Rating: 
Summary: Book 2.5 in the Series
Review: After leaving the Peninsular Wars behind for the last several Sharpe books, Cornwell returns to the roots of the series with this 19th entry, which occupies part of the gap in time between the first two (Sharpe's Rifles and Sharpe's Eagle). Here we find Sharpe and his riflemen in Portugal, detached from the army which has retreated from Oporto. They've been assigned by Col. Hogan to help the mysterious Col. Christopher locate a young Englishwoman who has gone missing during the evacuation of the city. Christopher is a shifty fellow, not Army, but actually a Foreign Office envoy with a vague brief to suss out the political landscape. Early on, something smells fishy about Christopher, and when he arrogantly dismisses Sharpe, the seeds are sown for his development into a full-fledged villain.
All the basic elements of the Sharpe adventure are present and accounted for, although there's nothing particularly novel about them. As always, Sharpe is off on his own, under his own initiative leading his men. Once dismissed from helping Christopher, Sharpe finds himself cut off behind enemy lines with the remnants of a Portuguese unit. As the small band of about a hundred men make their way cross country, they end up running into both Christopher and the missing girl. Ordered to stay put, they wind up fortifying a hilltop location and defending it against a vast French force. This small unit action is fierce and well-rendered, as always.
Eventually, Sharpe leads his force back to friendly lines, and provides a rather crucial logistical service en route. There he is not only reunited with Col. Hogan, but with General Wellesley, the man who raised him from the ranks in India. Also present is the cruel Lord Pumphrey, who Sharpe encountered in Copenhagen. It is confirmed that Christopher has turned traitor, and Sharpe is assigned the task of killing him. And since Christopher has also absconded with the young Englishwoman, Sharpe has extra incentive to track this nasty piece of work down. The tension builds as Sharpe and a few picked men race the French Army to the border so that they can snipe at Christopher from afar. This also allows Cornwell to describe the routing of the French forces, as well as the heroism of a French Major. Although the elements are all what one expects, they are expertly woven as ever, and the book is effortlessly entertaining.
Rating: 
Summary: Back to where it belongs...
Review: First things first: As Action&Adventure Novels Sharpe's are the best, get it and enjoy, nobody does it better.
Now, once said (for the sake of hurried people) the main thing, let's analyze this fresh one: As usual it's a turn page read as Clancy's best used to be, I got it and read as fast as I could and (I do not really know if for you this is a plus or a minus) all what I expected was there... (the main plot, the subplots, the historical frame, and of course all the predictable characters) and probably THAT'S WHY I LOVE THEM, the ambivalence of kowing what's going to happen but still enjoy the way it's crafted is of the same level of Conan Doyle's Holme's adventures... You know there will be an explanation, you know Sherlock will crack the mistery, and there will be a new one in the future... I think the joy of it is the confirmation of your expectations... (Keep the customer satisfied, and at this he's getting better all the time...+ the promise at the end: Sharpe & Harper will march again...).
The battle&skirmish actions are superb, due praise is given to portuguese soldiers and french (a welcome political correctness after so much british jingoism in the earlier books...) and as usual the good prevail (Richard Sharpe has less dialogue and it's at his laconic best in the true tradition of John Ford heroes THEY DO THINGS and don't even boast about it...
ONE OF THE BEST OF THE LAST BOOKS IF NOT THE BEST OF THE LAST SIX, A PITY I WILL HAVE TO WAIT A FULL YEAR TO GET THE NEXT ONE (AT LAST BACK IN THE PENINSULA WHERE ALL STARTED...).
A minor criticism why Father Josefa? there must be hundreds of portuguese male names better suited, this is a minor default wich probably would not annoy english speaking people, but for God sake! Mr. Cornwell has fans in other parts of the world who KNOW about spanish and portuguese names and places, have you ever heard about "globalización"?.
For future readers who will read in cronological order the works it will be difficult to believe the naivety of Richard Sharpe from "Sharpe's Eagle" onwards..., after the accumulated experiences etc. there will be a little distorted (no references to past love affairs etc...) WHY NOT NEW EDITIONS WITH SOME LITTLE ADJUSTMENTS IN THE TEXT? to be sure fans will love them!
WELL, ENOUGH SAID! GO GET I AND ENJOY...
Rating:
Summary: He's Back!!
Review: For all of you who didn't like the last Sharp book I have got to say that this is the book for you. This is old school Sharp sort of a reverse of Sharp's Rifles this time with Sharp leading a group of green Portugal troops and trying to keep them alive. we have a great supporting cast here The loveable Patrick Harper
A French marshal with royal ambisions who you just love to hate
A lawyer turned solider
Mike Hogan
and my own personal favorite a new addition William Christoper who is a fine sucessor to other venerable Sharp villans. It just seems to me that Mr. Cornwell had a lot more fun writting this book then he did the last one. It is certainly much more fun to read.
Rating:
Summary: He's Back!!
Review: For all of you who didn't like the last Sharp book I have got to say that this is the book for you. This is old school Sharp sort of a reverse of Sharp's Rifles this time with Sharp leading a group of green Portugal troops and trying to keep them alive. we have a great supporting cast here The loveable Patrick Harper
A French marshal with royal ambisions who you just love to hate
A lawyer turned solider
Mike Hogan
and my own personal favorite a new addition William Christoper who is a fine sucessor to other venerable Sharp villans. It just seems to me that Mr. Cornwell had a lot more fun writting this book then he did the last one. It is certainly much more fun to read.
Rating:
Summary: Sharpe as ever!
Review: For long-time fans like me who found "Sharpe's Prey" a bit below par, I'm pleased to say that this one returns to first principles, ...-bashing in the Peninsula; and the author is back on form. If you wondered what happened to Sharpe, Harper & Co. after they joined forces on the retreat to Vigo (Sharpe's Rifles, Jan. 1809) and before Talavera (Sharpe's Eagle, July 1809), here's the answer. The Greenjackets are in the wilds of Portugal, where the best Sharpe stories are set, on a mission for Capt. Hogan, the military engineer and future spy-master. Marshal Soult, 'Duke of Damnation' and aspiring King of Portugal, is closing in. Is all lost? Wait! an obscure sepoy general called Wellesley has landed at Lisbon ... I'll leave the plot there except to say that it's a ripping yarn (and I've been reading them for twenty years). We meet an upper-class villain fit to take on Sir Henry Simmerson; a beautiful, runaway heiress; and a young Portuguese officer of character and education who has a thing or two to learn from Sharpe. Deja vu? Well, some of the best vus are deja. There have been better ones than this but not many. The atmosphere is as thick as Dan Hagman's tea. There are passages of real sardonic humor, which comes as a relief after the last outing. The action sequences are many and unsurpassed. My only regret is that an old favorite, Sweet William, hasn't shown up yet. The time slots are filling up but Cornwell makes good use of them. Sharpe and Harper march again. What are you waiting for? And if you didn't understand any of the above, still read the book.
Rating:
Summary: Another good read
Review: I am a huge fan of the Sharpe series and this book didn't disappoint, it took me 2 days to finish the book. This was certainly better than Sharpe's Prey. Even if Cornwell wrote a book called, Sharpe's left-boot-strap, I would buy it and it would be a great read.
Rating:
Summary: My NEW favoourite Sharpe adventure.
Review: If you have never heard of Sharpe or read a book by Bernard Cornwell then this isn't the book for you, this book is a long awaited installment of a great series of books. The thing I like most about this book is not the great adventure Sharpe is unwittingly participating in, you get that with every sharpe book. Its not even the great accounts of true, historic battles that seem to put you in the heart of the action, you get that with every Sharpe book. This book is my new favourite simply because of the way its written. The style is still the same just it fits the book better, you just fall right into the book. The Sharpe series has developed as much as Cornwell has developed as a writer. The newer books seem to have a 'worn in' feel to them, they fit like an old boot, its a comfortable, fitting read for the Sharpe fan, you won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Tremendous military historical
Review: In 1809 in the Iberian Peninsular, though isolated from his side's main forces, Richard Sharpe and his unit defend Oporto, Portugal from Napoleon's armies. The city and the surrounding area are home to the famous red wine and numerous influential English red wine-exporting families. His superior Captain Hogan assigns Richard to keep safe the House Beautiful wine heiress Kate Savage and keep an eye on slick Colonel Christopher. As Richard and his commandos perform their current mission, the French attack them. Portuguese irregulars led by philosopher poet Lieutenant Vicente save the beleaguered English. The two units consolidate heading to Kate's winery only to arrive, as she is to marry treacherous Colonel Christopher. In his eighteenth appearance as a soldier during the Napoleonic Wars era, Sharpe lives up to his name, retaining a keen freshness as he battles the French and the bureaucracy. The tidbits from history, of which there are plenty, are brilliantly interwoven into the taut story line so that the audience receives a smooth plot yet know what is fact and what is Bernard Cornwell's vivid imagination. Anyone who relishes the era, enjoys war stories, or is a historical buff should read the Sharpe novels that bring in focus the realistic atrocities of battle as few novels short of All's Quiet on the Western Front has achieved. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: Sharpe in Portugal
Review: It's always a cause for rejoicing to me when I have the chance to read a new novel about Richard Sharpe and his exploits in the Napoleonic era. These books are excellent reading, and you also receive a "ground-pounder's" view of the wars of that time. This isn't the elite "from the command post" view, but from the guys who actually did the fighting, up close and really dirty. The writing is first-rate, and the characters quite well drawn. The plots keep the reader moving swiftly, and the pages are turned with great anticipation. Just when it appears that the author may have exhausted the scenarios of the war years in his books, he gives all of his faithful readers hope for the future when he says at the end: "Sharpe and Harper will march again". That is fantastic news!
Rating:
Summary: Another winner from Cornwell!
Review: On a time line with other Richard Sharpe books , this one would fall between Sharpe's Rifles and Sharpe's Eagle : May 1805. This highly entertaining novel has Lieutenant Richard Sharpe and his sidekick Patrick Harper battling not only the "Frogs" but a mysterious British officer Col. James Christopher , an operative of the British foreign office , as well as a deserter from his own company of riflemen. The novel starts with Captain Hogan , Sharpe's commanding officer by default , sending the riflemen into the mountains to find a missing young Englishwoman named Kate Savage. It seems that Miss Savage has disappeared from her home in Oporto , Portugal , just as the French army under Marshal Soult is moving in to occupy the city. Hogan also asks Sharpe to "keep an eye" on Colonel Christopher for him. We are then introduced to Christopher as an arrogant and otherwise slimy member of the aristocratic English upper class who is in romantic pursuit of Miss Savage. As it turns out , the young lady in question is the heiress to one of the major Port wine producing lodges in Oporto. It also turns out that Christopher has other things than Miss Savages' best interests in mind. In combination , Christopher and Miss Savage lead Sharpe and his half company of riflemen on a perilous chase into the mountains of Northern Portugal , skirmishing with the French army , and their lives emperiled by Colonel Christopher's treachery. Sharpe has made common cause with a young Lieutenant of the Portuguese army , Lieutenant Jorge Vicente , and proceeds to train the young officer and his band of soldiers. The battle scenes are classic Cornwell ; Sir Arthur Wellsley arrives in Portugal and sends Marshal Soult packing over the mountains back to Spain , with Sharpe , Harper , and Lt. Vicente in hot pursuit of the now treasonous Christopher and Miss Savage. In summary , a very well paced and entertaining Sharpe novel. There are no dull or flat spots (unlike some of the Patrick O'Brian "Aubrey-Maturin" novels I have recently read). I just started this series a few weeks ago ; I am now a Bernard Cornwell fan! No real warts on this one--5 stars.
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