Earlier this year, I happened upon a “new” adventure writer through a handful of books sitting on the dusty shelves of a thrift store in Florida. HMS Ulysses now marks the third Alistair MacLean book I’ve finished, after The Black Shrike and Golden Gate.
In my reviews for those books, you’ll discover an imbalanced opinion. Whereas The Black Shrike seemed unique and innovative and offered a fair amount of surprises to me, the uninitiated reader, Golden Gate was a massive letdown that I finished only because I wanted to see if there would finally ever be any action. I was torn on whether I wanted to make another attempt at MacLean’s writing, or if I’d let him go the way of Michael Crichton who let me down just one time too many.
I chose this book particularly because it’s MacLean’s first published work. He wasn’t yet in the mood of trying to beat any previous novel in terms of suspense or wit. He simply had a story to tell, and he told in such a way that his first novel became an international best seller. That’s something worth reading!
HMS Ulysses is a WWII novelization of MacLean’s own experiences as a member of Her Majesty’s Service. As I read this book—which is set entirely aboard the titular ship—I could almost taste the salt air and feel the frigid metal of the walkways as characters moved from deck to deck. I quite nearly felt their exhaustion for the bitter battles that demanded more than humans can bear (I think of the seaman frozen to death in his turret!). In fact, perhaps my favorite portion of the entire book was when the Admiral intentionally comes face-to-face with his men’s suffering by making a walkthrough of the entire ship.
People often talk about the inhumanity of war, but every battle, every bunker, ever ship and sub in WWII was peppered with humanity, real people on all sides who suffered terrible agonies for years on end. You can see their faces as you read this book. It’s hard to look away.
While my understanding of naval-speak is minimal and there were a few scenes that escaped me, I felt entirely drawn into this tale of mutiny and survival, of torpedoes and death. It’s been billed as one of the greatest naval stories of all time, and now I can see why.
I enjoyed this book immensely, so the balances are tipped back into MacLean’s favor. I wonder how the next book will sit. [Editor’s Note: The next book happened to be Goodbye, California, which didn’t sit well.]
©2021 E.T.
Read More from Alistair MacLean:
- HMS Ulysses (1955)
- The Black Shrike (1961)
- Ice Station Zebra (1963)
- The Golden Gate (1976)
- Goodbye, California (1978)
- Air Force One Is Down (1981)