Another deceased author I was entranced by is Patrick O'Brian, whose Napoleonic War sea novel series featuring Captain Jack Aubrey, is one I approached cautiously after seeing the film "Master and Commander" based more or less on his books.
As a lifelong fan of C.S. Forester and his hero Captain Horatio Hornblower, I was dubious that anyone else could approach his standards of authenticity. I was therefore amazed to discover that O'Brian leaves Forester in the dust. His books are far superior in every way, and I doubt that I will ever be able to read a Forester book again without making unfavorable comparisons.
There are 22 books to this series and the stories pretty much meld chronologically.
Hear, hear. Without a doubt my favorite fiction, ever. Completely indispenible. I have all of them on my ipod and have heard/read them all probably 6-7 times now, and will keep listening. The writing is simply perfect - never false, never strained, always capturing the characters and events in brilliant focus. They are far more than "sea stories".
