I enjoyed the beginning of this book when the protagonist Lieutenant Jack Absolute was at sea returning to England from America with his new friend, the Irishman Red Hugh McClune. Jack and Red make a great pair. I don't know naval terminology at all but I still found the battle sequence exciting.When it stuck to swashbuckling adventure, I found this book engaging. However, during the middle section of the book devoted to the romance between Jack and Red's 17 year old cousin Laetitia, I totally lost interest. I got so tired of notes being passed and secret trysts. After a while, every time I saw the name Laetitia on a page I skipped the whole page, so I may have missed vital plot points. It was also a little irritating that almost all of the other women in the book seemed to be whores. The adventure story picked up again in the final third of the book when Jack went back to spying and fighting. I have not read the other books in this series so I don't know whether they focus more on adventure or on sappy romance. I wouldn't mind reading more about Jack the soldier/spy, but I don't want any more of lovesick Jack.I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
This book was a fantastic ending of the Jack Absolute series. Jack`s many scrapes entertain throughout, and the only negative aspect is his constant obsession with women. Altogether, a well rounded, page-turner.
