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Alan Lewrie #21
Kings and Emperors
“The best naval adventure series since C. S. Forester.” —Library Journal
Captain Alan Lewrie, Royal Navy, is still in Gibraltar, his schemes for raids along the coast of Southern Spain shot to a halt. He is reduced to commanding a clutch of harbor defense gunboats in the bay while his ship, HMS Sapphire, slowly grounds herself on a reef of beef bones! Until Napoleon Bonaparte’s invasion of peaceful Portugal and his so-called collaborative march into Spain change everything, freeing Sapphire to roam against the King’s enemies once more!
As kings are overthrown and popular uprisings break out all across Spain, Lewrie’s right back in the action, ferrying weapons to arm Spanish patriots, scouting within close gun range of the impregnable fort of Ceuta, escorting the advance units of British expeditionary armies to aid the Spanish, and even going ashore to witness the first battles between Sir Arthur Wellesley, later the Duke of Wellington, and Napoleon’s best Marshals, as the long Peninsular War that broke Imperial France begins to unfold.
From Cádiz to La Coruña, Lewrie and Sapphire will be there as history explodes!
Captain Alan Lewrie, Royal Navy, is still in Gibraltar, his schemes for raids along the coast of Southern Spain shot to a halt. He is reduced to commanding a clutch of harbor defense gunboats in the bay while his ship, HMS Sapphire, slowly grounds herself on a reef of beef bones! Until Napoleon Bonaparte’s invasion of peaceful Portugal and his so-called collaborative march into Spain change everything, freeing Sapphire to roam against the King’s enemies once more!
As kings are overthrown and popular uprisings break out all across Spain, Lewrie’s right back in the action, ferrying weapons to arm Spanish patriots, scouting within close gun range of the impregnable fort of Ceuta, escorting the advance units of British expeditionary armies to aid the Spanish, and even going ashore to witness the first battles between Sir Arthur Wellesley, later the Duke of Wellington, and Napoleon’s best Marshals, as the long Peninsular War that broke Imperial France begins to unfold.
From Cádiz to La Coruña, Lewrie and Sapphire will be there as history explodes!
353 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 2015
133 people are currently reading
201 people want to read
About the author
Dewey Lambdin
70 books278 followersDewey Lambdin (1945-2021 ) was an American nautical historical novelist. He was best known for his Alan Lewrie naval adventure series, set during the Napoleonic Wars. Besides the Alan Lewrie series, he was also the author of What Lies Buried: a novel of Old Cape Fear.
A self-proclaimed "Navy Brat," Lambdin spent a good deal of his early days on both coasts of the U.S.A., and overseas duty stations, with his father. His father enlisted as a Seaman Recruit in 1930, was "mustanged" from the lower deck (from Yeoman chief Petty Officer) at Notre Dame in '42, and was career Navy until May of 1954, when he was killed at sea aboard the USS Bennington CVA-20 (see below), on which he served as Administrative Officer, 5th in line-of-command (posthumous Lieutenant Commander).
Lambdin himself attended Castle Heights Military Academy, graduated in 1962, and was destined to be the family's first "ring-knocker" from the U.S. Naval Academy, "... until he realised that physics, calculus, and counting higher than ten were bigger than he was."[1] He studied at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, majoring in Liberal arts and Theatre, where he was published in The Theme Vault in 1963, also reprinted in a national textbook, which whetted his appetite for writing. However, he failed his degree. He finally graduated with a degree in Film & TV Production from Montana State University, Bozeman, in 1969. This was considered at the time to be the McHale's Navy of the academic set, so the nautical influence was still at work. He has worked for a network affiliate TV station as a producer/director for twelve years, an independent station as production manager and senior director/writer/ producer for three years, all in Memphis, and as a writer/producer with a Nashville advertising/production facility, or in free-lance camera, lighting and writing.
He has been a sailor since 1976 and spends his free time working and sailing on his beloved sloop Wind Dancer, with a special taste for cruising the Gulf of Mexico. Mr. Lambdin has thus far resisted the temptation to trade his beloved typewriter for a computer. He lived in Nashville, Tennessee.
He was a member of the U.S. Naval Institute, a Friend of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, England; Cousteau Society; the former American Film Institute; and the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
-Wikipedia
Mr Lambdin passed away on July 26, 2021 at the age of 76.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/deweyl...
A self-proclaimed "Navy Brat," Lambdin spent a good deal of his early days on both coasts of the U.S.A., and overseas duty stations, with his father. His father enlisted as a Seaman Recruit in 1930, was "mustanged" from the lower deck (from Yeoman chief Petty Officer) at Notre Dame in '42, and was career Navy until May of 1954, when he was killed at sea aboard the USS Bennington CVA-20 (see below), on which he served as Administrative Officer, 5th in line-of-command (posthumous Lieutenant Commander).
Lambdin himself attended Castle Heights Military Academy, graduated in 1962, and was destined to be the family's first "ring-knocker" from the U.S. Naval Academy, "... until he realised that physics, calculus, and counting higher than ten were bigger than he was."[1] He studied at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, majoring in Liberal arts and Theatre, where he was published in The Theme Vault in 1963, also reprinted in a national textbook, which whetted his appetite for writing. However, he failed his degree. He finally graduated with a degree in Film & TV Production from Montana State University, Bozeman, in 1969. This was considered at the time to be the McHale's Navy of the academic set, so the nautical influence was still at work. He has worked for a network affiliate TV station as a producer/director for twelve years, an independent station as production manager and senior director/writer/ producer for three years, all in Memphis, and as a writer/producer with a Nashville advertising/production facility, or in free-lance camera, lighting and writing.
He has been a sailor since 1976 and spends his free time working and sailing on his beloved sloop Wind Dancer, with a special taste for cruising the Gulf of Mexico. Mr. Lambdin has thus far resisted the temptation to trade his beloved typewriter for a computer. He lived in Nashville, Tennessee.
He was a member of the U.S. Naval Institute, a Friend of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, England; Cousteau Society; the former American Film Institute; and the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
-Wikipedia
Mr Lambdin passed away on July 26, 2021 at the age of 76.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/deweyl...
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
April 27, 2016
Alan Lewrie is back in Kings and Emperors. He and the HMS Sapphire are relieved from dull and plodding service off of Gibraltar and, instead, get stationed off the coast of Portugal and Spain (roughly between Lisbon and Bayonne). Here, in command of a small squadron, Lewrie and the British are to harass the French and frustrate their efforts to resupply Napoleon's legions in the Iberian Peninsula.
The story itself is pretty straight-forward and fairly fun; however, a certain element of tension is gone from the book. After Trafalgar, the British navy is clearly supreme. Britannia rules the waves and all that. The naval action is more about Lewrie and the English executing daring attacks on the French than staving off defeat. At no point did I seriously question that Lewrie and his ship would survive. That lack of tension is disappointing.
Additionally, from a purely cynical perspective, it felt to me that Lewrie's assignment was purely opportunistic. The author injected Lewrie off the coasts of northern Spain so that he could inject Lewrie into the cataclysmic Peninsular Campaign that finally saw the tides turn against Bonaparte. Indeed, I was in no way shape or form surprised when Lewrie meets Wellesley, the future Duke of Wellington. (On a side note, I do think the author gave a silent nod to Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe series by including the green jacketed riflemen. That was fun.)
Three broadsides out of five. If you've read the twenty-odd Lewrie books, you know you'll stick it out and read this one too. If you've not, well, you won't read this one.
The story itself is pretty straight-forward and fairly fun; however, a certain element of tension is gone from the book. After Trafalgar, the British navy is clearly supreme. Britannia rules the waves and all that. The naval action is more about Lewrie and the English executing daring attacks on the French than staving off defeat. At no point did I seriously question that Lewrie and his ship would survive. That lack of tension is disappointing.
Additionally, from a purely cynical perspective, it felt to me that Lewrie's assignment was purely opportunistic. The author injected Lewrie off the coasts of northern Spain so that he could inject Lewrie into the cataclysmic Peninsular Campaign that finally saw the tides turn against Bonaparte. Indeed, I was in no way shape or form surprised when Lewrie meets Wellesley, the future Duke of Wellington. (On a side note, I do think the author gave a silent nod to Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe series by including the green jacketed riflemen. That was fun.)
Three broadsides out of five. If you've read the twenty-odd Lewrie books, you know you'll stick it out and read this one too. If you've not, well, you won't read this one.
June 27, 2015
This book is the 21st entry in a series but it's the first that I've read from this author. That being the case I am probably not in a position to fairly judge this book as I am unfamiliar with the evolution of the story or the characters. I am a fan of Age of Sail genre books but as I am already engaged in reading two series from this genre I can't say I am inspired by this book to engage in another. This is especially true since I would have to track-down the 20 previous novels in order to catch-up. I did find the book well written and entertaining but the story seemed to lack the usual quantity and quality of sea action expected from stories of this genre. Of course not having read any of the previous books this story may simply be the exception and not the rule. I now know this series exists and if I ever run out of things to read I know where I can go.
December 13, 2023
-4.5- Well shit, I am down to the last four books in this fantastic series. Unless somehow a book gets published posthumously as a result of Lambdin's unfortunate expiration. This is a superb series so even when a book like this mails it in a bit it is still quite excellent. Lambdin obviously wanted to get Lewrie involved in the Spanish Peninsular battles during the Napoleonic War. A tall task considering Lewrie is a British Naval Captain based in Gibralter for this book. Reluctantly our intrepid captain finds his twig and berries on the line for the very early British Secret service, which places Lewrie and his giblets at the tip of the spear (so to speak). The Spanish are tired of that runt tyrant Napoleon pillaging their country for the benefit of France so they finally rise up (no not like BLM--they don't loot stores) and rebel against the tyrannical French rule. Quick to capitalize on this fracture in the alliance with Napoleon the British land an army and win a major victory against Nalopeon's "Grand Armee." Enraged Napoleon crosses the Pyrennes with a 100,000 man army to kick some Spanish and British ass. Well he succeeds and the British are forced to evacuate the army in very Dunkirk fashion and Lewrie is involved in the thick of the action. If you are a fan of naval fiction get off your ass and start reading this series. It is superb.
December 28, 2021
An interesting side street wonder from the naval battles into the world of the army. A clever ruse to catch up on world events send still have Lewrie present. A fascinating installment really.
November 7, 2020
The Flashman of the RN continues keep us entertained! Wonderful stuff!
June 30, 2015
The 21st Book of the series, and here is a continuation directly of the last book with our hero still at Gibraltar though now the invasion of the British onto the Peninsula is underway. Lure not only finds a means to integrate fully as a Naval officer into the initial campaign but still works around any attachment to the various fleets that are blockading elsewhere in the Med or Atlantic.
There are moments of danger for he and his men, but no great chases and pursuits as we have seen before. Now it is mostly about having the Spanish realize that England should be their Ally, not France, and then the war is on in ernest, for no war was ever won without the infantry to seize some land.
Is this the best of the series for our age of sail, no, but it is necessary as we continue the path of an officer who was birthed in the bloody Colonial Revolution and will see his career's end during that of the French War.
There are moments of danger for he and his men, but no great chases and pursuits as we have seen before. Now it is mostly about having the Spanish realize that England should be their Ally, not France, and then the war is on in ernest, for no war was ever won without the infantry to seize some land.
Is this the best of the series for our age of sail, no, but it is necessary as we continue the path of an officer who was birthed in the bloody Colonial Revolution and will see his career's end during that of the French War.
January 18, 2022
Dewey Lambdin had a pretty good scheme for the following the career of a Royal Navy officer from his midshipmen days to post captain and beyond. He started the tale during the American Revolution and carried it through the Napoleanic wars. This provided lots of opportunity to create stories based on actual events that were taking place during a 30+ year time span. The downside is that not all the events are equally interesting or engaging. For this reason, I suppose, Lambdin added the “secret service” element much in the same way that O’Brien makes Stephen Maturin a secret agent. Lewrie is contantly being assigned missions in support of the secret service and for a couple of books now he has been loaned to his old clerk Thomas Mountjoy, now the British agent in Gibraltar responsible for trying to keep Spain out of Napoleon’s clutches. He uses this opportunity to put Lewrie together with a young Portuguese refugee Magdalena and a series of juicy encounters. Even though Lewrie is firmly entrenched in middle age his aggressiveness and eagerness for action has not diminished and as is habit he often goes looking for trouble. In this book he goes ashore to participate in a victorious British victory killing several Frenchmen in the bargain. We are now in book 21 and Lewrie’s personal body count is rivaling John Wick as he picks off several French officers and NCOs using his trusty Ferguson Rifle. I’ve lost count but he in the course of duels, boardings and land battles Lewrie must now have personally killed more than thirty men. In addition, his ships guns have killed hundreds and hundreds more. It is the trick of the historical fiction writer to make the hero an eye witness to history. Thus, Lewrie has come into contact with many luminaries such as Nelson, Napoleon and, in this book, the future Duke of Wellington who takes time to admire Lewrie’s Ferguson. Lambdin is also fond of having Lewrie run into characters we’ve previously met. Most notably his son Hugh, now an experienced midshipman who hasn’t seen his father in five years sails into Gibraltar on his frigate. Involved in the third extraction of a British army this time from Spain, Lewrie meets up with his old friend Vicount Percy who married the exotic circus performer Eudoxia, one the few beautiful women in the series Lewrie has not “put the leg over.” He did, however, have a romance with Percy’s sister and even considered marriage. We don’t know yet if Percy survived the evacuation but it would be no fault of Lewrie who put his ship in harms way to bombard a French artillery detachment that was firing on the troop ships. In the end the entire flotilla sails for England where Lewrie will have to suffer the anxiety of getting his ship repaired, getting a new ship or going on shore at half pay. I expect the Admiralty will have a new assignment for him in book 22 of this long and excellent series.
October 23, 2021
Another rollicking read, possibly tamer and less dangerous than previously; our hero seems to be slowing down? This leaves him (and we the readers) with more time for character development and a sense (a sniff?) of what these times were like. Only a single love interest, introduced in the previous book, and the Ram Cat is constantly and uncharacteristically interested in her from the first page to the last. Historically this was a muddy time for Europe, with Napoleon stumbling around dangerously, and Lambdin makes the best of it. Apparently only three more rounds ahead, and I will probably wish for more after I finish the 24th.
October 26, 2021
Another cracking yarn
Lewrie is busy as usual,mixed up with land lubbers,spies and beautiful women. He manages to get involved with battles on land for a change. Roll on the next adventure.
Lewrie is busy as usual,mixed up with land lubbers,spies and beautiful women. He manages to get involved with battles on land for a change. Roll on the next adventure.
July 4, 2023
I so like the earlier books better. This one was decent. I get a little bored with the recaps of previous events. Overall, it had it's exciting parts but not quite as much drama as I have come to expect in this series- at least in the first 10 or so books.
December 11, 2018
Another tale of Sir Alan and his mischief. Fun read.
December 30, 2020
Another great book
Another great book in the series. I can't wait for the next novel. It's gripping and exciting as all the stories have been. So sad I have to wait for the next episode
Another great book in the series. I can't wait for the next novel. It's gripping and exciting as all the stories have been. So sad I have to wait for the next episode
June 21, 2021
Typical Alan Lewrie story against British evacuation from Coruna
March 31, 2022
It doesn't matter when or where if the government is involved, they will always take care of themselves first.
May 15, 2022
Not quite up to Patrick O'Brian standards but still very good.
July 20, 2022
1808ish. At Gibraltar. Lewrie aids in arms and troop movements as Nap invades and Eng lands then off lands armies. Wellesley. Mountjoy. Hughes.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 27, 2023
Excellent, as usual!
March 8, 2015
Always nice to curl up with a new Alan Lewrie adventure and this one doesn't disappoint (Honestly can't think one that has). Stick in Gilbraltar Captain Sir Alan Lewrie longs to get back to fighting Napoleon. He ends up helping to transport the army to fight in Spain, which has just overthrown their King. Panic ensues when poor British leadership causes to reverse the gains by Sir Arthur Wellesley (later Duke of Wellington). Lure actually joins a land battle to see what it's like to fight on land.
Always entertaining. Pity I'll to wait another year for the next installment. Highly Recomended even if you are new to series since Lambdin refers to the beginnings of the series.
Always entertaining. Pity I'll to wait another year for the next installment. Highly Recomended even if you are new to series since Lambdin refers to the beginnings of the series.
April 21, 2015
So wonderful to set sail with Captain Sir Alan Lewrie again. We join him in Gibraltar where he is leading a swarm of gunboats with his Forth- Rate HMS Sapphire and he is as frustrated as a top rate security expert assigned to ride herd on a nursery school full of toddlers! But don't worry fans, he is soon up to his old tricks and getting into as much hot water as he can handle. Thrilling sea battles and lots of grins for his cleverness await when you turn the pages! The tale ends leaving you wanting more, more! Please Mr. Lambdin, write faster!
September 9, 2015
This latest installment of the Alan Lewrie series finds our hero and his ship in Spain and Portugal in the early stages of England's involvement in the continental portion of the Napoleonic wars. The book contains few of the grand battles Lewrie has become involved in during his recent history, but he plays some surprising roles as a minor player to this local theater of war. We have a chance to meet some of the major players, such as Arthur Wellesley, and a whole host of bad generals and courageous soldiers.
Make sure not to miss this stop on Lewrie's journey through the Wars.
Make sure not to miss this stop on Lewrie's journey through the Wars.
May 24, 2016
This was another solid entry in the Captain Lewrie saga. I feel that we are stuck in a plodding sort of mode right now with little happening and a minimal amount of action. However, in the Napoleonic Wars, 1808-09 were plodding years with the British slowly getting their ground game together. Well-written and packed with enough adventure to go round.
July 26, 2015
Alan Lewrie is the thick of it again. This time he is on hand for the opening salvo in Wellington's Peninsular Campaign. Lewrie is in fine form in this book a little harder edged toward the French but why not. Can't wait the next one in the series.
March 22, 2015
As usual, Lewrie is up to his best confusing the French, this time in Spain during the early days of the Peninsula Campaign. A fine read, even if nothing too surprising happens.
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April 11, 2017
Another masterpiece!
The adventures of Captain Sir Alan Lewrie, Baronet continue in this volume! A fantastic read! I can't wait to start the next adventure!
The adventures of Captain Sir Alan Lewrie, Baronet continue in this volume! A fantastic read! I can't wait to start the next adventure!
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews