The Aubrey-Maturin series was written from the early 70's until a few years ago, spanning 20 and a half (one incomplete) books. It follows two main characters throughout their careers in the Napoleonic Era navy from about 1800 through about 1817. It is very much a series - I highly recommend that if you want to try them, you should start with the first three in succession.
1. Master and Commander
2. Post Captain
3. HMS Surprise (my favorite in the series!)

I will put in a good word for the movie, although it is not really based on any single book (even the one where its title is from) It is a good trailer for the series - a 2 1/2 hour one though!

The writing is excellent - these are not just your Boy's Own adventure stories, but they have been reasonably, at least in my opinion, compared to Austen. If you have a historical interest in ships, you may not mind as much the description of their inter workings to which other readers have been known to object. O'Brian has a sly wit at times - there are plenty of comical moments along with the more serious ones. He does a wonderful job with characterization, beyond just the two main characters. The action, particularly in the later books, however does not take place entirely at sea.

Jack Aubrey is to some extent the title character - on the surface, a stereotypical naval officer and devoted to its traditions, a brave and confident leader of men, sanguine, cheerful, and immensely fond of a bad pun. He can be terribly oblivious on land, a horrid skirt-chaser (although O'Brian is never ever, ever, lewd about such things) and above all 'means well' even when things go disastrously wrong! However, he has some 'hidden parts' - he's an avid violin player, a scholar in his own right, and a loyal friend.

Stephen Maturin is the other - a doctor in an age of naval surgeons, he is extremely well educated, and has a serious interest in the natural sciences. This scientific mind is well balanced by his Catholicism - which combined with being a bastard in the technical fashion (half-Catalan and half Irish), makes him a most curious figure in the British Royal Navy. He leans somewhat republican and is easily confused by naval customs even until the later books, but he is above all against Napoleon and what he stands for. He is a deep soul - much more than he appears.

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A review of the physical condition of the books, which I wrote on Amazon when first purchased (11/04)

Assuming that the majority reading this are already assured of these books literary relevance, this review is based around the physical condition of the books themselves.

The entire set weighs about 7 pounds, I'd say, bound as promised in 5 volumes. The set itself is not too big at all: the height is a tad shorter than your ordinary paperback. The slipcase is quite nice, though the glossiness will probably fade quickly and the fit is a bit tight around the books. The largest side of the box has a beautiful piece of Hunt work, HMS Agamemnon, which I am not recognizing as a previous cover image at the moment. The other sides have a picture of Mr. O'Brian and some reviews.

The books themselves appear to be quite solidly made, bound in blue with gold print on the spine and with a slipcover, the latter featuring the usual portrait of Mr. O'Brian (the spine images form the same Hunt painting as the outside of the box). The inside of each cover has a teaser for each book within. They vary in width as well; surprisingly to me at least, the first volume (M&C through Mauritius Command) is the thickest by far. A ribbon marker is provided as well, while the end papers are a facsimile of the manuscript copy of the opening page of Master and Commander. There is continuous page numbering throughout, including 21. The print is quite reasonable in fact, looking to be about a 12 pt, but the pages themselves are definitely thinner than most; perhaps I am far too accustomed to heavy-weight hardcovers, but these are translucent to an extent. Taking a quick look through, perhaps someone with more familiarity with the books could take a look at the maps,as the print strikes me as being a different from before.

Each volume does include a table of contents listing each book, though there is no chapter listing (as I believe is true of the paperbacks). Our usual diagram of The sails of a square rigged ship, hung out to dry in a calm is featured at the beginning of each volume, portrait fashioned (no need to turn the book this round).

I read through 21 at the bookstore before receiving this set, and thus can compare to the Norton edition at least. Here, the typed pages are presented without the accompanying manuscript; in other words, it appears to be just like the other finished works in the series with no notes. The final untyped pages are included as well, copied in a fashion so that the outline of the writing paper can be clearly seen on the page. The Afterword by Richard Snow is also included as the only editorial comment throughout the set, save for O'Brian's author notes.

I do think that this was quite worth the price charged by Amazon (alas, I bought it earlier, and had to pay $102!), particularly since I only own the first 3 books (which I now will be shipping off to various friends to introduce them to the series). For previous readers, there's nothing new as far as I can see from the original editions. But, nonetheless, a handsome set to be treasured! ( )

Absolutely loved them all. Tremendous evocation of period and engaging characters. To some extent the law of diminishing returns applies and the later books are slightly lesser works but if you are anything like me if you like one you will probably have to read them all! ( )

What an exciting series of ten novels about the age of sail, during a time when Europe erupted repeated in war as Bonaparte and other leaders across the continent and around the world attempted to dominate one another. This 10 book series was like a valued friend to me for almost a year, and I was quite sad to finish the last book, it was as though that friend had died! ( )