Sharpe's Regiment

Oh, *Sharpe*. Never not awesome.

I'm way more charmed by Jane than I should be, given how little she appears, but Sharpe hearts her enough that I heart her too. Harper is as awesome as ever, and he and Sharpe are the bestest buddies ever.

It's probably bad that I was predicting plot elements based on the number of pages left -- "no, Sharpe, you can't pull off [risky and heroic action:], because if you did, you'd be back in Spain in thirty pages and there are 120 left, accept it and move on to the next twist" -- but the plot elements were all gracefully handled, and I adored the Dowager Countess and her meanness.

The scheming is HILARIOUS, especially when Sharpe and Harper get themselves recruited into the army, although I did question why show more Sharpe would trust Maggie Joyce to deal with his diamonds, given that they *haven't seen each other in a decade*. Apparently there was a lot more honor amongst thieves back then, or something. show less

In this book Cornwell is back to the old and successful scheme of "problem needs solving, so Sharpe is going to solve it", but there is a twist. As the story unfolds as a political one, Sharpe makes some very straight forward moves, that only entangle the problem further. Lucky him, he has a sympathetic observer, who becomes his saviour. Though the plot movements are predictable, the book captivated me by its fast pace, adventurous spirit, the deep esteem the author shows to the armed forces and the humanistic depiction of soldiers' life.
As a very nice bonus we get to see Sharpe admired and appreciated by various people among the English populace. And, as always, he's quite the ladies' man and a decent lover.

If I could give it 6 stars I would. It was the best - non fighting book - in this series. Frankly I was getting a bit tired with battle after battle but this novel was completely different and a most welcome break. Sharpe is trying to find out why the South Essex is not receiving replacement soldiers and weaves himself in and out of trouble as he discovers a scandal at the highest level and attempts to resolve it in his own way but is saved by others (no spoiler here). New characters introduced and Sgt Harper is as colourfull as ever....great story.

No. 17 in the Richard Sharpe series.

Sharpe and Sgt. Harper are sent back to England to discover the whereabouts of promised recruits for their battered South Essex regiment. What they discover is an illegal recruiting ring that auctions off newly-trained soldiers to regiments that have a hard time obtaining volunteers, such as those regiments that serve in the fever-ridden West Indies. Sharpe and Harper go undercover and “steal” back a newly-formed group of soldiers and through a brazen scheme, send them off to join Wellington’s army. Sharpe being Sharpe, with his overactive libido, naturally there’s a woman involved.

But it wouldn’t be a Cornwell book without a rousing, bloody battle; in this installment, it’s the show more description of Wellington’s invasion of France. While not as exciting as some of the great battles that have already taken place, it still is a highly satisfactory ending to a book that is surprisingly good with a out-of-the-norm story line. Another whacking good story.

Sharpe, Harper and their colleagues continue to entertain, and as usual there is a fascinating cast of one-time characters. Cornwell excels in this kind of characterization, and his books continue to bring the era and the people in it vibrantly alive. Highly recommended. show less

By now I'm used to the elements of a Sharpe book, and this is pretty much by the numbers. A nice twist is the problem of recruiting for the South Essex. We get a lot of Sharpe backstory in this one, and a view of the England Wellington fought for. There's an American in this one, but he's a friend of Sharpe's so he's all right.

Another solid entry, this time with a very different story that takes place in England rather than Spain. Sharpe's battle is not against the French but against the powers in his own Army that want to disband the South Essex for their own purposes. Wouldn't have been nearly so good if not for the long epilogue that Cornwell wisely added.

This is my favorite Sharpe book so far :) The female characters weren't as pathetic/annoying as usual, Sharpe and Harper were on the top of their game, and the plot was great fun.