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Rating: 
Summary: Almost too perfect
Review: In which newly made Capt. Ramage buys arms, commands a slovenly ship, blockades Martinique and sees a diamond, removes a frigate, climbs a hill, and plots to devour a French fleet single-handedly in 1804. Ramage, like Hornblower, has a depth of character best revealed in their moments of introspection. But while Hornblower doubts his own courage, Ramage knows courage is a facade put up for the encouragement of others. I found the most fascinating passages were on pp. 259-263, where we get an outsider's view of Ramage and feel the effect of the meticulous planning that is the essence of inspiring leadership. It is likely these passages embody the secret of Lord Cochrane's astonishing successes as a winner who, like Ramage, didn't do it over the dead bodies of his men (the historic Lord Cochrane [1775-1860] being the inspiration for much of British naval fiction). As always Pope's descriptions are clear and precise, but here supplemented with diagrams of a jackstay lift for the central hill-climbing business.The reader might want to know that this is really the first of several books dealing continuously with Ramage's renewed adventures in the West Indies (but a separate cycle from his W. Indian adventures in vols 2-4). Although this is a pretty complete story unto itself, if you've already read this far in the series (you did, didn't you?) there's no way you won't want to move immediately after this to MUTINY. Proofing is a little sloppy in a series that is doing the McBooks imprint proud.
Rating: 
Summary: Ramage's Diamond in review
Review: The novel shows Ramgage growing in his command of the frigate as he is assigned a task to monitor the French. He starts with a single frigate and a lack of knowledge of the area and his enemy .. as the story continues .. Ramage finds himself having to improvise in order to keep his ship from falling into the hands of the French as well as making plans to capture an inbound French convoy. ... theough a series of events .. he manages to acquire a small fleet of ships ... fortify a island ... and all but cut the French off from any help. .. a well written story ... much in the same line as C. S. Foresters Horatio Hornblower series .... or that of Alexander Kent and his Richard Bolitho series
Rating: 
Summary: Fanciful Fiction
Review: While most writers of historical fiction place their characters in the context of real events, in this case Dudley Pope has substituted Ramage for Commodore Samuel Hood. After preliminaries, the main action takes place at Martinique in the summer of 1804. Ramage is sent to blockade the island and, in the process, fortifies the Diamond Rock (Hood's actual accomplishment that year). Some of the writing goes into extreme detail (e.g., Pope's reconstruction of the probable means Hood used to place guns on top the rock), and some is larger than life, perhaps too much so (Ramage's action against a French convoy). There are some editorial glitches, e.g., a statement that men would be excluded from sharing in prize money when earlier in the story they had participated in the action that captured a frigate. On an historical note, the Diamond Rock was commissioned and carried on the Royal Navy books as a sloop. It was surrendered to a French fleet in 1805 when the British crew on the rock ran out of water (see W. P. Gosset, "The Lost Ships of the Royal Navy, 1793-1900").
Rating:
Summary: Fanciful Fiction
Review: While most writers of historical fiction place their characters in the context of real events, in this case Dudley Pope has substituted Ramage for Commodore Samuel Hood. After preliminaries, the main action takes place at Martinique in the summer of 1804. Ramage is sent to blockade the island and, in the process, fortifies the Diamond Rock (Hood's actual accomplishment that year). Some of the writing goes into extreme detail (e.g., Pope's reconstruction of the probable means Hood used to place guns on top the rock), and some is larger than life, perhaps too much so (Ramage's action against a French convoy). There are some editorial glitches, e.g., a statement that men would be excluded from sharing in prize money when earlier in the story they had participated in the action that captured a frigate. On an historical note, the Diamond Rock was commissioned and carried on the Royal Navy books as a sloop. It was surrendered to a French fleet in 1805 when the British crew on the rock ran out of water (see W. P. Gosset, "The Lost Ships of the Royal Navy, 1793-1900").
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