naval protocol, Mr. Haley spent way too much time on it, and used terms the average reader would find confusing. The ship's diagram in the beginning helped, as did the glossary, but when you have to spend your time looking things up, if pulls you out of the story. Mr. Haley also spent far too much time telling us things and not showing them to us.

SPOILER ALERT! Skip the rest if you want to read the book!

And finally there was Bliven's token sex scene with Rebecca Barnes at the end of the book. It seemed to be tossed in as an afterthought--as if some editor told Mr. Haley, "You need to spice things up a bit!" The reason why this stood out to me was that Mr. Haley had spent ninety-nine percent of the book showing Bliven to be an honorable man surrounded by dishonorable men--a man who was in love with Clarity back home--who when given the chance to hop into bed with the first girl who offered, did so. True, Mr. Haley showed Bliven feeling remorseful later, but that didn't make up for this appalling shift in character.

So, did I like THE SHORES OF TRIPOLI? In short, yes. I liked most of Mr. Haley's well-researched details, and, for the most part, I liked Bliven. The action scenes were also generally well done. I wish there had been more of them. And I enjoyed reading about this time in history. If Mr. Haley had focused on telling the story through the eyes of Bliven, it could have been a great book.

After seeing the Russell Crow Master and Commander Movie I tried several times to read a couple of the novels the film was based on. Unfortunately those books were just too advanced for me, way to cerebral and too much inside jargon about the world of ships at that time. James Haley's new book seems like an attempt to do a Horatio Hornblower type series with an American cast of characters as opposed to the British. Unlike the Master and Commander books that I tried to read, this book was much easier to get into, stay with, and understand what the heck was going on. I also like the timely subject of dealing with the pirates out of Tripoli as the story has many parallels with events going on in the world today. As well as issues of do we need a navy and how big should the navy be. This was an excellent first entry into what seems to be a promising series. I also enjoyed the few historical cameos that took place in the novel. Exciting battles on land and sea, interesting characters.

James L. Haley has written prolifically on Western and particularly Texan history, with twelve non-fiction books in print and three previous novels. Shores is his fourth foray into fiction and likely the start of a series of sea thrillers set in the early years of the nineteenth century –before America had woken up to the consequences of its nascent stature in a rapidly changing world. The American Navy was still small and only sporadically equipped and deployed. It had nowhere near the array of encounters, victories and defeats to narrate that the chroniclers of England’s mighty navy could draw on for dramatic underpinning to their yarns. Thus the more credit to Haley for tackling this project: he shows how much there is interesting in that period –not just sea action and sea lore but the attitudes and behaviors of men in a navy so small and provisional that even its officers moved back and forth between civilian and military duty.

The hero, Bliven Putnam, is the great-nephew of Revolutionary War hero Israel Putnam. Bliven is a believable enough character in this installment but I expect his character to emerge more fully as the series progresses. He’s fourteen at the start of the book, midshipman of a baby fighting vessel -- eighty-five feet long and equipped with only a dozen guns firing six-pound shot - but the ship, and Bliven, prove their worth in preliminary skirmishes with Barbary Coast pirates. By the end of the book, Bliven is eighteen. He’s grown up quickly. (One of the pleasures of this book, which is filled with naval and martial information, is watching Bliven learn, from his own mistakes and those of the people around him.) As the title states, the book is about our country’s attempts to rein in the Barbary Coast pirates, who were taking American ships and holding American citizens captive by the hundreds, possibly thousands, holding them for ransom or using them for slave labor or (the women) life in the harem or seraglio. Bliven, his family, his closest navy friend, the woman he woos and her family are fictional constructs but most of the rest of the characters in the story are real: they participated in the events described. Best known today are naval heroes Stephen Decatur and Oliver Hazard Perry, both painted as over-eager for fame, but a young John C. Calhoun and the abolitionist preacher Lyman Beecher make appearances. Neither appeals to Bliven, who objects to Calhoun’s vanity and Beecher’s self-certainty and intolerance. By the end of the book, Bliven has met and wooed (it’s all stiff, formal) a young woman from his Massachusetts homeland and had one brief falling off of virtue (in the least believable part of the book).

I enjoy series like this. On the basis of this first installment, Haley succeeds. Bliven Putnam is a hero worth following, not as complex as either C. S. Forester’s Horatio Hornblower or Patrick O’Brian’s Jack Aubrey but it will definitely be fun watching Bliven grow.

Maybe I loved it because I have been reading naval fiction since I fell in love with Captain Horatio Hornblower as played by Gregory Peck when I was a teenager 40 years ago and then asked for the complete set of novels as birthday presents. Or because we spent the day at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis this year on July 4th. So I was ripe for this novel. About the only thing that didn't work for me was Lt. Putnam's first name, Bliven, too unusual and close to 'blithering' (as in idiot). Putnam is a great name even if it is the name of the publisher lol! I am looking forward to reading the next 7 novels in the series and wish I didn't have to wait 7 years for them to be published.

you can read an excerpt online at penguinrandomhouse "the-shores-of-tripoli"

(Not a Verified Purchase; I read a copy borrowed from the Brooklyn Public Library.)
I'm a big fan of Forester/Hornblower and O'Brian/Aubrey, having read and re-read all the books of both series. Haley/Putnam merits membership in this exalted company. I heartily recommend this new entry, and I'm waiting eagerly to buy (yes, buy) the next release in November.

Some reviewers have claimed that "this is the American Patrick o'brian ( Wall street journal) ... This is a pale pale substitute and a sorry novel indeed

The dialog is turgid, the characters one dimensional and descriptions dull and it lacks totally the nautical jnowledge that made Aubry come alive.

This falls well well back in the pack. Ceryainly Beyond Forester and well behind Dudley Pope and multipe other Obrian imitators.

There us a fair amount of accurate history but the interactions of Bandy and Putnam and even his attentions he pays to a high spirited Puritan girl will put you to sleep. I am sorry the author didnt read more Jane Austen where the characters are believable and lovable

Save your money and re read the opening scene in M and C.

This is a joke and a bore

"The Shores of Tripoli" has a excellent premise: following a young officer in the infant US Navy in its war with the Barbary pirates early in the 19th century. The story brings together many fascinating historical persons, from naval heroes Stephen Decatur and Oliver Hazard Perry, to colorful rulers of the Barbary states, to the rulers of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies. However, I'm sorry to say, the execution of the story is amateurish at best.

What do I mean by amateurish? To begin, the author tells rather than shows. For example, at one point the hero has to transport to Italy a young woman whom he has rescued from an Algerian harem. During the voyage, she refuses to remain in her cabin, but insists on dressing in sailor's clothes and helping to work the ship. But does the author describe this as it happens? No. Instead, we learn of all this when the hero tells his commanding officer about it, after the fact. One can only imagine what an O'Brian or a Forster could have done with that situation! Another aspect of amateurism is the use of anachronistic language. For example, the Barbary pirates are always spoken of as enslaving "white Christians" - when, in point of fact, the people fo the period would have just said "Christians", as the pirates were equal-opportunity slavers. Yet another aspect of amateurism is technical inaccuracy; for example, the author continually speaks of "rifles", when the sailors and marines of the time would have carried smooth-bore muskets.

The language is leaden, without richness or cadence. The ever-changing sea is never described. The narrative is devoid of humor. The Ottoman soldiers are minstrel-show caricatures. None of the sailors the hero commands, or any of his fellow officers, is described, or even named. Apart from a burst of sailor-talk when the hero is being examined for the rank of lieutenant, none of the details of sailing, or fighting, or farming, or anything-else-ing is ever described. I must admit that there is one passage that does go into detail: when, near the end of the book, the author describes an encounter between the hero and a young woman - but it brings new meaning to the phrase "too much information".

I bought this book thanks to the review in the Wall Street Journal that described "The Shores of Tripoli" as an American successor to the Aubrey-Maturin novels. I'm sorry to say, it's nothing of the sort. Mr Haley may be a fine historian (I've not read any of this other books), but, alas, he's no novelist. Sad, because in the right hands this could have been a terrific story.

I liked it.

I have read and thoroughly enjoyed all the English counterparts, and by comparison Tripoli is very good.

It has somewhat more "non-seagoing" activity and actors than some of the traditional English variants, but it all holds together very well.

The protagonist is a home-run-- likable, interesting, fun.

The dialogue is great. No one surpasses WEB Griffin for dialogue but this is very good.

Again, I liked it -- a lot.

I will be watching for the next in the series but I have this concern. The book is so obviously well researched it may take a long time between books in the series. I suppose that is the price to be paid for quality of this type.

Bill

This is the first in a series by historian James L. Haley. In 1801 President Thomas Jefferson assembles a new modern US Navy to fight the threat of piracy on the high seas.Americans are being kidnapped by Islamist brigands, and held for ransom, or killed. The Berber States of North Africa claim that their faith allows them to attack anyone who does not submit to their religion. Women are sold into sexual bondage, and held for the warlords' harems. Morocco, Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli use piracy as the basis of their economies. This has gone on for centuries.Perhaps a million European Christians have been captured. Now young Lieutenant Putnam has been enlisted to join the battle. The battle for freedom and justice.
Putnam, just a teenage boy, will soon be growing up. Fast. He will taste the harsh sting of battle. He will have to kill...or be killed. His adventures take him to the Rock of Gibraltar; ancient caves filled with mysterious monkeys.Later Putnam joins Comodore Preble on the frigate "Constitution" to march across the Libyan desert to assault Derna. Putnam will discover new lessons about war, and life. It's not what he expected. Putnam, who likes to read, explains: "On board ship, I hide my books. Junior officers are supposed to be all fight, fight, fight. But fighting must be for a reason. History teaches the reason. I think...."

I admit I've tried the Hornblower and Aubry series but never really got into them. This book however, is so well written and filled with historical detail that I found it captivating.
The story (most certainly the beginning of a series) involves a very young (they were all young..) midshipman on an american ship sent to the coast of north Africa with the purpose of fighting the barbary pirates who have been taking americans (and others) captive in order to extract ransom money from their governments. The story today is carried on in the lines "the shores of Tripoli" in the Marine Corps hymn, and here it's told in wonderfully entertaining detail with colorful personalities from all sides. There's even a fleeting introduction of Stephen Decatur who will certainly play a more prominent role in subsequent episodes.
The author touches on issues from slavery to the "culture" of the pirates that encourages them to enslave all infidels. He even rightly points out that they were responsible for a great deal of the slave trade at the time. Never predictable or common, this is a very well told tale and worthy of the subject matter. A great start to the series.

As a hostory buff, I enjoy reading historical fiction. Over the years, I have enjoyed reading and sharing historical novels as a way to show people how fascinating history can be. This novel confirms my sentiment.
I have read several histories of the Barbary Wars, most recently, Jefferson's War, the First War on Terror. The history of this period is fascinating, but can be a little dry. The author of this book infused life into this topic in this book.
I enjoyed this book very much. The story is fast paced, keeping me engaged throughout. I look forward to the next installment.

Fair story with some lively fictional and real life characters of early days in the U.S. Navy. Putnam is a midshipman on a small US ship that defeats and captures a Muslim pirate ship. We follow his life on leave on the family farm in Connecticut Some good insights into the politics, economy and religions of this time period Research generally solid.
Returning to sea, he manages to be in most of the conflicts that his country faces in the Mediterranean so his promotion is rapid. Not a particularly believable career for the young man but sufficiently interested to read the next episode.

Although the made-up "Bliven Putnam" is more a plot device than flesh and blood character, he does serve to take us through some very interesting and sometimes gripping little-known military and political history surrounding the build up of the American Navy to deal with the Barbary Coast pirates. (Putnam is around when anything of historical note takes place or is revealed). It turns out there was very little real "honor" on either side, so it's also a cautionary tale for those who think our current situation is unique in its villainy. It's just too bad that Haley wasn't a good enough novelist to make Putnam and a couple of his made-up cohorts more realistic.

This series has some promise, but it falls far short of Patrick O'Brian (if you're looking for adventure on the high seas) or Ralph Peters (if you're looking for wonderful American historical fiction). Historian James Haley chooses an interesting period in America's history to base this book--the onset of the 19th century and the early days of US naval activities. Thomas Jefferson build a naval presence in an attempt to put an end to kidnappings, killings, enslavement, and thieving of the Barbary pirates. It features a 14-yr old (at the onset) hero in Lieutenant Bliven Putnam whose naivety and lack of worldly experience detracts from this novel. Although the reader does get to experience Putnam's growth and multiple settings (Atlantic, Mediterranean, African desert), the story is held back by a somewhat uninteresting character, slow plot development, excessive details, and very average writing. It is possible this series will get better with time as the author has interesting material (and knowledge) to work with, but this initial novel falls a bit short.

For lovers of historical fiction, this volume fills a giant void. Our schools teach almost nothing about the US Navy and its adventures in the Mediterranean circa 1800. Follow a young man from Connecticut as he battles pirates, trains his men in the operation of the ship's gunnery, and is initiated into the grown-up world of love. We read of sea battles in the great sailing ships, intrigue and politics in the dealings of the government officials, and the relationships that are formed by men in battle. I highly recommend this read and I thank the author and the Penguin First to Read program for a complimentary copy.

The British navy had its fictional heroes:- C S Forester's Horatio Hornblower and Patrick O'Bryan's Jack Aubrey and in those author's tales we see the upward progression of the heroes through the ranks. In the Shores of Tripoli we see their American equivalent, Bliven Putnam, make considerable progress in the course of of one novel. Putnam starts as a fourteen year old green midshipman on a brig dispatched with a squadron to deal with the Barbary pirates. So, we have a story woven around an actual conflict. Generally this story flows well and the author seems comfortable with naval practice and detail. An enjoyable read that is reasonably close to a lesson in real history.

Readers who love tales of adventure on the high seas are going to be thrilled with this new novel by James L. Haley – especially American readers who might want to see a series based on the adventures of an American naval officer.

The story follows the exploits of young Bliven Putnam (the name choice is distinctive, but a little odd, in my opinion…) from 1801 through 1805, as he rises from the rank of midshipman to lieutenant commandant, during the period when American naval forces were standing up to the so-called “Barbary Pirates”, the North African states which preyed on commercial shipping in the Mediterranean. This is a great choice of historical time period in which to set a novel of the American Navy; it was the first time that the United States really projected power in the international arena through its naval forces, and is a good setup for the upcoming confrontation with Great Britain during the War of 1812.

Haley’s background as an historian ensures that the details are correct, and he does an admirable job, in my opinion, of fitting fictional characters into historical events alongside real people from the period. This book, and the eventual series that will follow, are sure to delight readers who are looking for something beyond Hornblower and the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O’Bien.

This book is both good history and good story rolled into one. We learn about our early navy, their first engagement after the Revolutionary War and we get a good look at what it was like to sail the sorts of ships we had then. More we get a taste of what the men experienced in international action when they had little inkling of what sorts of things the wider world had to offer. This book strikes me as the kind of novel that would thrill a person today much the same way Treasure Island did me when I was young.

My 11 year old son is interested in naval history so this is a great fiction/non-fiction book for him. The story is fictional but the historical events are real. I reviewed a chapter prior giving it to him and really like this author/historian's writing style. Haley weaves historical facts into the story so my son is getting the action he likes while learning about the birth of the US Navy. Great read.

The technical and historic/costume/research details are excellent! The ship-handling (I'm not a sailor, but have read dozens of similar sea tales) seems very credible and descriptions fine without excess detail. The Barbary history itself I don't know well, though seems to match in research on the expedition, the US politics of paying for a navy, etc.. The characters are well drawn, with economy and yet enough to make each instantly memorable; very helpful in a longer story with changing venues.
Chief problem for me is the writing itself, competent woodwork but not fine carpentry. We all got a bit over-stimulated, perhaps, with the intensely literate Maturin/Aubrey novels, and the strong (set later) Civil War era David Poyer books. C.S. Forester, the literary grand-daddy, was also a fine stylist.
So the only disappointment here is it's "very good basic storytelling," but not of the sort in which I'd read a paragraph again for the pleasure of its flow. Even Bernard Cornwell, who often seems to be a 'so-many-pages-today-or-bust' writer, makes this author look a bit ragged. Perhaps the writing can improve as he develops this series, but it seems to me the first novel, though purposeful and well-plotted, offers "empty carbs" vs. the focus and taste of a better dish.

I got this book in a Goodreads Giveaway in exchange for an honest review. Very good historical novel about the UV involvement with the Barbary states in the early 1800's. Very similar to CS Forrester's Hornblower novels, just a little less verve. The history is really good and the characters likeable. Recommended.

I always enjoyed Admiral Hornblower novels. This is the best that I've read since. The writing is great and the characters are admirably complex and believable. If you love sea adventure, be sure to get this book

Mirrors the estimable Kenneth Roberts with a less engaging hero but a dolop of sex. Same villanous Tobias Lear. Same craven US politics. Same heroic Captain Eaton. Same, same, same. Yet no mention of Roberts in spare acknowledgements. Impossible as oversight.

Since I have Patrick O'Brian's Jack Aubrey series on the shelf, well read, and have practically memorized C.S. Forester's Hornblower novels over the last 50 years, I looked forward to something in the same tradition after the WSJ review and was not disappointed. A little more insight into the character of Bliven Putnam would have been welcome, but that is a minor quibble. The main question troubling me: when will we get the next volume???

Disappointing book that will probably be the first in a series some feel may be the next Hornblower or Materin. But I have to admit that I started skimming about a third of the way through, as I felt the main character flat and the prose purple. That is not to say that some may be very happy with the book, as it has been a while since a new sea series sailed into view. It is possible that the series will improve as new books are introduced, so I would not totally give up based upon one book