Sharpe's Sword: The Salamanca Campaign, June and July 1812

The Sharpe Series, Book 14

By: Bernard Cornwell

Narrated by: Rupert Farley

Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

Richard Sharpe, who alone can recognise the top French spy, is under orders to capture him alive.

Richard Sharpe is once again at war. But this time his enemy is just one man - the ruthless Colonel Leroux. Sharpe's mission is to safeguard El Mirador, a spy whose network of agents is vital to British victory.

Sharpe is forced into a new world of political and military intrigue. And in unfamiliar surroundings of aristocratic Spanish society, his only guide is La Marquesa - a woman with her own secrets to conceal.…

Soldier, hero, rogue - Sharpe is the man you always want on your side. Born in poverty, he joined the army to escape jail and climbed the ranks by sheer brutal courage. He knows no other family than the regiment of the 95th Rifles whose green jacket he proudly wears.

©2014 Bernard Cornwell (P)2014 HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Critic reviews

"Sharpe and his creator are national treasures." ( Sunday Telegraph)
"Bernard Cornwell is a literary miracle. Year after year, hail, rain, snow, war and political upheavals fail to prevent him from producing the most entertaining and readable historical novels of his generation." ( Daily Mail)
"Cornwell's narration is quite masterly and supremely well-researched." ( Observer)
"The best battle scenes of any writer I've ever read, past or present. Cornwell really makes history come alive." (George R.R. Martin)

Battle Descriptions

The detailed Battle descriptions with its carnage tend to be a bit tedious. But still a great listen and entertaining.

To good

Every Sharp novel is amazing. How Bernard Cornwell keeps delivering story after story blows my mind. And the narration is the perfect fit, story after story, character after character!

its superb

its superb, but make sure to read Them in the right order. i highly recomend the series.

Narrator Rupert Farley is a voice actor god.

Farley breathes vivid life into Cornmwell's characters with striking accents, distinct speech, and real emotion. Even female characters fare well in his care. Better than any TV series for a listener with any imagination. A Boys Own style adventure but rollicking great fun for an adults.

A Delight

This was a fun change from the unflinchingly intense book that came before (Sharpe’s Company). I thought Cornwell produced a great spy thriller with lots of personality and personal emotional stakes. Plus the Battle of Salamanca was a wonderfully engaging sequence.

Rupert Farley put forth yet another absolutely superb performance, and he has to be one of the greatest audiobook narrators to ever be recorded. I’ve heard so many great ones and he is right near the top!

not so sharpe

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

it was just bearable the book was probably a good book but the narrator isn,t the best for the story i think i have been spoilt with the sharpes books read by sean bean who played sharpe in the series

What other book might you compare Sharpe's Sword: The Salamanca Campaign, June and July 1812 to and why?

sharpes tiger the story and fight scences

What aspect of Rupert Farley’s performance would you have changed?

the voice tends to drone a little and can be dull

Did Sharpe's Sword: The Salamanca Campaign, June and July 1812 inspire you to do anything?

go back and listen to some earlier books read by sean