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Rating: 
Summary: A good plot
Review: "Sparrowhawk" is a thrilling adventure, that reveals the soul of the American Revolution.Book 1 is the story of a young hero, Jack Frake--pauper and son of a prostitute, nurtured to intellectual manhood on the bleak Cornish coast by noble smugglers, whose daring defiance of the Crown and of arbitrary law makes them both heroes and enigmas to those around them. In the furtive underworld of British smugglers, a master of disguise and a merchant with a price on his head struggle to understand what makes them different from the people around them--what brought them together in "a covenant of defiance," "to live free, or die." In Jack Frake they see a younger version of themselves--an outcast who takes sides with them because "a man's life is his own." As the plot unfolds, and a vicious bureaucrat closes in on the gang, the tension becomes almost unbearable--until, in a wrenching climax, the boy's heroes pass on to him their legacy--that someday, perhaps in America, he will find the words to justify their rebellion. "Sparrowhawk" is, as the author says, the story of "what kind of spirit makes possible rebellion against tyranny and corruption." Also not to be missed: "Sparrowhawk - Book 2: Hugh Kenrick," whose hero, a young British aristocrat, also rebels against the view that his life belongs to others. And this time next year, look for "Sparrowhawk - Book 3," which shows what happens when Jake Frake and Hugh Kenrick meet in Virginia! (Author Ed Cline has let me read this in manuscript.)
Rating: 
Summary: History, Heroes, Action
Review: "Would I want to be alive inside this story?" That is the question I ask myself about any work of fiction. The answer for this book is a definite yes! As an intellectual historian (*The Aristotle Adventure*), though not a fiction writer, I know the difficulties of integrating storytelling and accuracy of detail. Ed Cline provides enough historical detail that the reader can see England of the 1740s, enough ideas to understand the issues emerging at the time, and enough suspenseful action to "hook" the reader and lead him on to the next chapter. The only books I keep in my library are ones I intend to reread, and this book is one of them.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book
Review: Book One of Cline's series tells the story of Jack Frake, a young boy who experiences the oppressive nature of the British government first hand. What is so unique about Cline's tale of the American Revolution is that he sees it as an intellectual (and not merely military) revolution. That said, the book is still filled with thrilling action and adventure. Cline's book is both fun and intellectually stimulating at the same time. His writing style is clear and poetic, the plot is intricate and logical, and the characters are all written perfectly, making Sparrowhawk Book One an inspiring read. I highly recommend it to all, and am looking forward to the publication of book three in May.
Rating:
Summary: A compelling and thoughtful saga from beginning to end
Review: Edward Cline's Sparrowhawk: Book One - Jack Frake is a superbly written historical novel set in 18th Century England reflects the turbulent times just prior to the outbreak of the American Revolution. Young Jack Frake personally experiences a growing restlessness that is gradually permeating men's minds. Jack sets sail for Virginia, all the while surrounded by hardships, struggles for survival, and a change of human thinking that will eventually bring forth the Declaration of Independence. A compelling and thoughtful saga from beginning to end, Sparrowhawk is enthusiastically recommended and will leave readers looking eagerly forward to Edward Cline's next novel.
Rating:
Summary: Finally...A Book That Inspires
Review: Everywhere I go, every book store and library I walk into, I find myself faced with "important" books, books I "should" read, and books that have garnered all kinds of critical acclaim. All too often, I read these books and end up feeling dissatisfied or depressed. I'd like to blame the authors' writing skills, but that wouldn't be fair, because sometimes, it's only the writer's evocative prose or clever style that gets me to the end of the book. So what is it that disappoints me? It's the pictures their words paint. So many of these "important" books paint pictures of dull, desperate lives, weak minds, and general hopelessness. As accurate as these portrayals may be, I don't need to see them over and over again. Honestly, I'm surrounded by dead-end people, dead-end jobs, and dead-end ideas in my daily life. I fight my own battles against laziness and mediocrity every day. So, where are the books that portray brilliance and worth, instead of just misery and dependence? Look no further than the Sparrowhawk series. In these books, you won't find heroes who deny themselves in hyper-melodramatic self-sacrifice or who wear white robes and fling lightning bolts at their enemies. If that's what you're looking for, go read "Lord of the Rings" again. What Sparrowhawk's heroes display is belief in themselves, indomitable will, honesty, and the courage to strive for greatness in the face of a world that fears, resents, and tries to destroy greatness. I may never have the extraordinary abilities of a Jack Frake or a Hugh Kenrick, but the very idea of them inspires me in a way that no Oprah book has ever managed to do. I wish there were more books like these.
Rating:
Summary: Finally...A Book That Inspires
Review: Everywhere I go, every book store and library I walk into, I find myself faced with "important" books, books I "should" read, and books that have garnered all kinds of critical acclaim. All too often, I read these books and end up feeling dissatisfied or depressed. I'd like to blame the authors' writing skills, but that wouldn't be fair, because sometimes, it's only the writer's evocative prose or clever style that gets me to the end of the book. So what is it that disappoints me? It's the pictures their words paint. So many of these "important" books paint pictures of dull, desperate lives, weak minds, and general hopelessness. As accurate as these portrayals may be, I don't need to see them over and over again. Honestly, I'm surrounded by dead-end people, dead-end jobs, and dead-end ideas in my daily life. I fight my own battles against laziness and mediocrity every day. So, where are the books that portray brilliance and worth, instead of just misery and dependence? Look no further than the Sparrowhawk series. In these books, you won't find heroes who deny themselves in hyper-melodramatic self-sacrifice or who wear white robes and fling lightning bolts at their enemies. If that's what you're looking for, go read "Lord of the Rings" again. What Sparrowhawk's heroes display is belief in themselves, indomitable will, honesty, and the courage to strive for greatness in the face of a world that fears, resents, and tries to destroy greatness. I may never have the extraordinary abilities of a Jack Frake or a Hugh Kenrick, but the very idea of them inspires me in a way that no Oprah book has ever managed to do. I wish there were more books like these.
Rating:
Summary: A Toast to a Writer Who Has Lived as He Writes
Review: For those of you who are curious, Ed Cline, whom I had the pleasure of meeting in 1968, has lived his life exactly as his characters -- beholden to no one and a man of self-made character. I have to admit, having lost track of Ed (for about 24 years), I was reluctant to read the book, for fear of being disappointed. I was not disappointed -- it is a great read, with a promise of more good reading to follow. 30 years ago, Ed had a dream of being a novelist. He stuck to it and he is the genuine hero. About the book -- the only other novel of worth that I have ever encountered which tried to explain the origin of the American Revolution is a very famous work, "The Young Titan," which is about the French and Indian War. "Sparrowhawk" starts earlier, in England, and its characters deal with and are subject to a myriad of outrageous laws, customs and practices which estrange ordinary citizens from common sense and from each other. For those who are familiar with Ayn Rand's work, it should be said that Mr. Cline, is not an appologist for Objectivism, but a worthy successor. The characters, Skelly, Redmagne and of course, Jack Frake are dashing and memorable -- and I'll leave you to meet them for yourself.
Rating:
Summary: To live free, or die!
Review: The challenge in writing historical fiction lies in capturing both the details of a period and the spirit that inhabits it; to be believed, historical drama demands faithfulness in both set and actors. In Sparrowhawk: Jack Frake, novelist Edward Cline succeeds where countless others have failed. He tells the story of a boy, Jake Frake, who grows up under the weight of a brutal and hopeless society in early 18th century England, and yet aligns himself with unbowed heroes and emerges a young man of valiant and courageous character. In Jack Frake and his compatriots, one sees the genesis of the ideas that will one day compel colonists in America to declare, as inscribed in the marble of the Jefferson Memorial, "eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man." Cline does not deal treat these ideas as disconnected parlor games; he shows them embodied in men of action and passion. The result is compelling. Edward Cline has crafted a testament to the unbowed, unbreakable sprit that makes men great. I eagerly look forward to reading the upcoming installments of the Sparrowhawk series.
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