China Sea

Our emotionally buffeted series hero, Lt. Cmdr. Dan Lenson, USN, has excruciating dificulties here. It's like the author thought up the most impossible set of conditions at sea he could imagine, and then put poor Dan smack in the middle to swim or sink forevermore: a new captain with vague orders, an antiquated stripped ship, weak engines, contentious officers, fearful allies, a terrible typhoon, a demoralized and grossly understrength crew, and one of them probably a ghoulish serial murderer (a vicious twist on the sailor's "girl in every port"). Poyer neatly accomplishes this with a ship destined for an allied navy and sailed by a mixed and incompetent if-allah-wills-it transfer crew. Dan's been in tough places before in his career of five earlier novels, but this is perhaps the most current and future one, since it involves the Spratley Islands that are a potential flash point in Southeast Asia today. This is an astonishing novel of ship command in a vacuum of orders (like detached frigate captains back in the age of fighting sail, before radio). All depends on the character of the captain, and here is Lenson, an uptight, stubborn, moral officer in his first command. He must fight everything, the navy, its traditions, his crew, his reputation, and his own doubts. Poyer's occasional flights of nature description seem incongruous but are tinged with the hard menace that runs throughout this powerful story. The extraordinary tension in this masterful sea story will keep you on the edge of your seat.

I become rather annoyed when the professional reviewers emphasize the accuracy of David Poyer's Navy expertise and descriptions. As someone who knows next to nothing about the Navy or seamanship or whatever, Poyer has nevertheless caught my attention as a masterful writer, a challenging thinker, and an insightful explorer of leadership within the context of human nature.Poyer has always been an artistically admirable writer. If you've already read China Sea, return to Prologue 3 on page 11. As horrible as what it describes is, Poyer's prose is gorgeous, reminiscent of what made me pay special attention to him in another of his novels, As the Wolf Loves Winter. Poyer proves even in this small passage that he can consistently hit the artistic mark that Thomas Harris set in Silence of the Lambs.Poyer's series hero, Dan Lenson, has evolved from a relatively innocent follower to a seasoned, wise, yet renegade leader. He struggles always to be faithful to his own commanders, yet his sense of loyalty and commitment brings him face to face, again and again, with the vagaries of human frailty. He is the adherent to the black-and-white code of Navy tradition that forever proves inadequate to contain the ambitions and passions of human leaders. And yet even as Lenson suffers professionally, he prevails in his belief that there is absolute truth somewhere out there.The only character I can think of in another modern novel series who has been as exquisitely treated as Poyer's Dan Lenson is in the Lawrence Block series, Matt Scudder. Lenson's experiences and the effect they have on the ongoing development of his character are razor-sharp in every novel. Lenson feels like an old friend from whom I've heard many intimate thoughts, and he seems to be as complex and alive as any person I've ever known.So many of Poyer's professional reviews focus on the realism of the Navy experience he describes, but what I am fascinated by is the realism of the human heart in the reality of leadership and command that Poyer portrays with such excellence.Keep it up, David! I figure I'm going to retire right along with Lenson!

While not may favorite of David Poyer's Navy novels (The Circle still holds that distinction), this book is a worthy addition to the series and a must read for anyone who follows the series. If you even remotely enjoyed any of David Poyer's previous books, you will love this one.

I was swept away into the adventure of the China Sea, living vicariously every exciting moment in Poyer's latest (and great) book. I'll never live such adventure so I'm terribly grateful to Poyer for allowing me to participate, if only on the printed page.I did notice that the book's flap copy did a disservice to Poyer when they referred to his "star-crossed" career. I'm sure they meant it as a compliment (like "star-studded") but star-crossed actually means "destined to an unhappy fate, sure to end up in misfortune." Check out the dictionary when you write flap copy, publisher! Because David Poyer is definitely star studded and his books are going to be around for a long, long time.