Sharpe's Siege (#9)

The events take place in the southwest of France near the Bay of Biscay, 1814.This another of my favorites from the series. The story revolves around the back-and-forth sieges of a fortress called Teste de Buch. There is a lot more going on than siege warfare, but the fortress holds the main setting for the book. Major Sharpe is trapped in this fortress behind enemy lines with limited troops, food, water and ammunition.Sharpe has some good adversaries in this story. He accumulates enemies like nobody's business! There's the really obnoxious CO Capt. Bampfylde; the questionable Comte Derpa Maquerre; General Calvet leading the besieging French forces; Napoleon's spy master Pierre Ducos; the American on France's payroll Capt. Killick; and one of the more sympathetic enemies, Commandant Henri Lassan.A truly memorable scene in this book ironically had nothing to do with war, (strictly speaking), but dealt with Sgt. Harper's bad tooth. Gee whiz that never fails to give me the heebie jeebies 😖Outstanding book!

This is a great story written by a master storyteller. Anyone who reads my book reviews knows I don't synopsize the story in a review but I'll tell yo what I thought of it. The action is intense with surprise twists that kept me turning the pages. This is another superb effort by Cornwell who is now one of my favorite writers. I really enjoy reading historical fiction from this era and Cornwell has expertly blended historical events into a complex fictional tapestry that has placed me as a reader into an observers position of all of the fictional action and exploits of these characters. Cornwell consistently ups the ante on his characters and finds new way to apply pressure and this book is no departure from that style of writing. You can expect Sharpe to find himself in one perilously tight spot after another, each with greater consequences than the last, each with little or no chance for success or escape. He uses a lifetime of battlefield knowledge, brute force, friendship and cunning as his weapons of survival. You just don't know which he'll apply until it becomes evident as the story unfolds. I really like the story and I highly recommend it. I also recommend you start at the beginning with Sharpe's Tiger and read the entire series all the way through. It is a few hours of inexpensive entertainment.

Cornwell's Sharpe books are exceptional. His battle scenes are the best I've ever read. His grasp of historical detail is unmatched--and while most of Sharpe's battles are placed in fictional settings, that in no way detracts from their realism. I have followed Sharpe's career since he was a Private in India, and now he's a Major fighting Napoleon's troops in France. Along the way I've become a huge Bernard Cornwell fan and look forward to continuing to read his novels.Warning: His battle scenes are gory, but then when soldiers are hacking at each other with swords, sabres and bayonets it will get bloody--and that's without counting the cannon fire.

I hated to put it down. Good ending, one part I wasn't happy about. Now, on to the next book.

A fascinating tale of victory and duplicity as an undermanned French fort is captured, an American ship revived, and Sharpe faces odds of more than 10 to 1 as his Rifles and a hundred Royal Marines fight to buy time to escape from the French coast and Napoleon’s military. Superb action, excellent characters, plenty of deceptive twists and turns, and well worth the time.

Another Sharpe novel, knowing that this is a series, even knowing our hero will survive doesn't diminish the need to read just one more chapter. I've dutifully followed the chronological listing of the novels and as I approach the end of the series, I find myself unable to put my phone down: just one more chapter, one more novel, once more into the breach."Where are we going? Badayoth!"Thank you Mr Cornwell

This was an exhilarating reading experience. The scenic descriptions, the imagined battle landscape...you could practically smell the gunpowder. I'm always in awe of Cornwell's ability to get me so engaged in the battle frenzy.... My sword please....

Great descriptions of a siege on the coast of the French Basque country. The British riflemen commanded by Richard Sharpe, Bernard Cornwell's iconic character fight until almost the bloody end against overwhelming odds. Great reading!

Read this book in 2007, and its the 18th part, chronologically, of the great Richard Sharpe series.This book is set in the year AD 1814, with Richard Sharpe now being a Major, and in full flow during the Winter campaign of that same year of AD 1814.Trapped in a fort, behind enemy lines, and with ammunition low and gunpowder wet, Sharpe and his men must somehow hold this fort against a force of two thousand of French soldiers under the leadership of, General Calvert.What is follow is a very exciting tale of bravery and courage in which the British forces under Sharpe will hold their own and will be able to repel the French to live and fight for another day.Highly recommended, for this is another splendid addition to this marvellous series, and that's why I like to call this episode: "A Superb Sharpe Siege"!

Wow! I have just finished "Sharpe's Siege" and really didn't want it to end! In this book you get a rare glimpse of Sharpe's vulnerability when faced with an impossible situation and a feeling of the true responsibility he feels for his men. His "Do or Die" attitude is simply at it's greatest in this story. I feel Jane has change Sharpe's character somewhat also. She is the complete opposite to Teresa and I'm not so sure this is a good thing!This is a great read, full of fast paced adventure. Mr. Cornwell never fails to provide great imagery of battle scenes and the surrounding landscapes. I did, however, miss the presence of the South Essex and felt the was less of Harper's humour in this story. But I suppose this all helped to create a sense that Sharpe truly was all on this own in this one!All in all - Great! You will not be disappointed!

Brilliant, as all the others in Mr Cornwell's canon of historical novels, especially the Sharpe ones.. A 'must read' follow-on to the previous book. Each one tells us something we might not have known about life in general, and specific items that were available in 1812. This time it is tinned food. Truly - ask Wikipaedia. Other times, we've had gas lighting in the streets of London, rockets...what ever next? Read on, and find out!!

Daring doings from the Napolonic era. Sharpe is sent to take a French held chateau and to discover if the people are rising against Napolion. This book has few conections to the TV program apart from some character names. To me it makes more sense than the tv but I am prone to liking books more. Really good read I very much enjoyed it and reccomend it to all Sharpe fans and to those who want an historical tale.

What can I say? I have read just about every single book Bernard Cornwell has written. His prowess in researching into history and adding the human component is second to none. Sharpe's Siege is as much a classic as any in the series. It comes towards the end of the Peninsular War and prior to Waterloo. You can read any Sharpe book in isolation but I would recommend reading in chronological order. Around 20 books!