Sharpes Feuerprobe: Episode 1

I sure will be reading all the rest of these. They're like potato chips. Can't consume just one.

The first installment of the great Sharpe series. One of the most enjoyable historical-fiction series ever written.

One of the better Sharpe novels. The research by the writer shows in the best way. The descriptions of the Tipoo Sultan and his city add a lot to the flavour of the book.While it is improbably that Sharpe could be involved in so many key events relating to the siege of Seringapatam, that's taken as read for a military hero, so one accepts it as a given and enjoys the story.Excellent description of the siege. And a well-written female character (well-written by Cornwell's standards. Some of his women are very stereotypical)One of the things I've always liked about Cornwell's writing is that the people Sharpe is fighting are never displayed as one-sided bad guys. The Tipoo is portrayed as a brave man and a ruler who made sure not to offend his Hindu subjects (he was a Muslim).

This was my first foray into reading Bernard Cornwell's Richard Sharpe books, and I have to say it was impressive! I was expecting tiresome war details, but rather this story focussed on the origin of Sharpe's character and the origin of his usual pattern of rollicking action in the midst of battle. There are so many delightful characterizations, and endearing officers that help Dick Sharpe navigate his first real missions in soldiering. Before I forget to add, yes, there are tigers and they are fun. I found the whole book enjoyable and lively and even if you never read another Sharpe book, at least read this one! Highly Recommended.

First in a long series telling of the exploits of Richard Sharp,a soldier in the British army. In this first story Sharp is a private who is thinking of deserting. The year is 1799 and the place is India. The army is about to lay siege to the city of Seringapatam wherein lurks the cruel but brave ruler,the Tippoo.An incredibly exciting yarn,made all the better by the fact that most of the basic facts are historicallycorrect

I'm a big fan of CS Forester's Horatio Hornblower books about a British naval officer during and after the Napoleonic wars, and this has been praised as the Army equivalent. Richard Sharpe is a very different character, and I don't know if I'll become as attached to him as Hornblower, but after this novel I'm looking forward to the other novels detailing Sharpe's exploits and rise through the ranks. While certainly no gentleman, Sharpe does have a core of what one officer calls "kindness" and while not educated, he's clever and courageous. When we first meet him here, he's an illiterate private, a former thief, dreaming of desertion, and his insane and cruel sergeant is scheming to trap Sharpe into a flogging offense. The novel is strong in conveying what it's like serving in the British Army in 1799 India, all the little details from how they kept their hair to how they loaded their muskets. Besides the fictional characters it features real historical figures such as Arthur Wellesley, the future Lord Wellington. The novel is often suspenseful, particularly towards the close and delivers on nail-biting, heart-racing action adventure.

The very first book in the Sharpe series, Cornwell writes of the complex and rich history of the British Army and East India Company in their conquest of Hyderabad and the Tippoo Sultan. Sharpe is a complex rogue, capable of heroism and debauchery in the same page. A must read for any fan of Cornwell and historical fiction.

Great story

This is the latest written of the Sharpe books that I own but in terms of internal chronology it's the earliest, with Sharpe a lowly private in the 33rd of Foot in India, where the infantry man meets some of those who would be influential in his future. Set well away from the 'familiar' battlefields of Napoleonic Europe, we're in India, where the small force of British Army soldiers were tasked to support the East India company's expansion into the Mahratta states and the target of Sharpe's regiment is the Tippoo of Mysore as they attempt to assault the city of Seringapatam. Falling foul of his sergeant, Hakeswill, Sharpe finds that volunteering for a mission that was only slightly less suicidal than the flogging he's unjustifiably been sentenced to. But it would mean proving that he was willing to fight, and kill, his erstwhile companions, though the rewards would be the much desired sergeant's stripes that would let him treat with Hakeswill on an equal basis. This is hi first meeting with a Colonel Wellesley who would have such a great effect on Sharpe's life.

Well read and engrossing first book of Sharpe Series. British Army in India marches to overturn the Tippoo, ruler of Mysore in southern India. Sharpe is a proper hero and the discription of life as a soldier in the British Army is very realistic and interesting.

Sharpe's Tiger introduces Pvt. Richard Sharpe of His Majesty's 33rd Regiment of Infantry. The regiment is stationed in India in 1799 to fight a war against Tippoo, king of a Muslim dynasty in the state of Mysore, a minor character is Arthur Wellesley (later Duke of Wellington), also near the beginning of his career.Sharpe, the son of a whore, was raised as a foundling in the underbelly of London. He is quick-witted, street-wise, illiterate, tough, but also has a kind heart. No one feels ambivalent about Sharpe. He is respected/loved/admired or hated. Unfortunately, his crazed sargeant, Hakeswill, and their drunken, incompetent, unscrupulous captain, Morris, can't tolerate him. They also lust after his "wife". The only way they can get to her is to manufacture capital offenses against him--and they proceed to do so. Sharpe escapes a flogging to death by the timely intervention of the inexperienced Lt. Lawford.This gritty novel follows Sharpe, and Lawford into the court of Tippoo and through the battle of Seringapatam. He starts out bored with army life and very tired of being persecuted by his officers, but feeling trapped. By the end of the novel his has come into his own, discovered soldiering as his vocation, received recognition and the promise of a more interesting future. He has also started on the road to literacy. Like Sharpe himself, this is not a pretty story, but it is a highly interesting one.

I'd read Patrick O'Brian before, and was hoping this series would be comparable. Surprise, I loved this first book, a great introduction to Richard Sharpe, a private in Britain's army in India at the close of the 18th century. Bernard Cornwell serves up a delightful yarn, weaving accurate, detailed historical details - of clothing, armaments, foods, army life, as well as real characters, like the future Duke of Wellington - with colorful fictional heroes and villains, intrigue, derring-do, desperate gambits, and exhilarating battles. I could not put the book down. Once it was finished, I had to go get the next in the series, and the next, and the next after that. I've now finished all 20 some of the books, and insofar as I'm concerned, it was time well spent reading them all. Dick Sharpe is your irresistible, lovable rogue. Constantly beset by corrupt, venal adversaries and enemies, he goes on fighting Britain's wars in India, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, and even France, while facing his own foibles, fears, prejudices, and ambitions. He does all this the only way he knows how - with his whole heart and soul, and yes, honor - even if he was nothing but a thief at the start of this long, thrilling adventure.

An excellent beginning to a great series, if you like historical fiction. Cornwell does an excellent job depicting the people & the times. He captures the essence of the battle & the issues surrounding it, but through the eyes of a common infantry man, Richard Sharpe.

Sharpe is not a nice guy, but he's not a bad man, either. He is the product of his times & that often leads him to actions most would be hesitant to take. As he says in one place - he's not a rapist, but he's lied, murdered & stolen when he had to. Above all, he's a tough man in a tough situation who manages to survive.

I've read another of this series & seen some of the 1 hour shows which were aired on PBS. There were also VHS tapes available from the library for a while. Both my wife & I enjoyed them, although Sharpe on screen is a much cleaner man than the books portray him to be. Still, we liked both & I look forward to reading more of the series.

This had me riveted from the first minute. A great military adventure...rougher and rawer than Patrick O'Brian's books but with the same type of great characters that hook you right away.

Love Sharpe!! Love Cornwell's ability to tell and interesting story, even about stuff that females are not normally interested in.

First in the series. Richard Sharpe, in 1799, is a private in the British Army, stationed in India, which is fighting a war with the Tippoo of Mysore, a powerful Muslim ruler. Sharpe and a Lieutenant Lawford go on an undercover mission as supposed deserters to the Tippoo in his capital of Seringapatam. While there, they participate in the climactic battle for the city. The book is based on actual events and remains very close to the historical record.This is an action-packed book that, while keeping a very fast pace, imparts a wealth of fascinating detail about life in the British Army at that time, which is integral to the plot. Indian life is not quite so well portrayed but in the context of the book, that is not noticeable, nor is it a loss.The characters are well done, including the evil Sgt. Hikeswell. The Tippoo himself emerges as a sympathetic and enlightened ruler for those times. The Duke of Wellington is introduced as Col. Arthur Wellesley in his first real command, as subordinate to General Harris, the leader of the expedition against Mysore. while some characters are clearly one-timers, others obviously will repeat in further books, and I'm loooking forward to seeing them all again.Highly recommended.

Cornwell is criticized by some for his historical inaccuracies, some are valid, in particular the Siege of Gawilghur, some are not (soldiers did pee in their rifles to clean them of residuue, they did short load their rifles). Regardless, he is a first rate writer and Sharpe rocks! If you're a guy, you'll like these books! If you're a woman that likes guys, you'll like these books (my wife loves them).

My first Sharpe book and it's about time. Excellent read from beginning to end and I can't wait to see what Cornwell has in store next for Richard Sharpe. Well written, thoroughly researched, full of action and suspense. My only somewhat harsh criticism would be some of the characters were tad stereotypical but our hero is not.

This is the third Sharpe book I've read (I'm starting the series over in chronological order), and it was interesting to see Sharpe as a Private instead of as an officer. I've also been curious as to the situation that led to his flogging, but now I know! And another mystery solved for me--why Hakeswill twitches. He really is an evil bastard. *shudders*The style of writing isn't my favorite, but I am warming to these books--thanks mainly to Sean Bean. *purrs* If I can picture him as Sharpe, then I can get through the entire series!I don't like Cornwell's women, though. They tend to be pathetic and insubstantial. Usually they're just background scenery: women crying, frightened women screaming, etc. I'm not a man-hating feminist, but I would like to see Cornwell give women a little more credit. But I suppose with the timeline and the fact that these are war books, I won't get my wish fulfilled. We'll see, though. I might get lucky yet.Aside from Sharpe, Lawford was my favorite character in this book. I hope I'll see more of him as I continue through the series.

I want to read all the Sharpe books but I know that only on audiobook am I likely ever to do so. This the first chronologically turned up as an audiobook via my library so I listened to it. Enjoyed it as a quick story.Am hoping the others will turn up via my library.

Świetna! Super się słuchało! Polecam jako lekką powieść dla uczących się języka!

I decided to start at the beginning of this lengthy historical fiction series and I'm glad I did. I expected I would probably like Sharpe's Tiger, but I ended up liking it even more than I had hoped I would. Enough that I have already picked up the first four books in the series in hardcover. That should say something right there. The main character of Richard Sharpe hit all the important points for a series protagonist - smart, resourceful, good looking. He is protective when he can be and ruthless when he needs to be. But he isn't cliché. Some have likened him to an 1800s James Bond. A actually see him more closely resembling a Jack Reacher. Just as effective are the surrounding characters who are nuanced and every bit a part of the story as the protagonist. Cornwell's storytelling is very well done and his attention to detail regarding getting the history to integrate with the plot is exceptional. He even details the where he departed from the actual history in the notes at the end of the book. Sharpe's Tiger is an all-around great story and I'm really looking forward to the series.

Sharpe’s Tiger is the novel by Bernard Cornwell, a well known historical fiction writer. The novel is also based around the well known historical fiction character that by this time is already has been celebrated through movies. Sharpe’s Tiger is a definite historical fiction novel that describes the British campaign in India. So let’s look at the book.The book’ cover is perfectly reflects the military theme of the book and also reflects exactly the location the action of the book takes place making the book very attractive and the cover is in line with the plot.The use of the language is great. The language is not simple but is not either too delicate to ruin the novel about the military actions and the history of India. The military terms are well applied. The narration is done in third person and from the perspective of the different characters in the book for the purpose of allowing the reader to know more about all the main characters of the book and the events that influence them or led them to current situation. In this case the perspectives are mostly from the point of view of the French Colonel, Sharp and Colonel of the East India Company.The character development is also very nicely done. The character of Sharpe develops through the book as he goes from one out look on the army and the officers to the other. The book focuses on these changes to show how the characters of a person could be influenced by the event. The other characters are mostly defined and behave in fashion that is very delimitative of them. The use of these characters allows to see the wider picture of the war and the outlook on the events from different perspectives. The characters are very realistic; the Indians who are fighting against the British are not portrayed as evil enemy and the British as the good guys. All characters have their virtues and weaknesses. Both sides are shown as fighting the war no of morals but rather due to political and economic reasons. The Tippoo sultan who leads the Indians is shown as brave fighter and wise ruler. The themes of the book is that armies of the period and current ones too are hard places to live in not only due to the rigid discipline and training, but due to the interaction between the officers and the apparent unfairness the soldiers perceive is being done to them. At the same time reader is exposed to the difficulties of the command decisions. The book highlights the fact that officers often are unable to understand the soldiers and difficulties they face. Another theme is the discrimination present in the British rank not only against the Indians, but Irish and Scots. The discrimination as the book shows is unjust as all the soldiers of different ethnicities perform their duties properly and also shows that it is the English officer and sergeant who prove incapable or a coward. The portrayal of the enemy as an equal opponent rather than evil tyrant is another theme. While the common soldiers are shown to hold the opinion that their enemy is evil, the higher ranks do not share it. The causes of conflict are shown as more political and economic rather than moral. Finally, it is possible to see the theme that the person out of the slums could given the opportunity turn out to be a hero for all the selfish reasons. The plot moves along with a good speed, moving the events towards the reader and keeping him interested. The action is described also perfectly to make it vivid for the readers about what is happening. The fights are also described in the details. The story that is based on actual historic events is fitted perfectly into the historical events. There is nice touch by the author of putting in the historical note on the end of the book to allow the reader to see how the plot has been fitted into the history.The only flaw of the book that could be pointed out is a fact that Sharpe seems a bit being too good at fighting, thinking up plans and etc. This gives a small superhuman like feel to his character. However many novels use such device therefore it is hard to blame this one.Finally, there is an unanswered question of why sergeant Hakeswell wasn’t court-martialed for his actions in this books.In conclusion Sharpe’s Tiger is amasing book that presents history in interesting fashion but still with a lot of accuracy and very little bias. The book is entertaining and at the same time the reader walks away from it with the feeling of learning something new. This is what makes this book amasing. It is great casual read, and for serious read it is good as well.

I just finished my first Bernard Cornwell book, Sharpe's Tiger. I enjoyed it but it didn't fill the gap left by Patrick O'brain.