Amy B. (BaileysBooks) reviewed Sharpe's Rifles : Richard Sharpe and the French Invasion of Galicia, January 1809 (Sharpe) on + 491 more book reviews
This is the chronological Book 6 (and the original Book 1) of the Richard Sharpe series.
This is the first book of the Richard Sharpe series that truly had me engrossed. The previous books were interesting, but this one was different. This is what I was expecting the entire time, and it was fantastic.
Cornwell has always done such an amazing job with character development and I have been constantly frustrated by the unnaturally slow pace he has used with Sharpe. Perhaps his uncharacteristic dawdling was due to the fact that he had to gradually build up to the Richard Sharpe that we meet in this book, a living, breathing, larger than life character who was simply waiting for Cornwells prequels to catch up with him. And even though some of the prequels frustrated me, they did serve a valuable purpose. The Sharpe of this book is certainly a rich character, but he is even more so now because we already know so much more about him.
In addition to great characters (we are introduced to Patrick Harper and Blas Vivar as well), the reader is given something equally as rewarding: a really good story. Before this book, I found the Sharpe series to be a trudge rather than a treat. This book has changed that completely and I am genuinely excited to see what happens next.
This is the first book of the Richard Sharpe series that truly had me engrossed. The previous books were interesting, but this one was different. This is what I was expecting the entire time, and it was fantastic.
Cornwell has always done such an amazing job with character development and I have been constantly frustrated by the unnaturally slow pace he has used with Sharpe. Perhaps his uncharacteristic dawdling was due to the fact that he had to gradually build up to the Richard Sharpe that we meet in this book, a living, breathing, larger than life character who was simply waiting for Cornwells prequels to catch up with him. And even though some of the prequels frustrated me, they did serve a valuable purpose. The Sharpe of this book is certainly a rich character, but he is even more so now because we already know so much more about him.
In addition to great characters (we are introduced to Patrick Harper and Blas Vivar as well), the reader is given something equally as rewarding: a really good story. Before this book, I found the Sharpe series to be a trudge rather than a treat. This book has changed that completely and I am genuinely excited to see what happens next.
