Hello again Mr. Cornwell, I hope you are having a great new year so far- aside from the Patriots big loss in the Super Bowl. I wont gloat however, because I have some questions/comments/observations to inflict on you once again..... It's well-known that while sailing around the world on his boat, the Annie Marble, that C.S. Forester purchased a three volume set of the Naval Chronicle to keep him occupied during the trip. This in turn provided the seedling idea for the entire Hornblower saga. I was wondering, besides Forester's fiction itself, what, if any, specific non-fiction work did you read early on to make the notion of your "Hornblower On Land" saga seem attainable?
Awhile ago I scanned your recommendation for the book 'Rambling Soldier' by Roy Palmer, I'm glad I tracked it down- it was a great social history of the British army during that period. Might I recommend, if you haven't read it already, Turner's "Wrapped in Whirlwinds: Poems of the Crimean War". Hopefully Reading it may trigger a change of heart in regards to embarking on a Patrick Lassan series. Another good book is Hernon's "Britain's Forgotten Wars" which fills in all the nooks and crannies of history apart from the Crimean, Boer or Zulu wars, that I imagine Sharpe's progeny could take part in if you found the time..maybe you could do something like Reeman's generational Blackwood Saga?
I understand your reluctance to explore the first or second world wars, filled as they were with blood, mud and senseless mechanized death. However, may I recommend the forgotten classic "Company K" by William March- it is composed of short first person narratives of an entire company of soldiers and when read together, form this mosaic pattern of the entire war and its aftermath for those involved in a Rashomon-like style- an experiment in point of view and perception- a really wonderful book, that I found by accident, but can't recommend enough!
I wanted to know what you thought of the short story form. I know you have been talking about the possibility of exploring some of Sharpe's career in this way. This idea seems to have an historical precedent since Forester himself created a series of short stories, after his saga was more or less complete, that were eventually compiled into "Mr. Midshipman Hornblower". I read that the entire saga, the novels, were also serialized in the magazines of the day. Sabatini also created a cycle of short stories about Captain Blood after the novel was such a success; which were eventually collected in the book "The Fortunes of Captain Blood". I was wondering if maybe you had these models in mind for the further adventures of Sharpe and family. I personally would like to see you write something like Forester's "The Last Encounter" which would give us, chronologically at least, our last view of Sharpe and what finally became of him. Anyway, I bought Sword Song on the date of it's American release (I can't believe I waited that long this time !) and finished it in one long sitting. Another wonderful book. Anytime I read one of your Uhtred or Sharpe stories it reminds me of a quote by the filmmaker Sergio Leone- "History was made by violent, uncomplicated men". I think you capture that notion perfectly. R. Kulb