Churchill once said that British naval tradition was nothing more than rum, sodomy and the lash. Happily, there's plenty of rum and the lash here, with only a hint of sodomy. This is the first of O'Brian's popular series dealing with the exploits of Captain Jack Aubrey and Doctor Stephen Maturin during the Napoleonic wars.
The movie follows the plot of another Aubrey-Maturin novel, The Far Side of the World, lifting only the title and a couple of scenes from this book, so having seen the movie first takes nothing away from this. It's more episodic, both because this novel is intended to introduce and establish the characters of Maturin and Aubrey, and because it's largely based on the actual exploits of Captain Thomas Cochrane and the ship Speedy.
The book is good, but be prepared to wade through a load of 18th-19th century naval jargon. I found that the reader can still follow the action and maintain a pretty good idea of what's being said, but it can become trying occasionally, as you do get the feeling that you're missing something. Still, the characters and action are both quite good, even if the latter is sometimes hampered by an excess of naval terminology.
It wasn't the best slab of historical fiction I've run across, but I'll be giving the next volume a try. It will probably benefit from a strong, unifying plot line. This one is recommended for lovers of the Napoleonic Era, boats, and the Admiral.
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