The Nutmeg Of Consolation (1993) - Plot & Excerpts
SUMMARY: At the end of O'Brian's Thirteen Gun Salute, Captain Aubrey and the crew of the Diane are shipwrecked by a typhoon on a remote island in the Dutch East Indies. After they are rescued, Aubrey and crew continue their interrupted mission aboard a new vessel, the Nutmeg. The fourteenth novel in the classic Aubrey-Maturin series finds Aubrey and Maturin shipwrecked, harassed by pirates and then in the brutal penal colonies of New South Wales. Patrick O'Brian is regarded by many as the greatest living historical novelist writing in English. In The Nutmeg of Consolation, Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin begin stranded on an uninhabited island in the Dutch East Indies, attacked by ferocious Malay pirates. They contrive their escape, but after a stay in Batavia and a change of ship, they are caught up in a night chase in the fiercely tidal waters and then embroiled in the much more insidious conflicts of the terrifying penal settlements of New South Wales. It is one of O'Brian's most accomplished and gripping books. EDITORIAL REVIEW: Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin tales are widely acknowledged to be the greatest series of historical novels ever written. To commemorate the 40th anniversary of their beginning, with Master and Commander, these evocative stories are being re-issued in paperback with smart new livery. This is the fourteenth book in the series. Patrick O'Brian is regarded by many as the greatest living historical novelist writing in English. In The Nutmeg of Consolation, Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin begin stranded on an uninhabited island in the Dutch East Indies, attacked by ferocious Malay pirates. They contrive their escape, but after a stay in Batavia and a change of ship, they are caught up in a night chase in the fiercely tidal waters and then embroiled in the much more insidious conflicts of the terrifying penal settlements of New South Wales. It is one of O'Brian's most accomplished and gripping books.
As with all the novels in this series (which might be considered one long novel), I loved this book. All the elements of a great novel are here, but there is one ingredient in the Aubrey/Maturin novels that is missing from so many other great works: a deeply developed, realistically represented, quirky friendship between two men. The friendship between Jack and Stephen makes all the other male friendships I can think of in famous literature seem caricatured or shallow or like a device through which the author is able to achieve something (like showcasing the brilliance of one character through the foil of the other - think Sherlock Holmes or even Father Brown). The only other friendship I can think of off hand that at times comes close to this one is that of Frodo and Sam. These are not novels of naval sea action or espionage or life in the era of the Napoleonic Wars or of natural history exploration. These stories contain all these elements. However, to their core, these are stories of a friendship.For me, reading an Aubrey/Maturin novel is like spending time with old familiar friends. They have their quirks but they only serve to endear, not annoy. The stories in the series are not completely evenly told. The earlier books have more of the action and commentary happening through periodic journal entries or letters home written by Jack or Stephen. The earlier books also seem to skip longer periods of time whereas the later ones tend more toward continuous narrative with each chapter and even each book picking up right where the last one left off. I imagine this is likely because O'Brian started his story in the midst of the Napoleonic Wars rather than near the beginning and realized he only had so much time to play with. However, I still have 2 complete and one partial novel left so I may yet be proved wrong.Can't recommend this series enough.
What do You think about The Nutmeg Of Consolation (1993)?
Patrick O'Brian continues as excellently as always. This story doesn't really have a dramatic arc of any sort and is simply a continuation of the voyage that started in the previous novel. But that does not mean that important issues are not handled: Captain Aubrey is shown to suffer from a condition that changes his behavior while Maturin struggles with his sense of responsibility for an old friend who is now suffering as a convict in Australia. The harshness of life and the evilness of men in a land that serves mostly as prison to westerners is very well described, down to the corruption of the aboriginals who show off their skills with boomerangs for shots of rum and drink themselves to death.In short, another gem from the master of (historical) fiction!
—Marko
Certainly one of the more geographically adventurous chapters in the series. There are so many events and so many places, it is hard to really focus on any one theme. This comes nearer to the tail end of a very long voyage that spans several books fought with much hardship. All of this hardship; the shipwreck, the marooning, the raiding Malay pirates, and the misery of Botany Bay juxtaposed against the happy sights and thoughts of home. I think it is best summed up by the very last line of text in which Stephen says to Jack, "I cannot tell you how ardently, how very ardently I look forward to going home."
—Cole Schoolland
This, the 14th volume in Patrick O'Brian's brilliant Aubrey-Maturin canon, is one of my absolute favorites of the twenty completed novels in this wonderful Napoleonic wars seafaring series. "The Nutmeg of Consolation" is a page-turner from page one on. We join Captain Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin in the East Indies as they are rescued from a deserted island, acquire the beautifully Dutch-built small frigate the Nutmeg of Consolation, fight a running sea-battle with the much larger French frigate Cornelie, meet up with all of their chums aboard HMS Surprise, and then visit the penal colony of New South Wales in Australia. The action at sea and ashore is tense and engaging; as well as being full of the wonders of science and nature that Stephen and his friend Martin explore on the islands they visit and in the Australian outback. This is a terrific book, and oh so cleverly plotted and written. All of the 'Aubrey-Maturin' novels are superb; and this particular episode just happens to be, in my opinion, one of the 'crown jewels' in the series. I unhesitatingly recommend this novel,as well as the entire series.
—Christopher H.
