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Post Captain
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Plot Summary of Post Captain
"In the early spring of 1802, a peace treaty is signed between Britain and Napoleon. Jack Aubrey and several of his young officers, along with Stephen Maturin, are out of a job and retire in the south of England. It's pretty boring, save for a trio of sisters -- Sophia, Cecilia, and Frances Williams -- who live nearby with their insufferable mother, and a cousin named Diana Villiers, a young widow of 27. For a time it's horse riding and dances, but suddenly Aubrey is in deep financial trouble: his prize-agent has absconded with the firm's money, and a prize-ship Aubrey had taken was denied, so he now owes 11,000 pounds to creditors. Jack and Stephen slip away to France for a friendly visit with old rivals, and then Bonaparte is poised to invade Britain. It's war again in 1804! By the time Aubrey is able to sneak back to London, all the good ships have been assigned, and he has to settle for an odd, experimental boat that's pointed at both ends, called the "Polychrest." His despised former superior Harte is now an admiral above him, which is little comfort. Worse, though Aubrey is quite taken with demure Sophia Williams, he's also charmed by aggressive flirt Diana, who also has been spending a lot of time with Maturin (who we now learn is a spy for Britain). By the climax of this, the second novel in the series, the two friends have challenged each other to a duel, Aubrey faces another pro forma court martial for losing the Polychrest in a port battle in northern France, and Maturin has thoroughly annoyed a ship by bringing a hive of 60,000 bees on board. A giant step beyond _Master and Commander_ in quality and complexity."
David Loftus, Resident Scholar



Review Analysis of Post Captain
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book? - upbeat
Time/era of story - 19th century
Training/promotions story Yes
Life of a profession: - sailor
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
War/Revolt/Disaster on civilians Yes
Job/Profession/Status story Yes
Conflict: - War, general

Main Character
Gender - Male
Profession/status: - navy soldier
Age: - 20's-30's
Ethnicity/Nationality - British
How sensitive is this character? - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - bulging muscles

Main Adversary
Identity: - an organization
Profession/status: - navy soldier
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount

Setting
Europe Yes
European country: - England/UK
Water? Yes
Water: - warship
Misc setting - fancy mansion

Style
Person - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths
Sex in book? Yes
What kind of sex: - vague references
Unusual Style: - No single main character?
Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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