Entertaining like all the Kydd novels, but not in the same league as Aubrey/Maturin, Ramage, or even Hornblower. ( )

Julian Stockwin crams a lot of story in only three hundred plus pages of “Artemis” the second novel in his Kydd adventures. This time Mr. Stockwin takes his former pressed periwig maker now able seaman to new depths of adventure that straddles the globe in naval escapades of abandon. Readers of nautical tales will relish the worlds Kydd visits and Mr. Stockwin seamlessly recreates these escapades as if you were truly there on deck smelling the tar of the ropes and the salt of the sea. There are times when the seaman vernacular is a bit too thick, but after a few chapters the conversations tend the flow more easily. If you are looking for truly authentic seafaring action of how the common man fared on these ships-of-the-lines, Mr. Stockwin’s Kydd novels are your answer. ( )