Under the Jolly Roger

By: L. A. Meyer

Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren

Length: 14 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's Summary

In the third book of the "Bloody Jack" series, unlikely heroine Jacky Faber, a pirate at heart, returns to the sea in a truly swashbuckling tale filled with good humour, wit, and courage.

After leaving the Lawson Peabody School for Young Girls in Boston - under dire circumstances, of course - Jacky boards a whaling ship bound for London, where she hopes to find her beloved Jaimy.

But things don't go as planned, and she is off on a wild misadventure at sea. She thwarts the lecherous advances of a crazy captain, rallies the sailors to her side, and ultimately gains command of a ship in His Majesty's Royal Navy. But Jacky's adventures don't end there....

Soon she is being called a pirate, and there's a price on her head!

©2008 Listen & Live Audio, Inc. (P)2008 Listen & Live Audio, Inc.

Don't judge a book by its cover...

... or by Audible's age rating either!

STORY (historical fiction) - The only thing accurate about the cover art for this book is the time period, which is during Britain's war with Napolean in the early 1800's. But the book is NOT serious. The main character is a feisty young female named Jacky Faber, whose spirit and adventures on the high seas will keep you in stitches. Also, Audible rates this for teens 11-13 -- so wrong! I don't think kids that age would enjoy this book, but whatever. My daughter is older than the target age group, and I still found the book exciting and a hoot!

To make things short, Jacky ends up owning her own ship and aiding Britain's war effort by privateering (pirating) off the French coastline. And, leave things to Jacky, she always gets in trouble and then finds a way to get back on top again. What a character she is, and in this book she is at her best -- back at sea!

PERFORMANCE - Katherine Kellgren is amazing, one of my top two or three narrators. The performance alone will keep you entertained, even when she sings!

OVERALL - This is the third book in the series, and you really should listen to them in order. This book has a great ending, but it definitely leaves you wanting more. There is no bad language or sex, but there are sexual references. There are also battles at sea and fighting, but this is not a violent book - just lots of adventure and fun! I would recommend this for anyone at any age, I suppose, but I personally think listeners should be older than Audible's suggested 11-13. And I think this would appeal more to women than men. (At least my husband would want more violence, blood and guts and less girlie stuff).

8 of 8 people found this review helpful

Best book in the series (so far!)

I absolutely LOVE this series, and especially this third book. I have to admit I got a bit annoyed with Jacky when she was landlocked in the second book, but in Under the Jolly Roger, she is back at sea, and the story is the most exciting one yet (and I think the best in the series, having now listened to all of them up to Book 7, The Rapture of the Deep). There were parts that had me cheering out loud and clapping, or covering my mouth in horror as I listened to this on my commute and around the house. Kellgren continues to dazzle with her narration -she one of the best narrators out there, and in fact is definitely more of an actress than a reader. Each book is a real performance, and it's like I'm watching a movie in my head while she reads. It's amazing how well she even does the male characters - I forget that I'm listening to one female doing all the parts - it feels like a full cast.

I had no problem waiting a month for my new credits between the first and second book, and the second and third book, but when Under the Jolly Roger reached it's breathtaking conclusion, there was no possible way I could wait, and ended up buying the fourth book sans credits, and it was well worth it, as I've now listened to the third and fourth books twice each.

Don't hesitate to buy this audiobook - it is Jacky Faber at her most resourceful and brilliant, and the entire cast of characters is fantastic - from the loyal Werewolves, to the wonderful and trusty Higgins (I wish I had my own Higgins!!), to the gaspingly evil villain Captain Scroggs. The final scenes of the book are easily the most beautiful and dramatic of the entire series thus far. This book is not to be missed.

9 of 10 people found this review helpful

Jackie (And Series) Spectacular!

Love the entire series but I'm going to take this book to note just how wonderful a narrator Miss Kellgren is. Her energy, dynamic voice acting, and wonderful singing voice pull you into the story. You won't want to put this 'Book' down!

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Yes, The Narrator is Really THAT Good.

Any additional comments?

Bloody Jack is a pleasant surprise of good fun. I am happy to have found a new series to loose myself in. This is a slight step away from my usual reading lists, and honestly, I only got the book because it was on-sale and all the reviews just raved on and on about the Narration. The story grabs hold almost immediately and there is hardly a dull moment to be found. Our Heroine is so likable that you can’t help but root for her the entire way. But the true gem of this story is Katherine Kellgren (with due respect to the author).

Yes, Ms. Kellgren is THAT good! She does for Bloody Jack what Nick Podehl does for The Name of The Wind (which up until now has been my all time favorite performance of a book I have EVER heard). It’s hard to explain. I cringe at calling it “narration” as anyone who listens will immediately realize it’s something more. And no, it’s not a “Dramatization” – it’s more subtle than that. It’s a gift. That’s the only way I can explain it. Listening to Ms Kellgran read this novel was an experience – a 7 hour thrill ride through the streets of London, and over the perilous sea.

As a seasoned Audio Listener I can appreciate what I have stumbled across here. I am excited again to have found a series worth getting sucked into – and I plan to!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

I can't stop listening!!

I had ignored this series despite my love of Historical and particularly Nautical Fiction (I count Dewey Lambdin and Dan Parkinson two of my favorite authors) due to the fact that it was considered a young adult title. Boy was I wrong for ignoring it. this series grabs you by the ears and makes you want to continue listening to the adventures of this plucky waif who makes the most of any situation. This is one series where I literally could not stop listening. A lot has been said about Katherine Kellgren's reading on this series and she deserves every bit of praise she has received, she breathed life into all of the characters until you couldn't help but feel you were listening directly to their voices and feeling their emotions. This is one series that I will not be deleting off my computer, as I know I will want to listen to it again someday.

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

Simply marvelous - very entertaining!

As soon as we finish listening to one, we get the next. A great favorite at my house. The ***ONLY*** reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because at times when the action gets exciting, the narration gets a bit overwrought and a wee bit screechy for my taste, but it's rather a small flaw in otherwise top-notch narration. Hooray for Jacky Faber!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

This whole series was made for audio

While in no danger of winning any pultizers, this whole series of audio books is a pleasure, and the performance is wonderful.

4 of 5 people found this review helpful

Fun and clever story

Totally clever, fun story. I would recommend reading the "Bloody Jack" series in order but it's not necessary.
I am in the position to listen to many books and narrator Katherine Kellgren is the best of the best .

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Couldn't stop listening!

Katherine, of course, is amazing to listen to! I thought the last book dragged a bit and questioned whether or not to get this one and I am so glad I did! Very exciting!!! I could barely stop listening!!!!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

A Series that Just Gets Better

L. A. Meyer does it again with this excellent adventure series. Katherine Kellgren is wonderful in her reading of it. She brings each character to life. This is one book that keeps everyone on the edge of their seat waiting to see what is going to happen next.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Maybe the best audio performance I have heard

What did you like most about Under the Jolly Roger?

I don't want to specifically focus on Jolly Roger, but the whole series starting with Bloody Jack, (which I had to get from ITunes unfortunately). I believe this series is not just for one targeted demographic but simply pure entertainment. The characters are so well drawn and the situations go from realistic to madcap to extremely disturbing. Not many authors now in the mainstream take such leaps.

What did you like best about this story?

Obviously Jacky Faber is a fantastic creation never better or more humorous than in The Curse of the Blue Tattoo, but great value in all the books. She is sympathetic but not simple.

Have you listened to any of Katherine Kellgren’s other performances? How does this one compare?

Yes The incorrigible Children of Ashton place, she is the best performer I have found by a country mile.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Jacky rescuing Judy from a horrible situation I suppose, the whole episode shone a light on the kind of goings on at that usually overly-romanticized time.

Any additional comments?

Only to say that I find it odd audible only has book 3 and the odd book after, surely book 1 would be the place to begin!

Great entertainmemt for the whole family

Bought this for a long car journey with the whole family, We didnt want to get out at the other end.

Fast pace great adventres, very funny would highly recomend.

Jolly Jack

What can I say. I love all these books. Jackie makes me laugh, cry and want to shake her.

Though I must say the adventures of our Jackie and her love for her James Fletcher, are bad for the nerves.

Highly recommended series of books. I will recommend them to my grandchildren when they are old enough to read them. They will make a brilliant change from the usual sex/swearing/killing novels that are packing the bookshop shelves.