With All Despatch

The war with revolutionary France - later known as the Napoleonic war - is approaching, but England's Navy is still at peacetime strength. The ships and the men who fought in the 1770's and 1780's have been released from service. Captain Bolitho is back in England and has spent the last two years recuperating from the fever that marked the end of his service in the South Seas. Luckier than most, he is then posted to the command of a group of three cutters that are supporting the tax service in trying to cut down on the smuggling of goods into the country. The smuggling in these parts seems very organized and for some reason the navy ships are always at the wrong place when a shipment is made. Additonally, the local populace seems to be much more supoprtive of the smugglers than of the navy and do not offer any assistance. The smugglers are not only able to work their way at will, but they are also staffed by many sailors who are obviously deserters from various navy ships. This is the mess that Bolitho enters. Right from the get-go Bolitho takes charge. On the road to his ships, he manages to single-handedly convince a mob to release two naval officers who were being marched to be hanged. He does this by personally confronting the mob (which numbers a few dozen people). This is actually one of the most annoying things about Kent's writing. He continuously resolves issues by relying on people absolutely hero worshipping his Bolitho character with no substantiation of why that should be so. In this case, can anyone really believe that a blood-thirsty mob of about 50 people would sheepishly stop and turn loose their prey when confronted by one 30-something naval officer who they have never seen before in their lives? This kind of plot twist happens several times in each book in the series and is completely illogical and detracts mightily from the quality of the series. After assuming command of his flotilla and meeting the local naval commander, the story continues with Bolitho getting acquainted with the local situation, making friends with unlikely characters who end up helping him, and slowly resolving the situation. There are several battles between his ships and the smugglers which is strange because prior to his arrival, they always managed to avoid the navy! As the book goes on, the local command structure of the smugglers is reveladed and Bolitho works his way through it causing the deaths of all involved. When it is finally revealed who the overall commander is, a plot twist is thrown at the reader. Before Bolitho can dispense justice, a mysterious and powerful Lord from London shows up and orders Bolitho and the local smuggler commander to work together for the benefit of England. Bolitho is sent on a mission to spy and intervene in the developing French crisis. This just serves to delay the final resolution as the smuggler tries to double-cross Bolitho and one final naval battle involving a smuggler ship loaded with treasure being s

Two years after the American Revolution, and the British Navy is still licking its wounds. Bolitho, after finally recovering from a serious illness encountered in the South Seas, haunts the Admiralty, looking for a new command, his beloved frigate Tempest laid up for repairs.The Admiralty awards his past heroism with a squadron of three small topsail cutters, and directs him to assist the revenue service against the often brutal smugglers who are using the Kentish coast, apparently with assistance from powerful patrons.This is another story of intrigue, violence, and treachery as Bolitho--saddled again with incompetent superiors--struggles to fulfill his duty.Joseph (Joe) Pierre, USN(Ret)author of Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenanceand other books

Bolitho is feeling distraught. It is peacetime 1791 and he's on the shore. He's recovering from fever. His romance in the South Seas has ended. Of Viola he has only a gold watch. France is under the Terror. Then Bolitho gets his first multi-ship command, a flotilla of topsail cutters with the newly installed Smashers (nasty short-range carronades), but hardly the frigate he deserved. He's in charge of the hated press gangs at the Nore, site of a later fleet mutiny. His loyal coxs'n Allday deserts him! And he suspects his superior and a captain or two of collusion with English smugglers, who are taking heinous advantage of refugee French women. Life is ugly all around, and dominates the dark mood of this novel. Bolitho races about on many filthy errands, in foul seas, and against big odds. That, at least, is nothing new. Deja vu: the story line is reminiscent of "Midshipman Bolitho," once again chasing smugglers. Again the smugglers have a deadly intelligence system and protection from a mystery authority. Nominally in command of his destiny, Bolitho encounters a master politician who sends him on highly dangerous secret missions into Holland. Curiously, for all Bolitho's empathy and respect for his crews, he never seems to invite his officers to dinner. There's little in this series of the sumptuous larders most captains supplied. Kent includes nice bonus appendices, one on the specialist warrant officers, the other on the origins of some naval customs. But nary a word on the possible historicity of the events told here.

Although not one of the best in the series, this novel captures the grim life at sea and the struggle against nature. In this book, brutal smugglers ply the English Channel between Holland, France and England. The central characters are well written and alive with problems, dialog and several seem destined to re-appear in future Bolitho novels. However, Mr. Kent seemed to have Bolitho dwell in his past too many times. A dark, brooding side of the naval hero seems to fill many pages, but it does make Sir Richard that much more of a fleshed out character. He does feel for his dead friends, former ships and in some cases, former enemies. That aside, the tale moves along like a nimble sixth-rater with all sheets unfurled in a southern wind. The action is swift and brutal as Bolitho gives battle to the smugglers and their allies. Stormy weather, plenty of thunderous cannon fire, smashed bulkheads, parted ratlines and terrified crewmen. The author once again details the sea as an angry foe without mercy. The battle at the end of the book between a couple of corvettes and three cutters is suberb Kent writting. A welcome addition to the collection none the less. Well worth reading and blends seamlessly into the very next novel. An excellent series that has re-defined nautical fiction.

With All Despatch is chronologically the last of Kent's pre-Napoleonic Wars Bolitho novels. It is also the most recently written depicting that era. As such it is one of his most polished if somewhat familiar.Kent has used the structure of With All Despatch before. Essentially he has written the novel in two linked sections with a mini-climax in the first followed by the major climax and denouement in the second. In Gallant Company was particularly effective using this format and in With All Despatch the two sections are linked even more solidly.In this entry Bolitho who is still mourning the loss of his lady must obtain men for His Majesty's service while battling smugglers on England's North Sea coast. Complicating the matter is possible collusion between a senior officer and the smugglers. The head smuggler seems unreachable and there is an obvious parallel with organized crime and drug cartels of today. As the novel progresses it is also obvious that France and England will be at war soon. Can Bolitho meet all of his objectives and defeat his enemies? To provide a clue, the series will continue with many more novels for 23 more years.In spite of being a popular series the reader has to know that Richard Bolitho is a tragic figure. The chronology in most books shows his death in 1815. By With All Despatch Bolitho has lost both his parents and his brother who turned traitor before dying. His faithful sidekick Stockdale was killed after nearly 10 years with him and Bolitho notes that his replacement Allday has been with him for 10 years. The reader has to be waiting for the other shoe to drop with Allday. The series could be really depressing if Kent didn't fill the novels with nail biting tension and thrilling action sequences. Kent's obvious knowledge of sailing and love of the sea also provide charm to the series.With All Despatch is one of Kent's most polished. Perhaps it doesn't have the fire and intensity of earlier offerings but it is still good. While the entire series is violent some of this novel is particularly gruesome. I wouldn't recommend With All Despatch for younger readers unlike the earlier novels.