In the Heart of the Canyon

In the Heart of the Canyon by Elisabeth Hyde (2009)

Reader's Annotation

Over the course of thirteen days, twelve passengers, three rafting guides and a stray dog together run the rapids of the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon.

Summary

J.T. Maroney has made 124 trips down the Colorado River, but one thing he accepts is that you're never completely in control, not of the river and not of the people you're guiding. No matter how good you are, how carefully you plan, circumstances can always throw you a curve. A stray dog, two mischievous boys, a know-it-all, an Alzheimer's case, and a teenage girl in a delicate condition ensure that this is one trip that does not go according to plan.

Evaluation

I enjoyed this book. The descriptions of life on the river were vivid and of running the rapids exciting and involving. They matched my own experiences of day trips white-water rafting. The characters were well drawn and interesting. It took me a little while to get them all straight but really no more so than if I'd gone on a rafting trip with 14 other people myself. The author did a good job of helping me get to know the characters and of differentiating them as individuals. I enjoyed the way she gradually built up suspense as one seemingly minor  problem after another came into play until it seemed certain that they would combine together into a perfect storm. And I especially enjoyed the mystery of Amy's pregnancy—all the clues were there to figure it out.

I'm not sure what I'd recommend to someone else who liked this book (besides another book by Elisabeth Hyde), but I think I'd like to try There's This River... Grand Canyon Boatman Stories edited by Christa Sadler.

Genres: Adventure
Subgenres:

The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure

The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure by William Goldman (1973)

Reader's Annotation

A tale of true love and high adventure, pirates, princesses, giants, miracles, fencing, and a frightening assortment of wild beasts.

Summary

In the country of Florin lives a beautiful girl named Buttercup. She delights in ordering about their farmhand, a boy named Westley, whom she simply calls Farmboy. His only response is to say, "As you wish." When Buttercup realizes she loves Westley, he leaves to seek his fortune so that they may marry.

Time passes. Buttercup learns that Westley has died at the hands of the Dread Pirate Roberts and now she will be forced to wed Prince Humperdinck, heir to the throne of Florin.

Before the wedding, Prince Humperdink, who clearly doesn't love Buttercup, hires a trio of outlaws to kidnap her to give him an excuse to start a war with Guilder. These three outlaws are Inigo Montoya, a Spanish fencing wizard; Fezzik, a giant Turkish wrestler; and their leader Vizzini, the evil Sicilian mastermind.

A mysterious man in black appears and defeats the three men, leaving Vizzini dead but gaining the respect of Inigo and Fezzik. Buttercup flees with the man in black, who turns out to be Westley, now owner of the Dread Pirate Roberts franchise.

After a harrowing journey through the Fire Swamp, Westley and Buttercup are captured by Prince Humperdinck and his six-fingered henchman, Count Tyrone Rugen. Buttercup agrees to marry Humperdinck if he will release Westley. Humperdinck agrees but orders Count Rugen to take Westley to the Zoo of Death for torture anyway.

Meanwhile, Inigo and Fezzik have learned that Count Rugen is the six-fingered nobleman who killed Inigo's father and upon whom Inigo has sworn vengeance. They rescue Westley from the Zoo of Death so that he can help them plan their assault on Humperdinck's castle.

On the day of the wedding, the three invade the castle. Inigo Montoya takes his revenge on Count Rugen, the man who killed his father, while Westley stops the wedding in the nick of time and rescues Buttercup.

Evaluation

The presentation of this novel is very unusual. Its framing material presents it as an abridgement of a novel by S. Morgenstern that Goldman's father read to him when he was sick. It was, however, written entirely by William Goldman. The story is a humorous fantasy adventure with  fairy tale elements. It's mostly good silly fun but the subplot in which Inigo Montoya seeks revenge for the death of his father is treated more seriously than the rest of the book and is my favorite part. To me, the story of Inigo Montoya is the true heart of the novel. The story of Westley and Buttercup is bland and uninteresting in comparison.

If you enjoyed the novel's humorous fantasy elements, you should try one of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels. If, on the other hand, you preferred the Inigo Montoya subplot, you might try a swashbuckling tale of revenge like The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas or Scaramouche by Rafael Sabatini.

Genres: Fantasy, Adventure
Subgenres: 

Sharpe's Rifles

Sharpe's Rifles by Bernard Cornwell (1988)

Reader's Annotation

After Lieutenant Richard Sharpe's battalion is cut down by the French, he must assume command of the survivors and lead them to rejoin the British Army in Portugal.

Summary

After Lieutenant Richard Sharpe's commanding officer is killed and his battalion of Riflemen nearly wiped out during the British retreat from the occupation of Galicia by Napoleon's forces, Sharpe struggles to assume command of the survivors and gain their respect. Hunted by a squadron of French cavalry, they ally themselves with the Spanish nobleman Blas Vivar, who carries a potent symbol of Spanish independence with which he hopes to rally the Spanish people against the French invaders.

Evaluation

Bernard Cornwell, inspired by C.S. Forester's tales of naval warfare during the Napoleonic Wars, created his own tales of land warfare set in that period. His character Richard Sharpe, who came up through the ranks at a time when most officers purchased their commissions, is hard-edged yet sympathetic. In Sharpe's Rifles, Sharpe struggles with self-doubt and with his men as he experiences his first command. The battle scenes are well described and realistic, yet always remain involving thanks to Sharpe's very personal point of view. And to round things out, Sharpe even suffers a bit of unrequited love. For more military fiction set during the Napoleonic Wars, try the Aubrey-Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian and the Horatio Hornblower series by C.S. Forester.

Genres: Historical, Adventure
Subgenres: Historical Adventure, Military Adventure

Beat to Quarters

Beat to Quarters by C.S. Forester (1937)

Reader's Annotation

Captain Horatio Hornblower of the HMS Lydia is ordered to form an alliance against the Spanish colonial government with an insane Spanish landowner in Nicaragua.

Summary

 Under secret orders from the Admiralty, Captain Horatio Hornblower has sailed his 36-gun frigate HMS Lydia halfway around the world to the Pacific side of Spanish Central America. Because Spain is allied with Napoleon, Hornblower is to foment rebellion against the Spanish colonial government by allying himself with an insane Spanish landowner known to his followers as El Supremo  and to "take, sink, burn, or destroy" the fifty-gun Spanish ship of the line Natividad. Hornblower, through a clever trick, captures the Natividad and reluctantly turns it over to El Supremo. Shortly thereafter, Hornblower receives new orders: because Spain is now allied with Britain against Napoleon, he must once again pursue the Natividad, but this time capturing or destroying her won't be so easy! And to further complicate Hornblower's situation, he must take on a female passenger, the Lady Barbara Wellesley.

Evaluation

This is the first written of the excellent Hornblower novels. Forester provides a wealth of period detail and brings the HMS Lydia and her crew to vivid life. He has a gift for making slow moving sea battles interesting and exciting. Horatio Hornblower is a layered and complex character: imaginative, empathetic, hard-working, introspective, and self-doubting, he makes for a likable and interesting protagonist. And the presence of the Lady Barbara provides a nice extra flavor of romance. For more military fiction set during the Napoleonic Wars, try the Aubrey-Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian and the Richard Sharpe series by Bernard Cornwell.

Genres: Adventure, Historical
Subgenres: Historical Adventure, Nautical Adventure, Military Adventure