Lieutenant Hornblower

This book is a mixed bag, in which Hornblower's luck runs back and forth between bad and good. He has his first meeting with Bush, who turns out to be a loyal colleague and friend. But they're both initially subject to the tyranny of an insane captain.

After they get past that, the middle part of the book is mostly relatively cheerful, and Hornblower's career seems to be progressing well; until peace is declared and he finds himself unemployed in dire poverty in England. As the book ends, war is looming again, and his career begins to recover.

It's not a bad book, and it's an essential part of Hornblower's story, but it's not one of my favourites. He meets not only Bush but also Maria in this story; I find Maria rather tiresome, and she remains for the next five books (8 years of his life), mostly but not always offstage.