Another good episode in the series—this was one of the better ones, imo. ( )

I recognized some of the scenes in the BBC Adventure's of Sharpe series, but, if I recall aright, they were used in a different episode than Sharpe's Gold...but I can't remember.

Anyway.

One thing I do remember is that I liked Teresa immensely in the movie version. She was tough and sexy, independent, and wore clothing that fit her role as a fighter.

The Teresa in the novel is... well, your typical Bernard Cornwell woman. She is slightly better than most of the others, but she still falls for Sharpe, she still seeks him for protection, and most annoying of all, she wore a white dress. If she's going to be sneaking around the countryside looking for French to kill, why would she wear white? She would stick out like a sore thumb.

Other than that, Cornwell does his homework. His battles are always convincing and exciting, and the historical notes at the end are always very informative, interesting, and often amusing.

And Patrick Harper... I love 'im! He's adorable ^_^ ( )

This is the second Sharpe novel that I've read (I'm trying to read them in the publication order) and I enjoyed it. ( )

“Sharpe’s Gold” is another rousing success from the pen of Bernard Cornwell. This time our hero is at Almeida the last bastion, wink wink, and supposed British forlorn hope on the Iberian Peninsula. The story moves quickly and is obviously an earlier work from Mr. Cornwell and lacks some of the depth and ambiance of his later work. However, this does not dampen the sorties and intrigue as Sharpe is challenged by both a new dynamic villain and vitriolic woman. The KGL also make an appearance and add greatly to the atmosphere of this first modern continental war that started off as Napoleon’s Spanish Ulcer. ( )

No. 9 in the Richard Sharpe series.

In August of 1810, the British Army is bottled up in southern Portugal near Lisbon. Spain, except for Cádiz, is occupied by the French, thanks to the dismal performance of the Spanish armies. Marshall Masséna heads a French army poised to strike into Portugal; the very real threat is that the French will wipe out the badly-outnumbered British. The now-Lord Wellington (thanks to the magnificent victory at Talavera) is out of money, due to the stinginess of Parliament and the fact that Wellington is paying not only British expenses but Portuguese ones as well. Morale is terrible; everyone thinks that the war is lost.

But there is a long shot chance at latching onto a sizeable amount of gold cached in the Portuguese mountains that border Spain. The money really belongs to the Spanish government, but partisans have managed to rescue it. The British have offered to “escort” the money to Cádiz; in reality, Wellington hopes to steal it for his own needs. This is obvious to the Spanish partisans as well, and they refuse to hand over the gold.

Wellington turns to Captain Sharpe who leads an irregular company of the South Essex. Sharpe’s mission: get the gold. Wellington is desperate and Sharpe must succeed.

That’s the context for this installment in the series. Unlike his other books, this one does not have Cornwell’s signature epic battle at its climax; instead, Sharpe makes a dramatic escape from the British-held fortress of Almeida. But the story is still absorbing, thanks to the description of the Spanish partisan guerrilla (little war) warfare against the French, filled with atrocities committed on both sides as all partisan wars are.

I’ve always thought that one area where Cornwell’s series suffers in comparison to Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin series is in the romantic interest. O’Brian had believable, complex relationships between his male and female characters. Sharpe’s interactions with women are predictably boring, and this time is no exception.

Still, that’s not why you read the series. All in all, another page-turner. Highly recommended. ( )