Master and Commander cover art

Master and Commander

Aubrey-Maturin, Book 1

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Master and Commander

By: Patrick O'Brian
Narrated by: Robert Hardy
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About this listen

 In this, the first of Patrick O’Brian’s much lauded Aubrey–Maturin novels, discover a vibrant world conjured by a master storyteller, rich with detail and character.

1800. Napoleon Bonaparte is the biggest threat to peace yet seen.

Newly promoted to command of his first ship, Captain Jack Aubrey, along with his crew, and new friend and ship’s surgeon Stephen Maturin, must patrol a Mediterranean fraught with peril but rich with rewards. A glimpse of white sails on the horizon could mean a prize to be taken – or a fight for survival.

‘In Aubrey and Maturin, Patrick O’Brian has created two of the most enjoyable characters in twentieth-century fiction. One of the greatest authors to sail with.’
MICHAEL PALIN

‘There are two types of people in the world: Patrick O'Brian fans, and people who haven't read him yet.’
LUCY EYRE, Guardian

©1994 Patrick O'Brian (P)2003 HarperCollins UK Action & Adventure Espionage Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Medical Spies & Politics Thriller & Suspense War & Military Military

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All stars
Most relevant  

Would you consider the audio edition of Master and Commander to be better than the print version?

Absolutely, listending to someone read to you has to be one of life's pleasures, tired eyes and poor lighting issues are abolished!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Master and Commander?

This, the first in the splendid series of Jack Aubrey novels, establishes the friendship between Captain Aubrey, R.N., and Stephen Maturin, ship's surgeon and intelligence agent, against a thrilling backdrop of the Napoleonic wars. The attention to detail in describing life on board a man-of-war paints a picture better than any imagery can convey: and the language and conversations of the officers in the ward room and the men on the lower deck, the food, the floggings, the mysteries of the wind and the rigging, and the roar of broadsides as the great ships close in battle, all fantastic.

What does Robert Hardy bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Robert Hardy brings the experience of a seasoned actor in making the book come alive in your mind,

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The whole story had a great impact on me.

Lose yourself on the high seas.

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Steven and Jack. An unlikely friendship commences abroad the Sophie amongst the chaos of sea.

a baptism into maritime history

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On a long-long journey some time ago, I stopped for petrol on the M6 and was browsing a CD stall at a motorway service station looking for something to help me while the journey away, when Master and Commander caught my eye (this was long before Audible was around!). Having seen the movie advertised, but having not seen it, I thought I'd give the talking book (a CD of this very Audible item) a try and what fantastically lucky choice it was!



Within ten minutes, the M6 had gone, the modern world was a vague memory, and I was transported back to a world of sailing ships, war at sea and the romance and brutality of life in the Royal Navy in the early 19th century and, as the journey progressed, I was introduced to nautical terms, wonderful plot lines, narrative and adventure that burned along at a splendid pace and kept me deeply involved and gripped to the very end. When the story concluded, I was there with Jack Aubrey, with a lump in my throat, proud to be an Englishman and in my mind's eye a new recruit to His Majesty's Navy, hoping that whoever this Patrick O'Brian chap was, that he'd found time to jot down some more adventures in the same vain.



Well, it turned out that he had managed to continue after the first book, all the way to half way through a twenty first volume, each one offering the reader something new at every turn. O'Brian takes the reader around the world with wonderful writing that includes intrigue, adventure, romance, tragedy, villainy, betrayal, friendship, and descriptive details of life ashore and at sea in the 1800s and each volume has something new to enjoy along the way with Jack and Stephen.



Robert Hardy's wonderful narration of this, the first in the Aubrey and Maturin series, instantly entranced and beguiled me and his astonishing characterisations have helped to to enjoy each and every book in this Audible series. I highly recommend any listener to start here as the first step on a wonderous journey; go all the way!

A magical start to a wonderful series

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This wonderful series should NEVER be abridged as every word is an absolute gem. I bought this in ignorance and hope never to make the same mistake with other books of the series. I have since bought the unabridged version! (also available on 'Audible')

Horrible abridgment, beautifully read

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I read the book, I saw the film, I loved both. I listened to this narraton and was disappointed. Robert Hardy is an astounding screen actor, I have no personal dislike for him and I would recommend watching anything that he stars in on-screen, but I find his narration of this excellent book a little bland. It's not that it lacks character, but rather it lacks dynamism.

Compare this with the narration of HMS Expedient by Cornelius Garrett and you will catch my meaning. I am not comapring the actual books here of course, merely the narrative style.

For anybody who hasn't read "Master and Commander" I would highly recommend that you do so, you will not be disappointed, the book is very well written and puts the reader at the centre of life on board a man-of-war ship during the Napoleonic era, encompassing the close friendship between the Captain and his secretive Surgeon, who is also a secret agent, and the struggles that all crews faced with regard to food, discipline, on-board sickness and endless crew-squabbles. The sense of atmosphere and ambience is captured perfectly and at times you feel that you are really in there with the characters.

This book brings to life the very essence of the era and captures the reader in the folds of the story until the end is reached, making you want to read more.

Critically acclaimed as the best series of historical novels ever written, you will not be disappointed with this excellent novel.

Great story not so great narration

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Don’t bother with this. Look up the unabridged version read by Ric Jerrom.
This one is entirely without pace, or depth. The edit means it is impossible to understand context. The narrator has only one voice and it is therefore impossible to discern who is speaking or indeed if it is only narration. That he can muster stereotypical spokeshave English, does not mean he should be reading audiobooks.
Truly dreadful.

Dreadful slaughter of a fine novel.

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Don't buy this shoddily and unnecessarily curtailed recording. The joy of the novels is in the occasional details and the depiction of shipboard life/death. All of this has been filleted.
Please can somebody record the whole series unabridged - it is an excellent (if not the pre-eminent) historical series of novels.

Awful abridgement

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Very sorry but Robert Hardy (an exceptional actor) is nothing like the voice you would expect from Aubrey and he has struggled with the Irish accents

Narration

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This is a very good book and nicely read but the way is has been abridged is pretty awful. Great chunks of story are missed and at times (especially towards the end) the story chops about so much it becomes tricky to follow.

Since the unabridged version is available on the American version of this site, it seems a pity that we have to make do with this.

Disappointing abridgement

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