Blue Water: the Instant Times Bestseller (Laurence Jago)

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He must keep an eye on an official who is carrying a vital document – the Jay treaty, which will prevent the Americans joining the French in their war against Britain – but his work becomes a great deal more difficult when the man is killed, apparently by accident. Beautifully written, immaculately plotted and filled with more red herrings than the Atlantic, it takes readers on a thrilling voyage of murder and mystery. Blue Water is a compelling locked room murder-mystery filled with an exquisitely drawn cast of eccentric characters. The journey is hazardous, with bad weather and pirates to avoid, plus a French ship which has been tasked with retrieving the treaty.

It arrived on the seventh day of our voyage… This is the secret report of disgraced former Foreign Office clerk Laurence Jago, written on the mail ship Tankerville en route to Philadelphia. If you enjoy historical fiction weaved in with mystery and murder then you should add Blue Water to your tbr. When Jenkinson, the carrier of the treaty, dies after an accident involving a spar, it appears the whereabouts of the hidden treaty has died with him. The reader is right there, on board the transatlantic mail ship, the Tankerville, tasting the salty air, feeling the heat and humidity of the Caribbean with every creak and groan of the ship. But his real mission is to protect a civil servant, en route to Congress with a vital treaty that will stop the Americans from joining the French in their war against Britain.

The narrator's personal history is released in bite-sized chunks throughout the voyage which adds considerably to the sense of intrigue.

I found the storytelling atmospheric and transportive to the Georgian era on the high seas as political instability and revolution is overshadowing France. It’s December 1794 and former government clerk Laurence Jago has just left Britain aboard the packet ship Tankerville. Peter Williams’ presence is strangely reassuring, as he quietly goes about his tasks, and we come to learn more about him. Overall, this is a hugely enjoyable read, with real historical events expertly woven into a fast-paced and exciting story. The use of nautical terminology never becomes too overwhelming but it all feels authentic and due to the setting, time period, elegant prose and frequent encounters with French warships, I was strongly reminded of Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin series.For those that haven’t read “Black Drop” there’s a helpful cast of characters (which is always a help regardless) but this can easily be read as a stand-alone with the crux of the story being about an important document and it’s essential need to reach America.

The style of writing took a little while to get used to but I think helped to add to the story as it helped draw the reader into the period more. There are some quirky characters on the ship, including a comtesse and her burly nephew, a prejudiced cotton plantation owner, and even an Irish actress and her dancing bear cub.But the characters were flat or confusing, everyone just wandered around the ship mumbling and there was really no intrigue or story at all. And, in switching the setting for her second book, Leonora Nattrass takes them out of their comfort zone and has them all at sea, in every sense. After the dramatic events of “Black Drop”, ill-fated Laurence Jago is once again at the centre of political intrigue in “Blue Water”. When the civil servant meets an unfortunate 'accidental' end, Laurence becomes the one person standing between Britain and disaster. I found this to be one of those books you keep expecting to find it's feet and give an inspirational twist or novel approach but just never does.