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It is 1843 and Captain Nathaniel Sir Drinkwater embarks on the paddle-steamer Vestal for an inspection of lighthouses on the west coast of England. Bowed with age and honors, the old sea officer has been drawn from retirement on half-pay to fulfill his public duty. The following day, tragedy strikes, and Drinkwater is confronted with his past life: his sins and follies, his triumphs and his disasters. Drawing on a true incident, Richard Woodman deftly concludes the career of his sea hero. show more Drinkwater s complex character is revealed in its entirety. Far from being the reminiscences of an old man, the novel skillfully weaves the past with the present; the personal tensions below decks, the straining creak of a man-of-war under sail, the crack of a cannon shot and the plaintive mews of the trailing gulls are never far away. To the end, Nathaniel Drinkwater s life is full of incident and the unexpected, so typical of the sea officers of his day. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
In an oddly-constructed and wonderful book, Richard Woodman ties up the most important loose ends from his long sequence of Nat Drinkwater yarns with a series of nicely-executed flashbacks. Not what I'd expected, and accomplished better than I'd anticipated. Sad, but delightful.
This short review has also been published on a dabbler's journal.
This short review has also been published on a dabbler's journal.
Nicely done retrospective and denouement for a character and series that I have much enjoyed over the years.
The 14th and final Drinkwater novel. It is 1843, and Captain Sir Nathaniel Drinkwater, bowed with age and honours, embarks on the paddle-steamer "Vestal" for an inspection of lighthouses on the west coast of England. The next day tragedy strikes, and Drinkwater is confronted with his past life.
Apr 4, 2012Dutch
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Author Information
92+ Works 2,479 Members
Richard Woodman was born in London. England in 1944. He became an indentured midshipman in cargo liners at the age of 16, which resulted in a 37 year nautical career. He became captain in 1980. He spent 11 years in command at sea, 6 years in operational management ashore, and is currently a Board Member of Trinity House, the authority responsible show more for navigational safety round the coast. He is a regular correspondent for the shipping newspaper Lloyd's List. He has written over 50 books, a mixture of fiction and maritime history. His fiction works include the Nathaniel Drinkwater series, A Kit Faulkner Naval Adventure series, and The William Kite Trilogy. He received several awards including the Desmond Wettern Maritime Media Award in 2001 for his journalism, the Society of Nautical Research's Anderson Medal in 2005 for three major studies of convoy operations in the Second World War, and the Marine Society's Thomas Gray Medal in 2010 for his five-volume history of the British Merchant Navy. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Ebb Tide
- People/Characters
- Nathaniel Drinkwater
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- Members
- 65
- Popularity
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- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (4.13)
- Languages
- English, German
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 9
- ASINs
- 2
