This is probably my favorite of Sharpe's adventures so far, reading them in chronological order. ( )

Maybe it's me, but I just couldn't get into this one the way I have with previous books in the series. I realize that writing historical fiction involves a lot of "connect the dots" and I just didn't seem to care for the way Cornwell did it this time. Two episodes worked for me, the night attack on the howitzer and the defense of the seminary, but the rest of the book seemed to be just wasting time until the next "dot" was reached.
I did like how Sharpe was able to operate independently here, and I definitely enjoyed some of his subordinates, I just wish they were given more to do. ( )

Although Shoehorned between Sharpe's Rifles and Sharpe's Eagle, with the usual (small) discontinuity errors that the latter books have in common, Sharpe's Havoc feels like an integral part of the series.

After the British army's defeat in Spain, the British forces evacuate the port of Oporto and Sharpe and his band of rifleman find themselves caught between enemy lines.

Sharpe's Havoc sees the return of Sir Arthur Wellesley to Portugal and the impact of his arrival with the British forces transformed from the rabble we see in Sharpe's Rifles to the efficient fighting force of Sharpe's Eagle.

On a more personal note for Sharpe we see frictions between the Lieutenant and his riflemen, frictions that were not apparent in Sharpe's Eagle.

Sharpe's Havoc has all the action that we have come to expect from Bernard Cornwell and sets the scene nicely for the start of the 'proper' series in Sharpe's Eagle. ( )

#7 in the Richard Sharpe series.

6 months after escaping from Spain into Portugal, Sharpe and his men find themselves accompanying Captain Hogan of the Royal Engineers as he maps northern Portugal for the British Army garrisoning Oporto, with the French Army on its way.

Suddenly, Kate Savage, the daughter of a British wine factor in Oporto disappears. Hogan orders Sharpe to the Savage family summer home, Vila Real de Zedes, in order to find Kate and return her to her mother. In addition, Sharpe is to accompany Colonel Christopher, a functionary of the Foreign Office, who is also looking for Kate and who has a mysterious diplomatic mission to accomplish for the British. in reality, Christopher is planning to become a traitor in order to curry favor with Napoleon and hopefully earn himself the right to rule northern Portugal.

Before Sharpe and his men can leave Oporto, the French attack. Christopher disappears; Sharpe and his men are nearly trapped at the River Douro until they are led to safety by a very odd young Portuguese officer, Lieutenant Vincente. Sharpe and Vincente, with their combined troops, search in vain for a way to cross the river so that Sharpe and his men can head for Lisbon and the British garrison there.

They are not successful, but find themselves in a series of nasty, desperate fights that eventually lead them back to Oporto to be reunited with British troops under Sir Arthur Wellesly where they participate in the battle to retake the city. The French are defeated; a race begins to overtake the defeated French Army and annihilate it. Sharpe plays a crucial role in the pursuit and effects a daring rescue as well.

Sharpe's Havoc is nonstop action, even more so than in Sharpe's Rifles; this book is longer, and there is more space devoted to outstanding description of the fighting. Cornwell continues to turn out superbly written books in this genre. My only quibble with Sharpe's Havoc is that it could have used better editing. Evidently the only sound men or women could make during the Napoleonic Wars was the various conjugations of the verb "to scream". Additionally, Sharpe constantly comments "bitterly", too many times in the same or adjacent paragraphs. But these are minor flaws.

As well as the outstanding battle descriptions, Cornwell spends a good deal of time describing the brutal French treatment of the Portuguese civilian population, including but not limited to the rape of women and young girls and the burning alive of villagers--"collateral damage". it is a grim look at the cost of war on a civilian population.

There is an excellent map of the campaign in northern Portugal at the beginning of the book. As usual, Cornwell has written a Historical Note at the end separating historical fact from fiction, which leaves the reader--again, as usual--with the sense that he has gotten the history just right.

Highly recommended. ( )

Filled to the brim with mayhem, murder and malicious maniacal madness this seventh installment in the Sharpe series is astonishing. Cornwell’s tendency towards historical accuracy while maintaining macabre sense of action and suspense entices the reader to rush forward like one of the “forlorn hopes” he illustrates so well. I can hardly wait to put my grubby hands on the next installment. ( )