Voyage to the North Star

Peter Nichols debut novel showcases a real talent. The story combines a terrific sea story with taut adventure. The foibles and ambitions of the rich and reckless shipowner clash with those of the de facto ship's captain to raise this tale to an exceptional level. Save this one for a day off - once it starts rolling, you won't be able to put it down!

Fantastic book and a great gift. Wished it didn't end. Nichols writes beautifully.

This is a thoughtful book by a man who both loves and understands the sea -- and its risks. Peter Nichols tells a deeply ironic but beautiful story of a wild adventure in the northern reaches of the Atlantic on and around Baffin Island, which is north of Labrador and west of Greenland. In some ways Nichols seems too enamoured with death. Nevertheless, his tale is both exciting and moving and demonstrates a deep understanding of the sea, ships, and the men who sail them. Highly recommended.

Nichols is a writer who does not intrude upon the telling of his tale. And oh, what a story he tells. The prose is quiet, yet powerful, capable of provoking a visceral response in the reader. More than a good read; an experience for the reader.

Like Charles Frazier's Cold Mountain, Voyage to the North Star is an adventure story written at a deep heartfelt level. Nichols's epic story of sailor Will Boden chasing his dreams on a whcko yacht in the arctic goes just as deep. And, with a crew of tragic, lucky and unlucky misfits who all seem wonderfully real and well-drawn, I was taken all the way with them. It's a wild ride. The descriptions of the fogbound arctic seas and tundra landscape are terrific. A great read for the armchair adventurer.