Sharpes Tiger by Bernard Cornwell

I have been a fan of the TV series of Sharpe for a while but I have never read any of the books. I recently decided I wanted to read them and starting at the beginning chronologically seemed like a good place to start. Written after most of the other Sharpe books but set before it is part of a trilogy of books set in Colonial India.

The book is really well written and flows nicely and Bernard Cornwell paints a detailed picture of the events surrounding the siege and storming of Seringapatam and the death of the Tippoo Sultan. This book also coveres some of the events alluded to in the TV series, The hatred of Sargeant Hakeswill, the events which led to Sharpe being flogged and the beginning of Sharpes rise through the Ranks from Private to Sargeant. Where some events have been embellished such as a large mine hidden under where the British would attack. The majority of events are based on real events and each book includes details of historical events in the book that didn't happen and what has been changed. I really enjoyed the book and moved straight onto the second in this trilogy Sharpe's Triumph

Sharpes Triumph by Bernard Cornwell

Featuring the run up to and including the Battle of Assaye in 1803 and set 4 years after the events of Sharpe's Tiger. Sharpe's life is fairly comfortable, working in the Armoury in Seringapatam. That is until a trip to collect some musket cartridges from Chasalgaon where he becomes the only survivor of a massacre by a renegade East India Company officer named William Dodd. The story is also made more complex by Sharpes enemy, Sargeant Hakeswill who we first met in Sharpes Tiger.

I don't want to spoil the story much at all but the writing of the battle of Assaye is stunning and covers how Sharpe became an officer I will be starting to read the third book in this trilogy next before taking a break from the world of the early 19^th Century British army but not for any bad reason I just want to vary what I am reading.

Books New Years Resolution update

These are books 3 and 4 of my “Read at least 12 books this year” new years resolution. Book 5 is Sharpes Fortress which I have already started Book 6 will be A Game of Thrones by George R R Martin which is the first book in the a Song of Fire and Ice trilogy and book 7 will be The Pillars fo earth by Ken Follett. Both of these are 700+ and 1000+ pages respectively so will obviously take me a little longer to read