Second to None (The Bolitho Novels Book 24)

I was shocked when the main character in this series, Admiral Richard Bolitho, was killed in the last book. Now what? It almost seems Kent wanted to end there but his agent persuaded him to write four more books.

The first part of this book is a dirge where everyone who is still left alive mourns the death of Richard Bolitho who was killed in action at the end of the previous book. And if the parallels between Bolitho and Nelson were not strong enough, we read the struggles of his mistress - and coincidentally of Nelson's mistress - to come to terms with her loss and what she should do next in her life.After the first 100 or so pages, we get to the base of this volume - and it is rather thin from a plotting point of view. Adam Bolitho is now the star of the show and he is captaining frigate in the Mediterranean. The coast of Algeria is hazardous to shipping and Algerine pirates have a base of operations with the Dey of Algiers. Bolitho manages to destroy several nests of pirates using tricks that have been described in multiple volumes of this series as well as the Hornblower series and others. Then, of course, there is a command shift and a new admiral comes on board who does not like Bolitho for historical reasons (the uncle, not Adam) and so we have the semi-normal situation of a blow-hard, know-nothing, but well connected admiral with the admirably feisty and always correct frigate caption bailing him out - only to have more resentment reserved for Bolitho.I rate this book only three stars because there is really nothing here. Adam Bolitho's adventures in the Med area repeat of Dick Bolitho's adventures. The naval engagements are told excitingly enough, but they are less believable than normal. The petty jealousies and revenge plays that keep intruding would be understandable in a small set of cases, but to have such happen in almost every book? Really? How could so many admirals be in command to hold back the worthy captains? Weren't all these admirals captains at one point and therefore know what their underlings are feeling? Also, we have the usual love affair where a woman spends one minute looking at Adam Bolitho and then throws herself at him disclaiming undying love - all the while being married to someone else. This has also been a repeated theme of too many books in this series. So, I'm disappointed to a certain extent and hope this was just a transitional book since the series has six or seven more volumes at the time of this writing.

As this is the 24th book in this series that I have read, many things have become more clear regarding the lives and times of the people depicted in the series. If I were to recommend this to another interested reader, I would suggest that you read some of the first books of the Bolitho Novels. It will give you a chance to understand the political and social experiences of the people of the time. The book can stand alone as a good story, but having the knowledge of the characters' lives before this book is truly a rewarding experience.

Well, I have to read these novels to the end of the series, until death do us part. Because I got too involved with the characters, the development of which I did enjoy for the most part. But what drew me to the series was the action on the high seas and displays of cunning and sheer bravery by the main character, Richard Bolitho, amid the chaos of war. I look forward to more with Adam in other types of conflict, but I am growing tired of the constant and overly dramatic "profound" and "telling" inner workings of his mind and that of the other characters. Sometimes the author actually forwards the narrative with them, and depends on them to explain the turns of the plot; however they are often too brief and not clear enough to the reader (me, at least) to do much "telling". I get the feeling I am missing at least part of such an "explanation". One thing that I have definitely not appreciated has been the fact that almost every woman that either Richard or Adam has been involved with sexually was already married (or engaged, in one case). That in each instance the husband was unworthy of his wife doesn't excuse this because it's really almost every time. One gets the notion that the author himself gets some real kicks out of the idea of conquering another man's wife, which is a real turn-off for me. Oh, well, I've come this far, I can't quit now. And I do want to see Adam settle down with some nice girl like the lovely, and at least as far as we know now unmarried, Lowenna.

My second time reading through the series. This series is the best of fictional early 1800 British seafaring novels.

These books are a great read: I have really enjoyed them all. I’m looking forward to the next book. The action is good and the characters are engaging.

Was disappointed that the author killed off Sir Richard with 5 books left in the series, but he is tiring up loose ends nicely with this book an others to come.

If you like the Bolitho series this is a good addition.This is the first addition to the series after the death of Sir Richard and the series starts to focus on Adam Bolitho and his exploits. I guess an admiral's experiences aren't the stuff of swashbuckling fiction.It's a decent read.

Kent (Douglas Reeman) has finished me off with this book. I will never read him again. After skipping your way through the first few, fairly good, books in this series you have it all. The books increasingly get more and more repetitious as the series grows. It is obvious that Kent has a little notebook with his favorite phrases and sayings from the series as he uses these over and over to a frustratingly boring degree.This book has a limp story that spans about 30% of the book; the rest is reminding the unfortunate reader of what has happened in the previous books in the series. What good is that? I'm sure most readers will have already worked their way painfully through the series. Even the battle scenes are skated over to make room for rather pathetic, emotionally stunted Mills and Boon style love stories. I am sure that if this book been written by a literary newcomer, it would have been laughed out of the publisher's office.I have recently read the Hornblower and Kydd series and I have now started on the Ramage books. These books are far superior in story line, subject knowledge and literary skill. Ramage is a breath of fresh air to me after Kent's predictable repetition.

This man tells his stories with such ease and clarity to give so much pleasure to the reader. With this book he bridges the fall of his main man and throws you straight into the strength of his supporting characters and continues the enjoyment.

Another excellent book by a great writer of Navel historical sea battles with true passion ,a truly great read by Alexander Kent.

The item was just what I wanted.

I have read all the original books and to read this was like meeting old friends and new characters. A great read .I am looking forward to the next book.