Aubrey and Maturin and intrigue ashore in England, c. 1812
***
Oooohhhh, this is getting juicy! These books are basically one continuous story, now. They begin immediately after the conclusion of the last one and leave us on a cliff-hanger, right in the middle of a major development!
How exciting! Our dear Dr. Maturin has finally learned the identity of the highly placed traitor inside the British Intelligence services. He is about to act, with no time to spare...Tune in next time, readers! Same Bat time, same Bat channel!
Good Captain Aubrey is enmeshed in a scandalous situation calculated precisely to besmirch his reputation. It works. He is apparently drummed out of the service! (For now?)
A thoroughly satisfying read, again quite varied in its scope and thrust. Late in the book we see the good Doctor set himself up as a privateer (or corsair, or private man-of-war operator; with letters of marque and reprisal and everything!). All he needs now is a captain.
Anyone have a good man for the job? Must be truly excellent seaman, recently pitched out of the Royal Navy, down on his luck, ready for a change...
SIDENOTE: (from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary):
Definition of reverse of the medal
: an opposite and usually less favorable aspect of an affair or question
