Hoare and the Portsmouth Atrocities

Wilder Perkins is new on the scene, but is capable of crafting a tale which takes you into itself and involves you so thoroughly that you will believe anything you see, all you hear, and will act upon your observations. Bartholomew Hoare (don't make fun of his name unless you like pain) is deft, wise and resourceful. His one serious disappointment was that a musket ball prevented him doing sea duty by crushing his larynx, thus keeping him from speaking above a whisper. Although he is assigned to constant shore duty, he nevertheless embroils himself with a lady, Eleanor Graves and her husband, plus a giant cast of characters, one of whom is named Jane Austen. This is a book which keeps you turning pages, and you are left craving more when you've read it all.

Sad news: Robert Wilder Perkins passed away on May 12, 1999, succumbing to a respiratory ailment. While his family, friends and fans will miss his extraordinary creativity and finely honed wit, his books will continue to provide pleasure to many readers. Perkins' next Hoare maritime mystery, "Hoare and the Headless Captains," was recently acquired by Thomas Dunne/St. Martin's Press. Perkins recently completed the third book of the series, tentatively titled, "Hoare and the Matter of Treason."

There is something about the expanse of the Napoleonic Wars that invites a series; whether it is Bernard Cornwell's wonderful Richard Sharpe or Patrick O'Brian's finely crafted tales of adventures on the high seas.The canvas is too vast to limit to one book, unless it is War and Peace!HOARE AND THE PORTSMOUTH ATROCITIES marks the beginning of a promising new series by Wilder Perkins. Naval Lieutenant Bartholomew Hoare, reluctantly sentenced to shore duty due to an incapacitating injury, finds himself emeshed first in the murder of a Naval Captain, which leads to even darker deeds of sabotage and espionage which cost the British Navy hundreds of lives. Hoare is drawn deeper into danger -- more danger than he had faced in battle, but he perseveres, and wins the day despite his handicap.The mystery facing Hoare is intriguing enough, but I found the characters even more involving. Hoare is a wonderful hero; not perfect, but so human,and so vulnerable, that he is utterly charming. He loses his heart early in the novel to the equally charming Eleanor Graves, who is not beautiful,but intelligent and resourceful. I can see a fruitful partnership of hearts and minds in the future.HOARE AND THE PORTSMOUTH ATROCITIES moves along briskly, wrapping up several mysteries in just over two hundred pages, but the flavor and charm linger in the readers' mind much longer. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

As a British naval officer in the Napoleonic War, an assignment on shore is like exile. Mr. Bartholomew Hoare is permanently in that state at the beginning of "Hoare and the Portsmouth Atrocities," when a spent musket ball took away his voice, and an officer incapable of shouting orders is of no use to the Royal Navy. So the naval lieutenant is given work as an assistant to the port admiral of Portsmouth. Hoare has few compensations for his lonely life. His reduced responsibilities may introduce a discordant note to the reader. We have here a maritime mystery that never sails beyond sight of England. "Hoare" wends its way through the story like a ship sailing amid contrary winds, as the lieutenant encounters a woman being set upon by two ruffians on a beach, a mysterious clockwork device found in a small barrel on shore, and at one point investigates the murder of a captain on board his own ship. There's quite a lot happening, and author Wilder Perkins crams into little more than 200 pages no less that three possible life-changing events for Mr. Hoare. The story adheres close to the conventions of the mystery genre, especially at the climax, and it seems that the operations of the conspiracy at the heart of the matter is too complex for its own good. But Perkins has a fine grasp of the Napoleonic era, with its jolly tars, its devotion to a just cause and its officers at home more on board their quarterdeck than on land. One only wishes that Perkins gave us more time to enjoy the experience.

After taking a bullet to his throat while on active duty, Bartholomew Hoare is forced to retire from the navy of King George III because an officer must be able to command above a whisper. This ailment fails to deter Bartholomew, who by 1805, sails up and down the English coast, solving mysteries. While investigating the disappearance of a ship, Bartholomew meets Eleanor Graves, who beats off two assailants before the ex-sailor can fully intervene. However, the following day one of the culprits is dead, the other is missing, and Bartholomew's boat has been looted. The investigator does not see the connection between the assault and the vanished ship, but he continues to investigate even as Eleanor has brought him into her and her husband's circle of friends. HOARE AND THE PORTSMOUTH ATROCITIES is a fabulous blending of a historical mystery with that of naval history into a fresh novel that will elate fans of both sub-genres. The story line is excellent as the reader has an opportunity to observe 1805 England from a fresh perspective in spite of Jane Austen making her usual cameo appearance. The mystery and the naval history (see the glossary of terms) are both intriguing and well written. Hoare is nothing like the sound of his name as he is an ingenious lead character, who adds much to the tale. Wilder Perkins has treated readers with what is hopefully the first entry of a long running series.Harriet Klausner