Sharpe's Command

I received this eARC courtesy of Netgalley and Harper Collins. I was thrilled because this series is one of my top five favorites!

The events occur in Spain mid-1812, specifically Almaraz. Two of Napoleon's armies are in the north and south of Spain. Wellington intends to block the joining of their forces by ordering the strategic destruction of certain bridges. Things pretty much go according to plan, and this brings the battle to Almaraz and the French-occupied fortresses on each of the banks of the Tagus River.

The raid on Almaraz was excellently written, although Bernard Cornwell's battle scenes usually are. The allies utilized an escalade on the fort's walls, and the details made everything stand out vividly. His battles are absolutely riveting and beyond compare.

The characterization was terrific as well. I love Sharpe and Patrick. They're great together. And since this book went back to the timeframe in between the battles of Badajoz and Salamanca, a lot of the Riflemen, etc. were present in this story that died later on in the series. It was great having them all back!

Last but not least, the dialogue was even better than usual. It's almost as if the author was having fun with the character interactions. Some of the conversations and comments, particularly those involving Patrick, Major Hogan, Theresa and Sharpe, gave me the giggles. He writes each character's words in a distinct way, and I can almost hear them in my mind. He's very skilled in that department.

This did have a few minor technical flaws, but this is the unedited and unpublished story. The book will be up to the usual standards once these two things have been done. I've got to say that I enjoyed this tremendously. I will read anything in this series that Cornwell writes. Going by his comment in the author note, Sharpe and Richard will march again!

Bernard Cornwell is an amazing writer – I have devoured so many of his novels that I was looking forward to reading Sharpe’s Command. I had a tough time getting into it, though, and I believe that is because this was my first Sharpe book. The novel takes place in Spain in 1812 and I like the camaraderie between the men. The battles are skillfully written but I felt like I was missing some backstory coming into this series with the most recent book rather than starting at the beginning of the series. I’ve already purchased the first book in the series so that I can catch up with this likeable band of brothers!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.