The Free Fishers

John Buchan was notoriously embarrassed by the huge success of his spy thrillers: he'd very much have preferred to be remembered as the reincarnation of Sir Walter Scott, but somehow his historical novels never quite worked. They were always just a little bit too staid and respectable, and his historical characters always seemed a bit too much like the usual John Buchan characters dressed up in historical costumes.

This one is set mostly in the Borders and in Norfolk in what seems to be April, 1812. Despite Buchan's well-known passion for angling, it turns out not to be a fishing story at all — the Free Fishers of the title are East Coast fishermen, but for reasons never properly explained they have been roped in by the authorities to show more assist in a counter-espionage operation on shore. Amongst those involved is the youthful Professor Nanty Lammas of the University of St Andrews — philosopher, minister of the Kirk, and man-of-action manqué. Together with a young Lord, a couple of salty fishermen, some intrepid Scottish ladies, and a stage-coach-driving English baronet (because this is the Regency, after all) they set out to foil a dastardly plot by French agents to assassinate the Prime Minister, Spencer Perceval, and put the blame on a beautiful young woman.

Lots of colourful Scots dialect, a few good chases over the moors, but rather a lot of tedious four-in-hand driving, and far too many conferences. And all the potentially interesting small-boat stuff happens offstage. They sent him off to govern Canada soon after this came out, and he took the hint and gave up trying to write historical novels... show less

The Free Fishers is set in Scotland during the Napoleonic Wars, and involves a plot of murder and sedition. We get the story from the experience of Anthony Lammas, a prematurely grave professor in the college of St. Andrews. Anthony was raised on the coast and is the unofficial chaplain of the secret society of the Free Fishers. The Free Fishers have a sort of network strung all along the coast, with all the secret messages and missions that one could wish for. Anthony — or "Nanty," as he is nicknamed — sets off on an errand for the college, only to find he's actually been chosen for something quite different. He is to find the young Lord Belses and prevent him from fighting a duel over the honor of a Mrs. Cranmer, who is reputed to show more be a dangerous spy. But this is just the first strand in the web...

So the stage is set for valiant deeds and gloomy castles, and moonlit chases over the heather. It was interesting how none of the characters are really given a glowing review at the start of the story, and I disliked all of them in varying degrees at first. But then as the story moves on, events draw out the best qualities of each player, and they start to look better against the backdrop of the action. By the time the tale was done, I was quite resigned to all of them, and even appreciated the ones who had seemed the most distasteful in the beginning. And yet Buchan always keeps us at arms' length from almost everyone. You get the feeling that you shouldn't pry.

It's interesting to see Nanty swinging between the solemn gravity of his professorship and the rowdy fun of the Free Fishers. He reminded me of Stevenson's protagonists, outsiders caught up in something bigger than themselves. The story started off rather slowly until I hit the first moonlit chase, wherein revelations are made that suddenly glued me to the pages. That is where Buchan started turning over everything I thought I knew about the characters. One could wish for a little more time spent on the Free Fishers themselves, since the main fascination of secret societies is to uncover what makes them so secret. Ah well.

The writing is quite good, and sometimes I would linger over certain phrases and descriptions that were particularly apt. This was my first Buchan, and while it's certainly nothing groundbreaking, I found it pleasantly diverting. David Daniell, who wrote the introduction for this edition, likens Buchan's style to that of both Stevenson and Scott, and I think that's a valid assessment. Fans of classics and of historical fiction will enjoy this story. show less

Proper adventure book with British government in peril, beautiful rich women in peril and a lot of good eggs dashing around. Set before the railways (about the first decade of the 1800s)so most of the dashing around is done by coach. Wonderful technical descriptions of the transport - lots of different types of coaches/carriages and horses. Several crashes and near misses :-

"By God sir," Robin gasped. "That's the nicest bit of coachmanship I ever seen." "Simple enough," said Sir Turnour coolly, "if you keep your head and know the meaning of proper harnessing. I couldn't have done that if the pole chain hadn't been the right length - and the wheelers properly curbed up."

A bit 'Top Gear' with horses, but the real delight is the the show more Scottish vernacular and all the tearing around. I still like 'John Burnett of Barnes' best. But this rates 3 and a half stars. show less

Proper adventure book with British government in peril, beautiful rich women in peril and a lot of good eggs dashing around. Set before the railways (about the first decade of the 1800s)so most of the dashing around is done by coach. Wonderful technical descriptions of the transport - lots of different types of coaches/carriages and horses. Several crashes and near misses :-

"By God sir," Robin gasped. "That's the nicest bit of coachmanship I ever seen." "Simple enough," said Sir Turnour coolly, "if you keep your head and know the meaning of proper harnessing. I couldn't have done that if the pole chain hadn't been the right length - and the wheelers properly curbed up."

A bit 'Top Gear' with horses, but the real delight is the the show more Scottish vernacular and all the tearing around. I still like 'John Burnett of Barnes' best. But this rates 3 and a half stars. show less

This was the first John Buchan novel outside the Richard Hannay series that I have read, and therefore the first of his historical books. I enjoyed it more than I expected to, the plot was entertaining and fast-paced, the descriptions of the scenery as good as those in the other Buchan novels I've read, and the chracters were realistic and likeable. In addition, it was refreshing that the author avoided the cloying sweetness of the predictable 'happy ever after' ending. I'm looking forward to reading the other books by Buchan I have sat on my shelves.