Hornblower and the "Atropos"

Written by C Forester

Narrated by Nicolas Coster

In the wake of a humbling incident aboard a canal boat in the Cotswolds, young Captain Horatio Hornblower arrives in London to take command of the Atropos, a 22-gun sloop barely large enough to require a captain. Her first assignment under Hornblower's command is as flagship for the funeral procession of Lord Nelson.

Soon Atropos is part of the Mediterranean Fleet's harassment of Napoleon, recovering treasure that lies deep in Turkish waters and boldly challenging a Spanish frigate several times her size. At the center of each adventure is Hornblower, whose blend of cautious preparation and spirited execution dazzles friend and foe alike.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Phoenix Books, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 1, 2009
• ISBN: 9781607473183

Reviews for Hornblower and the "Atropos"

[buffalogr · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is a series of Hornblower adventures. The junior captain saves Nelson's funeral procession, recovers treasure from Turkish waters and captures a Spanish ship of the line. I particularly enjoyed the salvage operation...use of Ceylonese divers, probably without artificial air--wow! None of the familiar characters, except Maria and the kids are part of this book--perhaps showing our hero's growing independence. I read this book while riding San Diego's Hornblower Cruises looking for whales--avast, thar she blows! The staff was clueless about the origination of their company name.

[kslade-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Another good Hornblower sea novel.

[benkaboo-51322 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Summary: Another fun adventure with Captain Hornblower. Adventure, excitement and nautical fun.

Things I liked: The character of Hornblower continues to amuse. I also liked the fact that Hornblower's 1st lieutenant is a bit of an try hard under-performer it makes a very refreshing change from the typical everyone of the goodies is an absolute hero who's good at just about everything.

Things I thought could be improved: The book ends on a bit of cliff hanger that isn't resolved in the subsequent book. I'd like to have seen more of Hornblower at home with his family and his relationship with his son and daughter.

Highlight: Hornblower getting fooled by the local chief when he thought he was doing the fooling. Then being faced by the impossible challenge of two armed forts and a battleship. The synthesis of what for me makes Hornblower a great read about an amazing character

[dinadansfriend · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A short Hornblower novel, but as usual entertaining. We start with Hornblower happily on his way back to sea, and his first command. First, though we get a thrilling canal boat ride, the downhill skiing of its day. This is followed by the funeral of Horatio Nelson, with a tense moment. Atropos is only a twenty two gun Sloop, but being Hornblower's it comes with baggage. There is a German princeling, complete with a one man court, and more importantly, a section of Ceylonese divers, with a covert mission. before the trip is over we have had a course in free diving, some nineteenth century surgery, and a gunfight. It is one of the better Hornblower novels in my opinion. My copy is one of the first English edition.

[ritaer_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

First assignment-manage the funeral procession for Lord Nelson; next accept the king's great nephew (a German princeling) as a midshipman and go to the Turkish coast to recover British treasure

[lamour_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The novel starts with Hornblower bringing his wife and child down to London by water on canals. We learn much about how the British canal system worked in 1805. When he reaches London, he is assigned the duty of organizing Lord Nelson,s funeral. This involves much tradition but Hornblower overcomes possible disaster when the boat carrying the coffin threatens to sink.After this stressful duty, he heads to the Mediterranean with a poorly trained crew. There he learns he must sail into Turkish waters and recover millions in British coin from the bottom of a harbour. Here we learn about diving deep in 1805- you bring in Singalise pearl divers from Ceylon.Loaded with adventure, humour and history plus the story really moves along.

[lisamaria_c · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Hornblower was the inspiration for Star Trek's Captain James Kirk, as well as Cornwell's Sharpe. Hornblower is more cerebral and socially awkward than Kirk (or O'Brien's Aubrey), more educated and refined than Sharpe. In his own right, Hornblower is certainly an engaging and complex character and the series is an interesting study in leadership, and a fascinating portrait of life at sea in the age of sail. Hornblower and the Atropos is the fifth book chronologically, but the eighth Forester wrote. The friend who recommended these to me when we were both in high school told me to at least start with the third book, the story of Hornblower's first command, Hornblower and the Hotspur because the first two books are outliers in their different ways. So this was only the second I had read--although really it's more like the first book, Mr Midshipman Hornblower, which was more a collection of short stories than novels. This particular installment feels very episodic, as we follow a Hornblower newly promoted to captain taking on various tasks. In the course of reading several books in the series Hornblower begins to feel real in a way few fictional characters do. I'd say he's easily as indelible and remarkable a literary creation as Sherlock Holmes--and just as brilliant in his field as Holmes was as a detective. I wouldn't name this as one of the stronger books--few among fans of this series would--but it's entertaining in its own right and gives a great picture of the British Navy during the Napoleonic Wars.

[jbreedlove_6 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The redoubtable Hornblower saves Nelson's funeral procession, recovers treasure from Turkish waters and captures a Spanish ship of the line all the while Hornblower is castigating himself for not being the perfect officer. An easy and toward the end a tedious read.

[asbiskey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Hornblower has many simple adventures in this book. This book seems to reflect the wide variety of responsibilities a captain in the Royal Navy could have during the Napoleonic wars: event organizer, detective, and salvage operations manager to name a few. I really enjoyed this book until the last two chapters, which are depressing. I imagine that life for a real captain at the time would be similar, but it was a little too disheartening for me. I also was curious about Hornblower's comtemplation of suicide. I have only read three Hornblower books, and two contain these morbid scenes. This book does not have much along the lines of the great sea battles, but the adventures and diverse and interesting.

[5hrdrive · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This episode takes a little while to get up to speed, but once it does, it's as wonderful as the others.

[homechicken · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book marks the first command Hornblower has as a full-fledged captain of his own vessel. Never mind the fact that it's the smallest worthy of a captain in His Majesty's Navy. The novel starts off with Hornblower getting command of the Atropos, and being put in charge of the water-borne part of Admiral Lord Nelson's funeral procession. Hornblower is also put in charge of His Serene Highness the Prince of Seitz-Bunau, who starts as a lowly midshipman much like Hornblower himself. With tales of battles on the Mediterranean and recovering sunken treasure off the coast of Turkey, this book was a good read. Many of the chapters read as their own short stories.

[tadad_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This one starts out at about the same quality as Mr. Midshipman Hornblower. The final part is more of the quality of his better stories.

[denise_tzumli · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

We are shown a number of episodes in Hornblower's early career: his part in Nelson's funeral, his travels across England and Europe, and his service in the Turkish campaign, where he first made his reputation as a strategist and adventurer. Hornblower is one of the best written characters ever, how a young man continues to act well despite his inner fears.