The Blooding of Jack Absolute
Published on 20. January 2005
Book
Hardback
320 pages
978-0-7528-5705-3 (ISBN)
Description
London 1759 and Jack's life is easy. A scholar at Westminster School, a master with cricket bat or billiard cue, the leader of a gang of bucks about the Town, he has both a girl he worships...and a courtesan teaching him the more basic arts of love. Yet he plans to give up all carousing, sit the examinations for Cambridge, find a career in any field he chooses. If he can just stay out of trouble for one night...From the billiard halls and brothels of London to a clash of Empires on the Plains of Abraham, Jack life is forever altered by the tragedies of that night. Through duels, battles, frantic escapes and a brutal winter spent in a cave in Canada, Jack learns the truth of his father's words...as well as a dozen things to do with a dead bear. A year on, the schoolboy will vanish, a man appear. But first he must learn to kill. To come of age, Jack Absolute must be blooded.
Reviews / Votes
'A coming-of-age novel that ticks all the boxes - adventure, drama, wit, style and sheer enjoyment.' -- Shari Low DAILY RECORD 'C.C. Humphreys brings the ribald, pleasure-seeking excesses of the regency period gloriously to life in this splendid romp... great rollicking fun' YORKSHIRE EVENING POST '[Humphreys] brilliantly combines meticulous research with a breakneck pace and a terrific sense of humour... If I read a more enjoyable historical novel this year you can stick me in a snowed up cave with only bear-meat to chew on and a copy of Hamlet to keep me sane.' -- Sally Sigmond HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW 'As swash-buckling as a young Errol Flynn, languidly escaping death with the ease of a teenage James Bond, this is a roaring adventure whose pages are remorselessly consumed. In this prequel, Humphreys begins the finest series of historical novels since O'Brian.' GOOD BOOK GUIDE 'Rip-roaring' NOTTINGHAM EVENING POST 'It is not often that one looks forward to a prequel with such yearning, but in this case THE BLOODING OF JACK ABSOLUTE is one those rare exceptions to the rule... He is a swashbuckler to rival all others and has the soul of a warrior. He is for me a devastating character that grows on you page by page to the extent that you crave more. Settle down, enjoy, and sink into the exciting and somewhat vulnerable life of spy-extraordinaire Jack Absolute.' -- Ayo Onatade SHOTSMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Orion Publishing Co
Dimensions
Height: 242 mm
Width: 164 mm
Thickness: 32 mm
Weight
624 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7528-5705-3 (9780752857053)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
C.C. Humphreys was born in Toronto, Canada, and grew up in Los Angeles and London. He is a third generation actor and writer.He was a schoolboy fencing champion, became a fight choreographer and thus turned his love of swashbuckling towards historical fiction. He is married and lives in North London.