Blue Water

Laurence Jago #2

by Leonora Nattrass

'A joy from start to finish' ANDREW TAYLOR, author of THE ROYAL SECRET
'Artful and authentic historical fiction at its best' A.J. WEST, author of THE SPIRIT ENGINEER

Death came aboard with the cormorant. It arrived on the seventh day of our voyage...

This is the secret report of disgraced former Foreign Office clerk Laurence Jago, written on the mail ship Tankerville en route to Philadelphia. His mission is to aid the civil servant charged with carrying a vital treaty to Congress that will prevent the Americans from joining with the French in their war against Britain.

When the civil servant meets an unfortunate 'accidental' end, Laurence becomes the one person standing between Britain and disaster. It is his great chance to redeem himself at Whitehall - except that his predecessor has taken the secret of the treaty's hiding place to his watery grave.

As the ship is searched, Laurence quickly discovers that his fellow passengers - among them fugitive French aristocrats, an American plantation owner, an Irish actress and her performing bear - all have their own motives to find the treaty for themselves. And as a second death follows the first, Laurence must turn sleuth in order to find the killer before he has an 'accident' of his own.

The new pageturning historical mystery from the author of BLACK DROP, a 2021 TIMES Book of the Year. Perfect for readers of Andrew Taylor, Laura Shepherd-Robinson and S.J. Parris.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Historical, Fiction, Thriller, Crime, Book Club

325 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2022

About the author

Leonora Nattrass studied eighteenth-century literature and politics, and spent ten years lecturing in English and publishing works on William Cobbett. She then moved to Cornwall, where she lives in a seventeenth-century house with seventeenth-century draughts, and spins the fleeces of her traditional Ryeland sheep into yarn. Black Drop is her first novel.

Reviews

[Miriam Smith (A Mother’s Musings) · Rating 5 out of 5]

1795, The Atlantic. A stolen treaty. And a murderer on board……

- “My Lord, affairs aboard this ship have gone worse than I could ever have imagined when I accepted your commission. You will hear as many accounts of this voyage as there are passengers aboard but I think it my duty to give my own report, to counter the wilder stories you will no doubt receive in good time. Death arrived with the cormorant. It came aboard on the seventh day of our voyage…….” -

“BLUE WATER” is the second thrilling adventure in the ‘Laurence Jago’ series by author Leonora Nattrass, following on from the very successful “Black Drop”. Both are fabulously written historical fiction novels set in 1794/95, of which the author has captured the era, the social politics, the dialogue etc perfectly. With the story being set on board a three masted packet ship, in a ‘locked room’ murder mystery style, this story has a lot to offer the historical reader who won’t be disappointed.

I like Laurence Jago and I loved the introduction of his character in “Black Drop” too. The way the book is written in report form, from Jago and interspersed with entries from the Captain’s Log and a journalist’s articles which are being sent home, you form a clear picture of exactly the mood of the crew and passengers and the dastardly events directly as they happen.

Easy to read and follow, exceedingly well researched by a passionate historical fiction author and I’m expecting further exciting adventures for Laurence in the future. For those that haven’t read “Black Drop” there’s a helpful cast of characters (which is always a help regardless) but this can easily be read as a stand-alone with the crux of the story being about an important document and it’s essential need to reach America. Thoroughly entertaining and highly recommend!

#BlueWater - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very likeable main protagonist plus an interesting setting aboard a ship, some characters from the first book in the series, some new. And a small brown bear… very entertaining read. I definitely plan to continue the series. Many thanks to Netgalley for an arc of this book.

[Vicky Belshaw-Hitchen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very hard book to get into, once you hit chapter 5 you kind of get used to who is who however this book I find very lacking. The book does not grip you at any point, the book does not take you to imagine the scene if that makes sense. All in all I would say it’s a very boring book.

[Louise Fein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blue Water is a compelling locked room murder-mystery filled with an exquisitely drawn cast of eccentric characters. Nattrass has a real talent for transporting her readers to the 1790’s with pitch perfect prose infused with historical detail (never overdone), humour and intrigue. The reader is right there, on board the transatlantic mail ship, the Tankerville, tasting the salty air, feeling the heat and humidity of the Caribbean with every creak and groan of the ship. Protagonist, Laurence Jago won my heart with all his imperfections and quiet heroism. A wonderful historical naval adventure which keeps the reader guessing right to the final pages.

[Parsley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this as it sounded like such an interesting premise. But the characters were flat or confusing, everyone just wandered around the ship mumbling and there was really no intrigue or story at all.

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slow to get going and never really took off.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hadn’t read Black Drop, the book introducing Laurence Jago, but I didn’t feel I had missed out on any back story.

The majority of the book is set on the Tankerville, following its journey from Falmouth to Philadelphia in 1795. On board is a very important signed treaty, destined for the British Ambassador in Philadelphia. Jago has been tasked with working undercover to help protect the treaty.

There is quite an eclectic group of people on board, and that is before a girl eith a dancing bear boards at one of the stops. As the story progresses, they all appear to have secrets. Who can be trusted?

The journey is hazardous, with bad weather and pirates to avoid, plus a French ship which has been tasked with retrieving the treaty. Not to mention the cormorant which began the voyage on the ship, much to the horror of the crew as it is a bad omen.

When Jenkinson, the carrier of the treaty, dies after an accident involving a spar, it appears the whereabouts of the hidden treaty has died with him. But was his death an accident or is there a murderer on board?

Lots of twists and turns in this page turner. It is based on real ships and real events, which always make historical thrillers more fascinating to me.

Many thanks to Rosie at Viper books for my proof copy of the book and my place on the blog tour.

[Monika Armet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laurence Jago is back in the second instalment of the series.

What a book that was!

This time, Jago, a disgraced Foreign Office clerk, is working undercover for Lord Grenville, the current Foreign Secretary.

He finds himself onboard the Tankerville, a mail ship headed for Philadelphia via Madeira and Barbados. Laurence is travelling under the pretence of being an assistant to Mr Philpott, who is a journalist.

His real mission is to deliver the Jay Treaty, a document of great importance to the peace between the US and Britain.

Frederick Jenkinson, a War Office official and the only person onboard who knows Jago’s true purpose, ends up dead. Jenkinson had the Treaty, but he never told Laurence where he kept it.

When Jago discovers that a potential secret agent for the French might be onboard the Tankerville, he is desperate to find the Treaty sooner, rather than later…

What a brilliant follow up to the Black Drop.

Yet again, Laurence finds himself in an awkward situation, but he is definitely trying to make the best of it. In the first book he struggled with the opium addiction and the temptation is still there, onboard the Tankerville.

There are some quirky characters on the ship, including a comtesse and her burly nephew, a prejudiced cotton plantation owner, and even an Irish actress and her dancing bear cub. Jago certainly won’t be bored!

I cannot wait for the third book in the series – I know it’s out soon in October.

If you haven’t picked up these books, make sure to do it now. You won’t be disappointed.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quite decent follow-up to Black Drop, although Laurence Jago seems to have learned nothing from his experiences and is as much a dolt as he was, especially in his dealings with Lizzy McKendrick, as if anyone with half a brain wouldn't have seen through that little minx. The plot suffers from a lack of breadth as do almost all books set in so limited a scene as a ship at sea, but Natrass did her best with it and the book was engaging enough, despite the abject failure of the attempt at plot-twist introduction. These failed through being as predictable as night following day, and the last third of the book did see me tempted to skim through in an attempt to get to the end - not because I was eager to find out what happened to the treaty but because I was becoming bored with the whole merry-go-round and I just wanted it over, All in all, not a bad second outing for Laurence Jago. The writing was superb and the period setting well rendered, but the plot development suffered from the limited scope offered by the book's setting.

[Klaas Roggeman · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s an enjoyable historical account and good reading material while I was travelling on the US east coast, learning about the young republic and its founding fathers. But some of the writing was less to my liking. A possible clue is hinted at very strongly in the beginning, but it’s not understood by the main character until very late in the book. In the end it proved to be another twist or a ruse, but it kind of bugged me. Most of the book is a supposed account of the main character to his former employer in London, but it doesn’t read all that much as a report more like regular prose with some report-like wordings here and there. This makes it easier to read, but also a bit phony.

I only found out while reading that this the second book in a series, but it didn’t prove to be all that problematic. Although given what I said before, the main character seems a bit too foolish to play the part of clever youngster.

[Wendy(Wendyreadsbooks) Robey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gripping mystery full of suspicious characters and places to hide aboard a ship crossing the Atlantic.
Blue Water took a while to get going for me, but once it did I was hooked. Trying to work out who was behind the disappearance of the Treaty and having suspicions about each and every character aboard, I was well and truly sucked into the story.
Such a clever read with historical facts added to fascinate and add such flavour.
Almost like a locked room mystery, the fact this the setting was primarily on board the Tankerville meant that as the reader you can only assume you know what is happening, but as the way with many well written mysteries, the twists keep coming to ensure nothing is as you think.

[Connie · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Blue Water, the story continues on from The Black Drop.

1794, and Laurence Jago is en route to Philadelphia, as William Philpott's apprentice, but secretly, he has been tasked with a mission from Whitehall, to aid a civil servant carrying vital papers, a treaty that will prevent the Americans from joining France in their war against Britain.
When the civil servant meets an unfortunate end, Laurence discovers the treaty is missing.
A story of murder and intrigue set on the high seas. I did enjoy this. However, I felt the ending was a bit flat, especially the reveal.

[4cats · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though I don't like to read things out of sequence I did so with this. It's one of those 2nd in a series where you can get away with reading it without reading the first. This makes a good read for fans of historical fiction.

[Georgie Wardall · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lacking in suspense, cliché, with a very unlikeable protagonist.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded to 4.

Atmospheric and interesting characters (just at the cusp of almost too many). Pacing was slow sometimes though and I got a bit confused with the endings.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the sequel to Black Drop, Leonora Nattrass’ 2021 debut novel which introduced us to the character of Laurence Jago. Blue Water works well as a standalone historical mystery, but I would recommend reading both books in order if you can.

It’s December 1794 and former government clerk Laurence Jago has just left Britain aboard the packet ship Tankerville. The ship’s destination is Philadelphia, where one of Jago’s fellow passengers, Theodore Jay, will deliver a treaty to President Washington. The Jay Treaty, negotiated by Theodore’s father, the American envoy John Jay, is designed to promote peace between the two nations and prevent America from joining forces with France against Britain. War Office official Mr Jenkinson, also on board the Tankerville, has offered to hide the Treaty in a safe place, but when he is found dead and the papers disappear Jago realises it’s up to him to find them and prevent them from falling into French hands.

Well, I enjoyed Black Drop but this second book is even better! With almost the entire story taking place at sea and therefore with a limited number of characters, the mystery has a ‘locked room’ feel and kept me guessing until the end. Leonora Nattrass very skilfully casts suspicion on first one character then another and it soon appears that almost everyone on the ship has a secret to hide. Although I correctly predicted a few of the plot twists (and was impatiently waiting for Jago to discover them too) the eventual revelation of the fate of the Treaty came as a complete surprise to me. I was also surprised when I read the author's note at the end and saw that some parts of the plot were based on historical fact, although the details have been added to and embellished using the author's imagination!

Laurence Jago continues to be an engaging narrator, though not always the most reliable one due to his occasional poor judgement, the secret sympathies we learned about in the previous book and his tendency to succumb to the temptations of ‘black drop’ laudanum. I was pleased to see the return of some other characters from the first book including the journalist William Philpott (whose attempts to compile a dictionary of seafaring superstitions add some humour to the book) and Theodore Jay’s slave and companion Peter Williams, always a calm and wise presence amid the onboard chaos. And of course, there are plenty of colourful new characters amongst the passengers, including two French aristocrats, an American plantation owner and an Irish actress with a dancing bear!

Choosing to set this novel at sea gives it a very different feel from Black Drop. Apart from a few glimpses of Madeira and then Praia, capital of Cape Verde, the whole story unfolds aboard the Tankerville and we are given lots of insights into life during a long sea voyage. The use of nautical terminology never becomes too overwhelming but it all feels authentic and due to the setting, time period, elegant prose and frequent encounters with French warships, I was strongly reminded of Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin series. I was quite sure Leonora Nattrass must have read O’Brian and when I reached the acknowledgements at the end of the book I found that I was right!

If it’s not already clear, I loved this book and hope there’s going to be a third in the series.

[C.L. Jarvis · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this sequel to Black Drop, our protagonist Jago (who may - in the preceding story - have committed light treason) is onboard a mail ship bound for Philadelphia. His shot at redemption lies in protecting the Jay Treaty, an explosive UK-US political agreement. Unfortunately the treaty has vanished, a diplomat is dead, and their little British mail ship is being pursued by warships full of angry Frenchmen and pirates.

I found Blue Water more entertaining and accessible than Black Drop: the plot is more narrowly focused and the Georgian period detail less distracting. I also enjoy a good locked-room thriller/murder mystery.

Sadly, I found the central plot under-powered, and the solution to the key mystery Deus Ex Machina (I searched my eARC, and there was ZERO foreshadowing of the final twist, it came out of nowhere). I would have liked more fleshing out of the recurring characters such as Jago and Philpott, since I didn’t feel I learned anything new about either beyond Black Drop. However, I’m delighted Peter Williams reappeared, and was cheering him on at several points.

I received a free advanced review copy from NetGalley, and am leaving my review voluntarily.

[Sandra]

DNF. Was super disappointed with this bookclub book. 8 chapters in and I had no inclination to keep picking it up to read it. 😔 May try again another month as I do like the sound of it.

[bella · Rating 5 out of 5]

even i was sold on it being in the wig until it wasnt

[Vivienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Death arrived with the cormorant. It came aboard on the seventh day of our voyage, and settled itself at the bowsprit, wings akimbo, to dry its feathers in the brisk wind. It was too far from shore – probably blown out to sea by the tremendous gale we had met at the mouth of the English Channel, … The poor bird was exhausted, and not at all inclined to take to the wing again, despite all the efforts of the superstitious crew.” - ‘Blue Water’ by Leonora Nattrass.

This is Book 2 in her series of political thrillers set in the late eighteenth century featuring reluctant spy Laurence Jago. I had enjoyed ‘Black Drop’, the first book in the series, and feel that it’s probably best to read these books in order to understand the characters’ motivations.

Following the events in ‘Black Drop’, Jago is travelling on the mail ship Tankerville en route to Philadelphia. His secret mission is to aid the civil servant charged with carrying an important treaty to Congress, which will hopefully prevent the Americans from joining with the French in their war against Britain. When the civil servant meets an unfortunate 'accident’, Laurence becomes the one person standing between Britain and disaster.

However, he has no idea where his predecessor had hidden the treaty. As the story progresses, Jago finds that his fellow passengers all have their own motives to find the treaty for themselves. When a second death occurs, Jago realises that he must turn sleuth in order to identify the killer before he becomes victim number three!

I was pleased that Leonora Nattrass had opened with a cast of characters and a map of the Tankerville’s circuitous route that included stops in Barbados and New York before reaching Philadelphia. This presented plenty of opportunities for the kind of challenges present in historical ocean voyages, including threats from other ships and the weather. No albatrosses shadowing them though a cormorant plays an interesting role when it settles in the ship’s riggings.

I was impressed throughout with the author’s skills in recreating the period setting, including the formality of language and etiquette. Her historical note served to place the novel in context as well as providing fascinating details of the Jay Treaty, which was so vital to the plot and what is known of the Tankerville’s 1794-75 voyage.

Overall, I found ‘Blue Water’ a fabulous nautical adventure with plenty of mystery and intrigue. I look forward to reading more of Jago’s adventures.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story:
Having narrowly escaped London with his life at the end of “Black Drop”, unfairly disgraced former Foreign Office clerk Laurence Jago is once again surrounded by enemies and intrigue. But this time he doesn’t have the anonymous streets of London to hide in — he is aboard the mail ship Tankerville bound for America…

Accompanied by the son of an American envoy and a War Office official, a motley crew of sailors and passengers ranging from an Irish actress to French nobility, not to mention a performing bear, Laurence is determined to ensure the safe delivery of a vital treaty into the hands of President Washington.

But when a suspicious death occurs and the vital papers go missing just days into the voyage, Laurence’s hopes of reestablishing himself with the Foreign Office seem to be slipping away…

My thoughts:
After the dramatic events of “Black Drop”, ill-fated Laurence Jago is once again at the centre of political intrigue in “Blue Water”. This time he is aboard ship en route to America, but his tendency to get drawn into events is unchanged; due somewhat to bad luck, but also his own tendency not to be able to let things go!

In addition to Laurence and his faithful dog Mr Gibbs, I was pleased to see the return of some great characters from the first novel, including newspaper man William Philpott. Of the other passengers, each has their own secrets to protect, and working out whose are linked to Laurence’s own mission makes for an intriguing and surprising plot.

The setting aboard ship makes this a more contained mystery than the first novel, with a more limited field of potential friends and enemies for Laurence, which I thought worked very well.

Overall, this is a hugely enjoyable read, with real historical events expertly woven into a fast-paced and exciting story. Fingers crossed for more of Laurence’s story in the future!

[Laura’s Little Book Nook · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great wee murder-mystery! Although this is a sequel to Black Drop, which I haven’t read and features our protagonist, Laurence Jago, I had no issues reading it as a stand alone (but will definitely be picking up Black Drop to read in the future!).

Set during a voyage from Britain to Philadelphia in 1975, we follow Mr Jago on a hunt to find the Treaty between the Brits and Americans that has gone missing aboard their ship. Never knowing who to trust, and always suspecting someone, Jago tries his best to discover which of his fellow shipmates has the most incentive to steal the treaty and, dare we say it, commit murder to get their hands on it!

This is a wonderfully written story, full of superstition and seances, intrigue and secrets, with a little romance and even a dancing bear! It really does have a little something for everyone!

With short chapters and a story that had me hooked from the get go, I found this to be a fairly quick read. I would definitely recommend this to fans of historical fiction and a classic “who done it” Murder mystery!

[Trevor · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gave the first book in this series ‘Black Drop’ a good review and a 4-star rating. I’m sorry to report I struggled with this one – I felt it took me a long time to get into it and to be honest even at the end I was still struggling.
It is the story of disgraced former Foreign Office clerk Lawrence Jago who is sent on a secret mission aboard the mail ship Tankerville, en route to Philadelphia. His mission is to accompany a civil servant charged with carrying a vital treaty across the Atlantic to the American government.
The voyage is beset by loss of life, suspicion, superstitious sailors and a dancing bear. It seems almost all passengers on board are a little more than they seem, and all have reason to get their hands on the treaty.
For me, the book lacked pace, tension and narrative drive.
Disappointing.

[Mary Pimbblet · Rating 2 out of 5]

This might be a much better read if you’ve read the first of the series, but I hadn’t. I had no idea who all the characters were, and even as the plot progressed it was confusing as mostly they lacked any real distinctions.
It’s basically a locked room mystery based on a boat, but it takes far too long to explain the importance of the treaty that is the focus of the plot, and why it has value to all the different characters involved. Crazy events happen, death and sea monsters, and are simply brushed over with hardly a ripple of excitement.
The plot itself has obviously been really well planned out, there are plenty of red herrings along the way, but the characters are simply not fleshed out enough to make this more than a puzzle to solve.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Historically a fascinating account of subterfuge and mystery as the fates of three nations at war collide within the confines of a ship en route to America. The narrator's personal history is released in bite-sized chunks throughout the voyage which adds considerably to the sense of intrigue. The strength of the complex plot is a murder mystery set against a backdrop of political upheaval which keeps the reader guessing throughout and outweighs a lack of depth in the development of the characters, all of whom are under enormous stress. The sense of claustrophobic life on board ship and the ending are satisfyingly real.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did really enjoy this story, it has some good characters to follow and a twisty-turny plot that was entertaining to read.

I thought the mysteries and resolutions were mostly handled well, although there were a number that felt a bit contrived. Also, both the character of the bear pup and the comtesse were not for me - especially the way the comtesse spoke in heavily accented french (e.g. 'Ow about that moissuer, 'e would be 'appy non?). After 350 odd pages it grated a little.

But an enjoyable read none the less!

[Ishani Guha-Shepherd · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not as good as the first book, but just as convoluted and complicated. Also, certainly not swashbuckling as a book on the high seas would be. I often get disappointed by this. The characters were strong and interesting, and I still love Lawrence Jago and his 'employer' Philpott. Am also glad the narrator has stayed on the audiobook, can't fault him, totally on point with the various accents. I look forward to the final instalment and just wish Laurence has some good times!

[William Stafford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Instead of a country house, the characters in this historical whodunnit are confined on a ship bound from England to the Americas at the tail end of the eighteenth century. Nattrass evokes a strong maritime atmosphere as well as imbuing her plot with the political wrangling of the period. An absorbing read

[Jas · Rating 2 out of 5]

I dont know if it was just not my cup of tea, the writing style, my attention span recently, but this bored me to tears to the point i found it really hard to concentrate on anything that was going on, i think i took in about 25% of this book and the rest i was just reading words.. I’m really glad to be finished this at last.

[ghostly_bookish · Rating 3 out of 5]

CAWPILE 6.00
3.5 STARS

Continuing the series- I really like the ship setting- being out on the boat was really atmospheric.
I got a bit bored in the middle, I thought the first one was a bit more pacey and compelling but I did enjoy this one.
I'm hoping to go onto the third and final? book soon