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The SeaHawk Rafael Sabatini Books

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The SeaHawk Rafael Sabatini Books

I was introduced to Sabatini novels by my father, when I was in grade school and this was the last one I recently read. The Sea Hawk, with Errol Flynn, has been one of my favorite films. But, the film bears no relationship to the book, which is why I've put off reading it. This story is as much a buckle-swasher as Sabatini's other novels and just as entertaining, if you can handle the turn-of-the-century verbiage and style. It kept me turning pages.


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The SeaHawk Rafael Sabatini Books Reviews

For those who love adventure in exotic and far off times and places, Rafael Sabatini was a godsend. And this one is certainly up there among his successes! Here is a tale about an English gentleman of Cornwall, Sir Oliver Tressilian, who is betrayed into ignominy and bondage by a dastardly kinsman who covets Sir Oliver's wealth and, incidentally, safety for himself. Sir Oliver ends up finding a new and successful life in another culture but cannot forgive what has been done to him so that, when the time comes, he cannot but throw all he has won away in a search for vengeance against those who have wronged him. How this all works out (and it's not that hard to predict though fun to follow as it unfolds), is the subject of this tight little tale of Barbary pirates on the Mediterranean. The Arab world is convincingly, if romantically, portrayed as far as it goes but I felt a decided lack in the development of the Muslim characters. They seemed overly simplistic and one-dimensional to me. On the other hand, the English characters weren't much more richly drawn except for brother Lionel, perhaps, as he wrestles with his private demons in seeking a way to resolve the quandary he has got himself into. The lovely Rosamund was just a paper doll, I fear, while Sir Oliver was, himself, little more than the typical tall, handsome, English gentleman with the touch of the rogue in him. Sir John seemed a bit more human in his dull and plodding way. But, in the end, this tale wasn't about characters as much as about action and there's enough of that, along with betrayals and suspense, to keep lovers of historical adventures glued to the pages until the final denouement. Worth a read and then some but not likley to remain with you afterwards.
SWM
author of The King of Vinland's Saga
I hate to be another person to write a glowing review of "The Sea Hawk," but I can't help myself. Sabatini is one of my favorite authors, and this is one of my favorite books by him. It's the sweeping saga of an English gentleman's transformation into a Muslim pirate circa 1590, and its themes of family betrayal, religious revenge, and tormented love are worthy of a Verdi opera. Sir Oliver and Rosamond are familiar Sabatini character types, but I personally feel they have more depth and vitality here than, say, the leads in "Captain Blood."
"Hawk" does have a few problems though, shared by other books in the Sabatini canon. Like "Scaramouche," there's the slightly awkward three act structure. "Hawk" gets off to an exciting start, then bogs down a bit when it introduces the North African setting and the Muslim characters, and in Act 3 finally careens to a terrific and breathless finish. Also, as another reviewer pointed out, the Muslim characters, especially compared to their English counterparts, are not particularly convincing. In fact, their overly stilted and archaic dialogue bears an amusing resemblance to the historical speechifying satirized by Thackeray in his 1850 burlesque "Rebecca and Rowena." But all in all, these are minor complaints. "The Sea Hawk" is a ripping read by one of the 20th century's masters of historical fiction.
From beginning to end, "The Sea Hawk" is also irresistably cinematic, from the initial descriptions of Sir Oliver's mansion to the final shipboard embrace. However I don't expect that this will be remade into a movie any time soon, given today's political climate. I read this shortly after the Madrid bombings, and it was decidedly unsettling reading about a Western guy who converts to Islam and takes up a jihad against the wicked Spanish. Yes, times have certainly changed since "Hawk" was written in 1915. One wonders what Sabatini would make of John Walker Lindh...
"Captain Blood" is adventurism with lots of action and good character studies. "The Sea Hawk" is also adventure but with far less action and more fascinating character studies. Sabatini invents intriquing thought processes for the leading characters that lead to the unexpected . He is almost as good as Tolstoy in opening up heads. The translation is excellent as the words just flow making it difficult to put the book down.
Sabatini is a fantastic writer. If you like adventure and good writing, he's the writer for you.
I particularly liked the feel of this book. If felt like it could have been written when the book took place. I also liked how some plot was nicely summarized rather than drawn out into what could have been many chapters, making a concise complete story. One problem I had was with the action in the book. This is supposed to an adventure but many of the fight/action scenes are scantily described. There was a bit of a lack of character development, but by the end the important players were fleshed out well enough. I thought the psychoanalysis of the characters was good as well, not being overdone as in some books, but there enough to lend some insight into decisions that characters made. Overall this was an enjoyable read.
I was introduced to Sabatini novels by my father, when I was in grade school and this was the last one I recently read. The Sea Hawk, with Errol Flynn, has been one of my favorite films. But, the film bears no relationship to the book, which is why I've put off reading it. This story is as much a buckle-swasher as Sabatini's other novels and just as entertaining, if you can handle the turn-of-the-century verbiage and style. It kept me turning pages.