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Brock #1
Brock's Agent
After witnessing the Battle of Tippecanoe, Jonathan Westlake, a young man ready to make his mark, returns home to York [now Toronto] from a successful fur trading expedition. Intervening in a scuffle to save a young woman's life, he appears to have killed her stepfather. To escape arrest for murder, Westlake is now forced to join the British Army and pose as a fur trader while on a secret mission for Major General Isaac Brock.
In a frantic search for the girl he rescued, down Georgian Bay to Fort Detroit, Westlake discovers treachery in his own family circle. His friends, a French Canadian named Lapointe and a Shawnee native called Paxinos, will remain loyal to him in a battle that may cost all of them their lives.
As nations and men struggle for military supremacy in North America, the principal characters fight to the death over love, independence, and a fortune in furs.
In a frantic search for the girl he rescued, down Georgian Bay to Fort Detroit, Westlake discovers treachery in his own family circle. His friends, a French Canadian named Lapointe and a Shawnee native called Paxinos, will remain loyal to him in a battle that may cost all of them their lives.
As nations and men struggle for military supremacy in North America, the principal characters fight to the death over love, independence, and a fortune in furs.
- GenresHistorical FictionCanada
346 pages, Paperback
First published May 12, 2011
3 people are currently reading
102 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
June 14, 2013
Living in a 200 km. radius of where this book takes place makes that much more absorbing. In the past couple of years, one cannot help but be interested in this “small” skirmish that happened 200 years ago as adverts and banners are displayed in capturing the feel of this Bicentennial celebration of the War of 1812. It was a relatively short disagreement with our neighbours to the south but it defined the people who created this land we presently call Canada. I have read many books on the subject as it is my foremost military interest.
Having just recently taken an overnight stay in the Niagara Falls region, I found this signed copy in a local bookstore and bought it with the next two following volumes. I’m glad I did. What a marvellous read! Mr. Taylor introduces us to young Jonathan Westlake and his adventures while tying in the early events of the war. This was a good paced book and by no means a dry, bogged down history lesson that can be found in historical fiction writings. It reminded me a lot of Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe series that I read numerous years ago.
This may be a tough novel to find outside of the immediate area of where the war predominately took place but if you are a fan of this battle between the British and the American populace, I strongly recommend finding this series.
Having just recently taken an overnight stay in the Niagara Falls region, I found this signed copy in a local bookstore and bought it with the next two following volumes. I’m glad I did. What a marvellous read! Mr. Taylor introduces us to young Jonathan Westlake and his adventures while tying in the early events of the war. This was a good paced book and by no means a dry, bogged down history lesson that can be found in historical fiction writings. It reminded me a lot of Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe series that I read numerous years ago.
This may be a tough novel to find outside of the immediate area of where the war predominately took place but if you are a fan of this battle between the British and the American populace, I strongly recommend finding this series.
March 19, 2019
This book was very good. It was a very good representation of Canadian history and I'm glad that they included the first nations in the book since they played a very important part during the war. I would say that the only thing I didn't like was the fact that there was no list of characters. There are so many people and some names just sound so similar I had a very hard time remembering who did what and who was on which side. Apart from that, it was well written and I enjoyed it a lot.
February 27, 2019
L'histoire est bien contée et l'action est captivante. En général, on connaît peu la guerre de 1812 entre les É.U. et le Canada (ou l'Empire Britannique). Donc, j'ai bien aimé lire un roman bâti sur un fond historique. Ceci dit, certains passages semblaient comporter des anachronismes (p. ex, référer à des francophone comme des "French canadians"). Dans ce temps-là, c'est pas le genre de distinctions qui était faite. On parlait plutôt de "canadiens" et d'anglais... Hormis cela, je recommande ce livre à tous lecteurs qui veulent lire une histoire captivante.
August 9, 2021
Tom Taylor's first book in this series I put off reading for a long time. While I was writing my own books about the Loyalists and the American Revolutionary War, I didn't want to be unduly influenced by Taylor's books. A week or so ago my son gifted me with this book. Aha! It was time for me to jump into Taylor's series.
What a great gift and what a rewarding book! Jonathan Westlake makes a great central character and his age, his personality, his family connections and his makeup filled me with interest in and admiration for him. Well done, Tom! I did find the idea of naming characters on both sides of the war a little much as remembering all of them was difficult. Still, seeing the events on both sides added a depth of understanding to just what was happening with the fur traders and their importance in the War of 1812. I had concentrated on the settlers who carved farms out of the woods so this was welcome knowledge.
I am looking forward to reading all of the rest of Taylor's series.
What a great gift and what a rewarding book! Jonathan Westlake makes a great central character and his age, his personality, his family connections and his makeup filled me with interest in and admiration for him. Well done, Tom! I did find the idea of naming characters on both sides of the war a little much as remembering all of them was difficult. Still, seeing the events on both sides added a depth of understanding to just what was happening with the fur traders and their importance in the War of 1812. I had concentrated on the settlers who carved farms out of the woods so this was welcome knowledge.
I am looking forward to reading all of the rest of Taylor's series.
April 23, 2018
Early Ontario history engagingly written. I read all four books in the series and was sad when it was over. See also Don Gutteridge's Marc Edwards series if you like this genre.
August 26, 2018
Great read for Richard Sharpe fans.
October 21, 2015
Brock’s Agent, the first in a series of novels following the adventures of Jonathan Westlake during the 1812 war between Britain and the USA in Canada, offers a good history lesson but is less successful as a work of fiction.
By inserting Westlake, an entirely fictional character, into a series of very real events author Tom Taylor stumbles over the same problem that afflicts many similar historical novels; namely that reality, no matter how eventful, isn’t always dramatically satisfying enough to support a fictional thriller.
To be truly engaging a thriller needs solid characters, incident, intrigue and action. The war of 1812 does provide most of these things. However, what a thriller also needs a decent quantity of exciting incident and considered, satisfying pacing, and this is where the historical record lets Taylor down. Although the early stages of the 1812 war were eventful, none of those events were particularly exciting. Nor did they occur at a speed that is dramatically satisfying. As a result Brock’s Agent, by hitching itself so closely to actual events, meanders for much its length and lacks sufficient incident to really maintain the reader’s interest.
Taylor attempts to enliven things by grafting on an entirely fictional sub-plot involving fur traders who are out to kill Westlake for reasons that aren’t always entirely clear, and an associated romance between our hero and a young woman he rescues early on in the story. Unfortunately neither of these subplots are sufficiently engaging to make up for the lack of action elsewhere. The significance of the vendetta by the fur traders is muted by the fact that they and Westlake only interact directly a couple of times during the entire book’s length, and the primary antagonist remains an entirely one dimensional bad-guy straight out of central casting.
The romance is equally insipid, with the author failing to generate a sense of any real spark or chemistry between Westlake and Ms. Collins, the object of his apparent affections. The reader is expected to believe that these two feel some great passion for each other despite only meeting briefly twice, and that said passion can withstand months of separation and privation. However, at no point does the romance really spring to life. It feels inserted more to satisfy a formula and had it been absent entirely the book would not have suffered in any way.
Historical adventure thrillers like Brock’s Agent, and the almost inevitable series that follow them, are ten-a-penny these days. The success of Cornwell’s Sharpe series, and others, have made them seem like a safe bet for authors and publishers alike. However, just having a somewhat unique historical setting and a square jawed lead character are not enough to guarantee success. To get a reader to commit to following a series like this you need a lead of genuine charisma along with a propulsive and exciting narrative that grabs and holds the attention. An air of unpredictability does not go amiss either.
Instead, with Brock’s agent we have a bland lead, a disjointed and at times tedious narrative and too much working to an overly familiar formula. When our hero acquires a working class, salt-of-the-earth yet resourceful, border-line criminal-cum-soldier as a side-kick, something that occurs in too many books of this type to mention, I knew that Brock’s Agent wasn’t going to offer enough that was new or fresh to make me stick with the series.
This review is of a free e-book copy of the novel supplied by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
By inserting Westlake, an entirely fictional character, into a series of very real events author Tom Taylor stumbles over the same problem that afflicts many similar historical novels; namely that reality, no matter how eventful, isn’t always dramatically satisfying enough to support a fictional thriller.
To be truly engaging a thriller needs solid characters, incident, intrigue and action. The war of 1812 does provide most of these things. However, what a thriller also needs a decent quantity of exciting incident and considered, satisfying pacing, and this is where the historical record lets Taylor down. Although the early stages of the 1812 war were eventful, none of those events were particularly exciting. Nor did they occur at a speed that is dramatically satisfying. As a result Brock’s Agent, by hitching itself so closely to actual events, meanders for much its length and lacks sufficient incident to really maintain the reader’s interest.
Taylor attempts to enliven things by grafting on an entirely fictional sub-plot involving fur traders who are out to kill Westlake for reasons that aren’t always entirely clear, and an associated romance between our hero and a young woman he rescues early on in the story. Unfortunately neither of these subplots are sufficiently engaging to make up for the lack of action elsewhere. The significance of the vendetta by the fur traders is muted by the fact that they and Westlake only interact directly a couple of times during the entire book’s length, and the primary antagonist remains an entirely one dimensional bad-guy straight out of central casting.
The romance is equally insipid, with the author failing to generate a sense of any real spark or chemistry between Westlake and Ms. Collins, the object of his apparent affections. The reader is expected to believe that these two feel some great passion for each other despite only meeting briefly twice, and that said passion can withstand months of separation and privation. However, at no point does the romance really spring to life. It feels inserted more to satisfy a formula and had it been absent entirely the book would not have suffered in any way.
Historical adventure thrillers like Brock’s Agent, and the almost inevitable series that follow them, are ten-a-penny these days. The success of Cornwell’s Sharpe series, and others, have made them seem like a safe bet for authors and publishers alike. However, just having a somewhat unique historical setting and a square jawed lead character are not enough to guarantee success. To get a reader to commit to following a series like this you need a lead of genuine charisma along with a propulsive and exciting narrative that grabs and holds the attention. An air of unpredictability does not go amiss either.
Instead, with Brock’s agent we have a bland lead, a disjointed and at times tedious narrative and too much working to an overly familiar formula. When our hero acquires a working class, salt-of-the-earth yet resourceful, border-line criminal-cum-soldier as a side-kick, something that occurs in too many books of this type to mention, I knew that Brock’s Agent wasn’t going to offer enough that was new or fresh to make me stick with the series.
This review is of a free e-book copy of the novel supplied by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
October 2, 2012
I just put it down, completed. This is one of my favorite books - in fact, I think that Anne of Green Gables is the only book I have enjoyed more than this one. (I think that The Sound and the Fury would round out my top 3, actually).
It is action-packed from beginning to end. The characters are interesting and likable. I can't wait to buy Brock's Railroad, the sequel which is already out, and Brock's Traitor, to be released in the first half of next year. I was happily surprised to see in the historical notes following the book that many memorable parts were actually true stories. The book itself did a great job of adding an exciting fictional layer to this era in North American history.
I would now like to read some Sharpe books, which were inspirational to the author.
Great job, Taylor!
It is action-packed from beginning to end. The characters are interesting and likable. I can't wait to buy Brock's Railroad, the sequel which is already out, and Brock's Traitor, to be released in the first half of next year. I was happily surprised to see in the historical notes following the book that many memorable parts were actually true stories. The book itself did a great job of adding an exciting fictional layer to this era in North American history.
I would now like to read some Sharpe books, which were inspirational to the author.
Great job, Taylor!
December 27, 2012
Johnathan Westlake is the sole heir to the Westlake Trading company. He is also a bit of ne‘er-do-well, charging into situations when he should leave well enough alone. This lands him in trouble, forcing his mother to turn to Sir Issac Brock for help. Brock turn Westlake into a spy and messenger, sending him deep into American territory on the eve of the war of 1812. Can Westlake rally the native forces to the British side in time to save Canada?
Brock‘s agent is that rarest of things. a Canadian historical thriller in the style of James Clavell or John Jakes. It is full of the romance, melodrama and violence this genre requires. But it also suffers the flaws of this genre. Some of the villains are Victorian melodrama evil and Westlake is also a bit too noble to be believed.
Still, the story is well paced, with lots of action. Fun read.
Brock‘s agent is that rarest of things. a Canadian historical thriller in the style of James Clavell or John Jakes. It is full of the romance, melodrama and violence this genre requires. But it also suffers the flaws of this genre. Some of the villains are Victorian melodrama evil and Westlake is also a bit too noble to be believed.
Still, the story is well paced, with lots of action. Fun read.
January 5, 2015
I don't usually read historical fiction, but after meeting the author at a local event I decided to buy it and give it a try. To my delight, I found it to be a very enjoyable read. So much so that I bought the others in the series and quickly read them all.
The author excels at creating a sense of place and time, and bringing a long-past event to life. Lots of interesting bits and pieces that get glossed over in school lessons and sound-bite popularizations. I particularly enjoyed how Mr. Taylor sketched out the social and political background of events, without getting bogged in the minutia and trivia that seems to bedevil most historical fiction.
The characters are decently fleshed out, but tend to be a bit sketchy for my taste (hence the 4 star rating).
All in all, a rousing adventure that is a lot of fun to read.
The author excels at creating a sense of place and time, and bringing a long-past event to life. Lots of interesting bits and pieces that get glossed over in school lessons and sound-bite popularizations. I particularly enjoyed how Mr. Taylor sketched out the social and political background of events, without getting bogged in the minutia and trivia that seems to bedevil most historical fiction.
The characters are decently fleshed out, but tend to be a bit sketchy for my taste (hence the 4 star rating).
All in all, a rousing adventure that is a lot of fun to read.
December 11, 2013
I enjoyed the book from start to finish. It was interesting to learn about the events that took place in 1812 and I got hooked on the characters, which kept my interest, wanting to learn what eventually happens to them.
I recommend it to all, particularly Canadians,looking for a good read this winter.
I recommend it to all, particularly Canadians,looking for a good read this winter.
October 6, 2016
I've never actually read historical fiction, but my fascination with the War of 1812 spurred me into picking up the first novel of this series, and now I am hooked. It's an easy read but the fictional main character is compelling and the depiction of real events and the real characters, such as General Isaac Brock are woven throughout the story quite well without losing their authenticity.
July 8, 2013
historical fiction
346 pages
1st of 3 books
The War of 1812 from the Canadian view.
Taylor used the real events from General Brock, Tecumsch and the American General Hull along with fictional characters to tell the story of what happened at Tippecanoe, Fort Mackinac and fort Detroit.
346 pages
1st of 3 books
The War of 1812 from the Canadian view.
Taylor used the real events from General Brock, Tecumsch and the American General Hull along with fictional characters to tell the story of what happened at Tippecanoe, Fort Mackinac and fort Detroit.
July 9, 2014
Although fiction, this is a good intro to the beginning of the War of 1812---the players, the forts, the rationales, and the outcomes. Totally plot-driven with characters who aren't fully developed. But interesting.
July 20, 2016
Read while in jail. Actual rating :3.2
September 9, 2012
Interesting novel about the outbreak of the War of 1812, sympathetic to the British point of view.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews