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Sea Officer William Bentley #4
Undertaker's Wind
Jan Needle's fourth Sea Officer William Bentley naval adventure finds the young lieutenant in the Bahamas. With the Biter sunk beneath the Caribbean waves, along with Captain "Slack Dickie" Kaye's corrupted dream of riches, Will Bentley is forced inexorably deeper into the brutal and rapacious world of Jamaican politics. Although he brilliantly cuts out a mysterious French brig from a secret bay, his hopes of recovering his lost honour with a triumphant return to Port Royal are blighted by the news that Deb Tomelty, his beloved "Spithead Nymph," has been held responsible for the death of a leading planter--and that William must help to hunt her to her death!
340 pages, Paperback
First published July 30, 2006
18 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
About the author
Jan Needle
72 books32 followersJan Needle has written more than forty books, including novels for adults and children and literary criticism. He also writes plays for stage, TV and radio, including serials and series like Grange Hill, The Bill and Brookside. His first novel, Wild Wood, is a retelling of The Wind in the Willows with Toad, Rat, Mole and Co as the ‘villains’ - a sort of undeserving rural squirearchy – and the stoats and weasels as heroes. A new version was brought out recently by Golden Duck, with the original wonderful illustrations by the late Willie Rushton.
Although he is currently working on a film of perhaps his most celebrated children’s book, My Mate Shofiq, Jan has recently been concentrating on historical novels about his first and most enduring love, the sea, and a series of extremely gritty thrillers. His aim has always been to transcend standard genre writing, which has sometimes brought him disapproval. The ‘hero’ of his first naval fiction, A Fine Boy for Killing, is a borderline sadist, and life on the frigate Welfare undermines almost every heroic myth popularized by earlier writers. Loved or hated, his novels refuse to be ignored.
His thrillers are also firmly in the ‘noir’ spectrum. The most recent is The Bonus Boys, which features a hard-as-nails investigator called Andrew Forbes and his Scottish lover Rosanna ‘the Mouse’ Nixon, who first appeared in Kicking Off, a chilling warning about the fissile state of Britain’s crumbling prisons. More are in the pipeline, as are additions to a series of novellas about crime, the 18th century navy, and the secret world of spies and spying. Even the possibility that Napoleon escaped from his exile on St Helena is examined. Like many ‘mere conspiracy theories’ it uncovers some extraordinary possibilities.
Jan also attempts, in conjunction with Walker Books, to widen the readership for certain classic novels. They include so far Moby Dick, Dracula, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, and The Woman in White, all aimed at a young adult audience . In his spare time, he sails boats and plays a variety of musical instruments.
Although he is currently working on a film of perhaps his most celebrated children’s book, My Mate Shofiq, Jan has recently been concentrating on historical novels about his first and most enduring love, the sea, and a series of extremely gritty thrillers. His aim has always been to transcend standard genre writing, which has sometimes brought him disapproval. The ‘hero’ of his first naval fiction, A Fine Boy for Killing, is a borderline sadist, and life on the frigate Welfare undermines almost every heroic myth popularized by earlier writers. Loved or hated, his novels refuse to be ignored.
His thrillers are also firmly in the ‘noir’ spectrum. The most recent is The Bonus Boys, which features a hard-as-nails investigator called Andrew Forbes and his Scottish lover Rosanna ‘the Mouse’ Nixon, who first appeared in Kicking Off, a chilling warning about the fissile state of Britain’s crumbling prisons. More are in the pipeline, as are additions to a series of novellas about crime, the 18th century navy, and the secret world of spies and spying. Even the possibility that Napoleon escaped from his exile on St Helena is examined. Like many ‘mere conspiracy theories’ it uncovers some extraordinary possibilities.
Jan also attempts, in conjunction with Walker Books, to widen the readership for certain classic novels. They include so far Moby Dick, Dracula, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, and The Woman in White, all aimed at a young adult audience . In his spare time, he sails boats and plays a variety of musical instruments.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 6, 2020
Just couldn't get into it
I tried but the book didn't do it for me.I had issues with the characters and story line. I'll maybe try another book but I'll try another author first.
I tried but the book didn't do it for me.I had issues with the characters and story line. I'll maybe try another book but I'll try another author first.
Read
April 20, 2020Confabulated plot and characters
Wanders between surrealism, sarcasm, and attempts at dialects in the narrative. Could not satisfactorily find either plot or character development. An unrewarding read.
Wanders between surrealism, sarcasm, and attempts at dialects in the narrative. Could not satisfactorily find either plot or character development. An unrewarding read.
February 24, 2016
A good story
Jan Needle is an excellent Writer. His plots, characters and scene descriptions are well-written. He is one of the best of the current maritime fiction writers.
Jan Needle is an excellent Writer. His plots, characters and scene descriptions are well-written. He is one of the best of the current maritime fiction writers.
July 2, 2016
Unmitigated garbage
I threw this book in the trash after 30 pages. I would rather not waste my time on a fantasy story set in a fake place.
I threw this book in the trash after 30 pages. I would rather not waste my time on a fantasy story set in a fake place.
October 19, 2016
Good
Enjoyed this as well as the prior two. Wish I could understand all the jargon about the ship and the sails. But a good read.
Enjoyed this as well as the prior two. Wish I could understand all the jargon about the ship and the sails. But a good read.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews