Product Description

Get up close and master Spanish subjunctive

As you study Spanish you may see the subjunctive as an obstacle to your full understanding of the language. Learning the subjunctive can be one of the most frustrating aspects of Spanish grammar, but it is also one of the most important for being understood and understanding what others say. By adding Spanish pronouns to your range of language skills, you will open up a whole new world of communication.

With plenty of opportunities for practice, practice, practice, Practice Makes Perfect: The Spanish Subjunctive Up Close helps you better understand the nuances of this often-confusing grammar element and develop your skills and confidence as a Spanish speaker with:

• Easy-to-absorb explanatory materials, examples, and exercises
• Authoritative guidance on how to form the four subjunctive tenses and when to use them
• A comprehensive answer key that not only gives you the correct solutions to the exercises but explains the why behind them

Customer Reviews (18)

Good review of subjunctive!
I wanted this as a review, and it worked out very well for me. Excellent explanations, logically presented, and easy-to-follow. Filled witha sufficient amount of solid exercises - esp the last one, which serves as a total review - and of course with an answer key in the back. The author gave me a couple of tricks I hadn't known before, (WEIRDO, for one) and some concise lists organized in a helpful way I hadn't seen before.
Very satisfied, and I already went ahead and bought his "irregular verbs" book based on my satisfaction with this one. I need more practice with those too, and I'm sure I'll get it.
I didn't give 5* because I wanted more Eng-to-Sp exercises and fewer "fill in the blank, choosing the correct verb and putting it in it's correct form." Otherwise, excellent.

Excellent For Mastering the Subjunctive
The subjunctive tense has largely disappeared from common use in the English language, however it remains an important element in Spanish for those students wishing to achieve higher levels of fluency.It is one of the areas that causes the most problems for Spanish learners and can be frustrating to master.Practice Makes Perfect: The Spanish Subjunctive Up Close tackles this problem head on, providing a study tool dedicated to this tricky grammatical element.

The lessons are comprehensive, covering all four of the subjunctive tenses as well as Spanish pronouns to help improve your fluency.Rather than relying on the simple yet misleading general rules used by many teachers to try and explain the subjunctive the book addresses individual examples of usage and clearly explains why and how it was used, giving a clearer insight.The author also tackles common grey areas, offering advice and explanations to illuminate the correct choices and provide a solid framework of knowledge which can be applied to sentence construction for intermediate to advanced learners.

Despite the somewhat complicated topic, the book manages to cover all elements clearly without ever becoming overwhelming or too confusing.This is largely due to the simple layout and format of tackling one example at a time and providing easy to understand explanations in a logical way that clarifies rather than confuses.The author steers away from generalizing the subjunctive, but rather gets into the nitty gritty of it's different uses, giving a full and complete picture of how, when and why the tense should be used.

As the title implies, the key learning strategy employed in the book is practice.There are plenty of exercises for you to work on,and examples to study repeatedly in order to get a firm grasp on the subject matter.Even better, the answer key provides not just the correct answers for each exercise but explanations as to why this is correct.This is an invaluable tool for helping you to see where you have gone wrong and revising the area that you had trouble with.

If you are struggling with the subjunctive and want to beat this learning block once a for all, this is a great book to help you.

In closing my review of this product, I'd like to share with you the three Amazon products that I have found most helpful in my pursuit to learn Spanish. If you are truly serious about achieving fluency, I'd recommend getting all 3 of them if you can afford it.

1.Lights, Camera, Spanish (Book + DVD): Learn Conversational Spanish by Watching a Romantic Adventure This isactually a 90 minute movie for Spanish-language learners. It gives the option to watch the movie with subtitles but I'd recommend not using them to improve your Spanish. This "movie" also includes a workbook so that you can reinforce the Spanish vocabulary words and phrases from the film.The workbook also has lots of exercises to keep you engaged in the film. But be prepared to hear Chilean accents. Although pleasant to the ear, the accents from Chile are very different from most Latin American accents.

2. Verbarrator Version 1.1 (Windows Version) This software replaces the traditional verb conjugation books and makes learning how to conjugate Spanish verbs an interactive and fun activity. This should be a required resource for anyone who wants to improve their ability to conjugate Spanish verbs. Especially anyone who is challenged by the drudgery of learning how to conjugate Spanish verbs and who is looking for a new way to make learning how to conjugate Spanish verbs an easy and fun activity

3. Diccionario esencial de la lengua espanola de la Real Academia Espanola (Spanish Edition) If you are really serious about speaking the language fluently, then at some point you will need to replace your Spanish-English dictionary and get a pure Spanish dictionary with both the vocabulary words and the definitionsentirely in Spanish. I use this one mainly because it was highly-recommended by a friend from Spain who teaches Spanish. According to him, this is the "standard" among university level Spanish professors.

The Subjunctive Demystified
The author explains the subjunctive in a novel way, compared to what I have encountered in Spanish classes. Rather than dwell on what the subjunctive means, he explains in which instances you must use it. Since the subjunctive is used in about 20% of Spanish verb usage, it's important to be able to use it correctly.

Anna Rivera Reviews The Spanish Subjunctive Up Close
I am Anna Rivera editor of the Learning Spanish Products Reviews site and author of Anna Rivera's 1000 Plus Most Powerful Spanish Words (Spanish Edition) and Anna Rivera's 800 Plus Most Powerful Spanish Phrases (Spanish Edition). I am also a native Spanish speaker and a professional Spanish instructor.

As a student learning Spanish you have probably been told from your instructor as well as other students that one of your greatest obstacles to learning the Spanish language is learning the subjunctive. As frustrating as this topic is, it is imperative that the student learns this topic not only to understand Spanish but also to make herself understood.

The author of this book, Eric Vogt, Ph.D., takes this frustrating topic and makes it easy to comprehend. Although this 113 page book does not have as much content as the student has grown accustomed to in the other Practice Makes Perfect books, the author still manages to cover this topic thoroughly and in great depth.
The author, Eric Vogt, Ph.D., covers the following topics in the Spanish Subjunctive Up Close:

1. When to use the subjunctive and how to form its four tenses
2. Sequence of tenses and the subjunctive
3. Subordinated noun clauses
4. Subordinated adjective clauses
5. Adverbial expressions
6. Contrary-to-fact statements
7. Comprehensive exercises

This book will help you master the Spanish subjunctive and open up a whole new world of communication with Spanish speakers. In this book, you will find plenty of easy-to-comprehend examples and exercises as well as guidance on how to form the four subjunctive forms and when to use them. I highly recommend this book to both the intermediate as well as the advanced student but it may be a bit overwhelming for the beginner.

Excellent study guide
This is an excellent way to review the Spanish subjunctive mood. Great information and exercises. ... Read more

Product Description

Get up close and master Spanish past-tense verbs

As you study Spanish you may view past-tense verbs as obstacles to your full understanding of the language. Learning past-tense verbs can be one of the most frustrating aspects of studying Spanish grammar, but it is also one of the most important for being understood and following what others say. By adding Spanish past-tense verbs to your range of language skills, you will open up a whole new world of communication.

With plenty of opportunities for practice, practice, practice, Practice Makes Perfect: Spanish Past-Tense Verbs Up Close helps you better understand the nuances of this tricky grammar element and develop your skills and confidence as a Spanish speaker with:

• Easy-to-absorb explanatory materials, examples, and exercises
• Authoritative guidance on the different verb forms and when to use them
• A comprehensive answer key that not only gives you the correct solutions to the exercises but explains the why behind them

Customer Reviews (5)

Full of Information, BUT very poor delivery
This book is full of information but it is presented in a form that has no "teaching ablility" for the average student.Yes, all the information is there, but unless you are an advance student of spanish or at the end point of your quest to learn spanish and NEED A REVIEW, seek help elsewhere.The other "Practice Makes Perfect" series books I own are extremly well done, which focus on: Verb tenses, Vocabulary, Pronouns, Complete Grammer, etc., but this one, "Spanish Past-Tense Verbs" is the absolute pits in teaching format for the average beginner/intermediate student.It has no expanded information on the lessons presented, but assumes you already know it all and need a refresher or expanded explination of the subject, definitely not for the novice or intermediate learner!

Continuing Guitar Player
H.C.

Preterite, imperfect, etc. and I'm feeling so good
What a fantastic, easy review of past tense verbs. It wasn't at all confusing this time. (I've said it before and I'll say it again, some of the Practice Makes Perfect books need to be used in high school foreign language classes.) I had a blast revewing my past tense verbs. I liked that there was Spanish-to-English translation and vice versa. Also nice were the activities where you had to explain why you used a specific tense. The last chapter reviewed tense ordered and had 50 fill-in-the-blank exercises of verb conjugation. The key for this exercise was especially helpful, b/c it told you why you had to use the specific tense.

I enjoyed this book so much that I pulled out my 501 Spanish Verbs to continue reviewing the tenses. I'm not intimidated anymore! :D

Highly recommended!

past tense verbs
excellent!!better than my textbook.reinforces the shorter exercises from my textbok.All of Eric Vogt's books are great.

Excellent primer on Spanish Past-Tense Verbs
Thank Heaven for this little book!I met the author on my bus ride home one day earlier this year.He noticed me plodding through my huge Spanish practice book and correctly noted that I was trying to learn.I now have a copy of this book, and in the first few pages, it cleared up something that I've been trying to figure out since I started studying Spanish in the late 80s--when to use the preterite versus the imperfect!That issue has literally been driving me crazy.

The author gets right to the point and gives you simple, easy-to-remember explanations of how to use the preterite and the imperfect tenses.Within 5 minutes, I felt I had the confidence to finally figure it out.The exercises help you seal in that knowledge and practice, practice, practice!

This book is highly recommended -- get it and learn how to speak the past-tense properly.You won't regret it!

Excellent Book on Spanish Past Tenses
I got this book at a very good time since I'm about to teach my Spanish class the difference between the imperfect and the preterit. I will probably use some of the exercises in this book to help my students understand the past tenses.

Table of Contents

1. The Imperfect: Description and Background
2. The Preterit: Narration, or what happened?
3. The imperfect and the preterit together: Narrating and describing the past
4. The present perfect: What have you done for me lately?
5. The pluperfect: What happened before something else
6. The conditional: What would be and the future of the past
7. The conditional perfect: What would have been
8. The sequence of tenses: Observations on the indicative and the subjunctive

The section on the present perfect is very interesting. The author has noticed that students have been using the English present perfect less and less recently. I have noticed that several of my Spanish-speaking friends use the Spanish present perfect less than I had learned.

Brandon Simpson ... Read more

Product Description

Get up close and master Spanish pronouns

As you study Spanish you may view pronouns as obstacles to your full understanding of the language. Learning pronouns can be one of the most frustrating aspects of studying Spanish grammar, but it is also one of the most important for being understood and following what others say. By adding Spanish pronouns to your range of language skills, you will open up a whole new world of communication.

With plenty of opportunities for practice, practice, practice, Practice Makes Perfect: Spanish Pronouns Up Close helps you better understand the nuances of this tricky grammar element and develop your skills and confidence as a Spanish speaker with:

• Easy-to-absorb explanatory materials, examples, and exercises
• Authoritative guidance on the different pronoun forms and when to use them
• A comprehensive answer key that not only gives you the correct solutions to the exercises but explains the why behind them

Customer Reviews (7)

Practice Makes Perfect: Spanish Pronouns Up Close - Amazon Verified Product
My husband and I have been learning Spanish for just over three years and we discovered the "Practice Makes Perfect" series about three months ago.These books are so helpful that we have purchased the complete set and, in our opinion, they are way ahead of other books we have bought in our quest to speak Spanish.I would say that we have progressed more in the period since we discovered Practice Makes Perfect than in the previous three years.We are very pleased with the first-class service Amazon has provided.Excelente!

A great map through the maze of spanish pronouns
Spanish pronouns were making me crazy, especially Direct and Indirect Object Pronouns. Thanks to this book, I am finally understanding how they work. The book explains them in clear, concise language. I am SO glad I purchased this book. It saved my sanity!!

A must have for spanish students.
After years of studying spanish alone, this book is a must have for spanish students. Pronouns will make you or break you. I have dozens of books, some good, some not, but this book is not in any category. This book is a MUST HAVE !!! Learn the difference between :

Estamos cansado. We are tired (present tense)
Nos cansamos.We get tired.(reflexive tense)

OMG, this book is fabulous, fabulous, fabulous! Thank you!

Good practice for reviewing Spanish
I like this series. I have purchased other books in this series. It is a good supplement to the course I am taking. I would not suggest using only these books to learn spanish. But they are very good practice and help to re-inforce what I am already learning. I also like that the books in the series are very specific for whatever area you need to work on; i.e. pronouns, building sentences. I would definitely suggest this series in helping supplement a spanish course or for review.

spanish pronouns explained in detail
When I showed the book Spanish Pronouns Up Close to my friend who is a native speaker of Spanish and a long-time educator of the language, she exclaimed, "Pronouns are one of the hardest things to learn!" Agreed. My experience shows that I understand pronouns better after teaching them year after year to my students.
This new handy book in a lightweight, portable size is not directed at a particular level, but rather is written for various levels. Beginners can get a grasp of the basics, intermediate-level students are able to gain a fuller understanding of the use of pronouns, and advanced students and educators can use it for reference. It can also help the teacher or professor who understands the use of pronouns, but needs help articulating the rules for students.Because of the lengthy descriptions of each type of pronoun (a chapter devoted to each type or function), it helps the more right-brained reader who prefers written descriptions and explanations. On the other hand, even the left-brained reader who enjoys the typical textbook chart, with its formula-driven efficiency, can benefit from the detailed explanations by checking their comprehension.
... Read more

Product Description
Eric Hansen is an intrepid traveler with a keenly perceptive eye and an appreciation for the odd and unusual. He will go anywhere and try anything. Through it all he manages to capture the most revealing conversations and the most transporting moments in his travels, from the Maldives to Sacramento, from Cannes to Borneo and far beyond.

Hansen writes about the mind-altering experience of drinking kava in Vanuatu and about heartrending moments working at Mother Teresa's Home for the Dying Destitute in Calcutta. He joins a grieving husband searching for his dead wife's wedding ring at a crash site in the Borneo rain forest. He recounts his miraculous survival of Cyclone Tracy on a fishing boat off the north coast of Australia, and he befriends an elderly Russian woman who would prepare catered dinners for George Balanchine and Igor Stravinsky in her tiny Manhattan kitchen while drug dealers were shot to death in the downstairs lobby. He spends time with an ornithologist who studies endangered ants and the sex lives of banana slugs--and takes topless dancers on bird-watching expeditions.

Each essay is a passionate experience of life refracted through the eyes and voice of a singularly evocative and original writer. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (26)

Close encounters with strangers
Eric Hansen is a cut above the average travel essayist. Dubbed creative non-fiction, his stories are poignant, well-crafted and heart felt. His well-informed descriptive writing is crisp and engaging. His renderings of the people he has met over three decades of globe trotting are tender, but never saccharine. His professionalism shines through in this well-crafted collection of travel tales. Not the ordinary tourist he plunges headlong into adventures that are daunting to even the most adventurous. A few of these stories could be classified as remembrances rather than travel essays, but I loved all of them. The Bird Man who befriends a topless dancer is more an observation about strange bedfellows than it is a travel tale, but who cares. You will enjoy this superb collection of stories no matter what label you chose to give it.
[...]

Life is a journey
Eric's work is a wonderful journal of a few precious segments down the road of his life.I would recommend this entertaining book to all those of us who love the journey of our lives.

An All-Time Favorite!
This is one of the most interesting and well-written collection of shorts I have ever read. Each one a gem!

A Lone Dissenter Amongst A Sea of Positive Reviews
I ordered this book based on all the enthusiastic reviews I read from other everyday readers like me and I must say I was very disappointed by the writing style, especially since he's quite an established writer.Though the stories themselves are interesting enough, he writes as if this is a blog, with unfinished thoughts, meandering musings and distracting asides.It just made me wonder if an editor was ever involved in the process of getting this book published?!

A Must-Read!
This is wonderful book--it is beautifully written, varied in its topics, and, most important of all, intensely human.My favorite chapter is the last, when the author accompanies the karaoke-crazed crew of an Indonesian tall ship in a race off the west coast of the USA.Eric Hansen quite obviously likes and respects the people he comes into contact with, and there is too little of that in today's world.Don't miss this one! ... Read more

Product Description
4 dvd set in case.Eric Lofholm is a Master Sales Trainer who has trained tens of thousands of sales professionals nationwide. He is President and CEO of Eric Lofholm International, Inc., an organization he founded to serve the needs of sales professionals worldwide.Eric began his career as a top-producing sales representative for 3 different sales organizations. His consistent track record of regularly outperforming his fellow sales reps earned a reputation of success that follows him to this day.Eric has been trained by the top trainers of his time including: Anthony Robbins and Dr. Donald Moine Ph. D. as well as countless others. He has an insatiable quest for knowledge that he feeds by reading, listening to audio tapes, and attending seminars regularly. ... Read more

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OK! Weekly Magazine, March 19, 2007 Issue.The cover is Britney Spears & Reese Witherspoon.Inside:Reese Witherspoon & Jake Gyllenhaal (4 pages), Britney Spears (4 pages), Helen Mirren, Julia Roberts, Eric Close of Without a Trace (4 pages), Three 6 Mafia, American Idol (4 pages), Tom Cruise & Katie Holmes (4 pages), Penelope Cruz, Terrence Howard, etc... ... Read more

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Solve the mysteries of Spanish irregular verbs

Practice Makes Perfect: Spanish Irregular Verbs Up Close puts the spotlight on this tricky grammar trouble spot. It boasts plenty of opportunities for practicing your language skills, as well as extensive examples based on a conversational style that will keep you engaged. The book also features a unique answer key that gives you more than just a listing of correct answers; it clues you in on the "why" behind them.

This book includes:

• Hundreds of exercises for practice, practice, practice
• A helpful answer key that provides detailed explanatory material for all answers
• Includes a special TurboVerb (TM) chart, developed by the author, that sorts out your difficulties with irregular verbs--tense by tense

Topics include: Overview of the Spanish Verb System, The Four Microsystems of the Spanish Verb System, Present System I: Present Indicative, Present System II: Present Subjunctive, Present System III: Imperatives,Infinitive System I: Imperfect Indicative, Infinitive System II: Future, Infinitive System III: Conditional, Preterite System I: Preterite Indicative, Preterite System II: Imperfect Subjunctive, Participial System I: Gerund for Progressives, Participial System II: Past Participle for All Seven Perfect Tenses, Participial System III: Past Participle for the Passive Voice and as Adjective

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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SWAT 3 offers real-time police action, and Prima's Official Strategy Guide will help players succeed as the leaders of the team.The guide provides, strategies for missions, hints on commanding, and information on special weapons.This unique game is packed with realistic combat scenarios pulled straight from the headlines, and Prima's Official Strategy Guide will guide players through them. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Swat 3 Strategy Guide
Never received the Book.No longer Available

Definetly worth getting!
You will need this book in order to accomplish all of your missions and save all of the hostages! Also includes real SWAT team photos and back stories of how SWAT was conceived! So load up soldier and take down theterrorists and save the hostages and be home in time for supper! Remember,your an ex-Semper Fi! and now your an elite SWAT leader part of the LAPDSWAT team! Go out there and do your stuff!Ten-Hut! ... Read more

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Sometimes we need a more ethereal path to find the inner, divine beauty that is the true essence of who we are. I Am This Close illustrates in sensual, flowing words, a clear, profoundly meaningful way of just how we can rediscover what has been under our spiritual masks for so long...the fact that we are Love embodied, and we are not separate from ourselves...or each other.

We are this close...surrender, and let the sacred magic of these words take you on this wonderful journey of the purest of love--your own.

Product Description
This is an OCR edition without illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from GeneralBooksClub.com. You can also preview excerpts from the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subtitle: Selected From the Works of the Principal Writers on That Disease, From the Earliest Periods to the Close of the Last Century; Original Published by: Sydenham Society in 1844 in 545 pages; Subjects: Aneurysms; Medical / General; Medical / Cardiology; Medical / History; Medical / Neurology; Medical / Surgery / General; Medical / Surgery / Vascular; ... Read more

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Given the relationship between trauma, loss, and interpersonal bonds, the editors have assembled a noteworthy list of contributions discussing trauma associated with close relationships (divorce, infertility, widowhood).Certainly, trauma is closely associated with loss.This edited volume offers the perspective of over twenty leading scholars in the study of trauma and loss.Each chapter offers extensive coverage of contemporary issues (terror management, rational suicide, spirituality, stigmatization).Relationship issues within these topics are also explored. ... Read more

Product Description
Brigadier Allan Mallinson is a. cavalry officer who has served all over the world and within the Ministry of Defence. This is his first work offiction.It's 1814, and Napoleon is hard-pressed toy, defend France from a combination of Russia, Prussia, Austria, and Britain. Nor is he the only one in a quandary. Matthew Hervey, a young British cornet, is in a rather unusual situation. As far as he knows, it's highly irregular to be arrested on a battlefield after a successful action.Still, it's hardly the first time politics has interrupted war, and as Hervey's career progresses, he increasingly balances both, sometimes more successfully than others! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (22)

Good Period Piece, Not Much Battle Action
If you are looking for a book with a "feel" for being a member of Wellington's army in Spain and later Belgium for the Battle of Waterloo, this is your book.If you are looking for sabre slashing, pistol shooting action from horseback this is NOT your book.Coronet Matthew Hervey does see immediate action in the book, cutting a battery of French horse artillery to pieces in a dashing attack.Shortly after that Boney capitulates and the 6th Light Dragoons are shipped back to Blighty and then on to Ireland to help serve warrants and evict tenants.Hervey finds his future mate and then the unit is rushed to Belgium.Anchoring Wellington's right flank their job is to stay in place and prevent the French from turning the British right flank.Not a bad book but I like lots of action and this simply does not have it.

A Well Done Thing
It has been said that this series does for the horse cavalry what Patrick O'Brian did for fighting sail. That much is true. He takes a particular field of endeavor, the British cavalry, and crafts a good story from a hero engaged in that endeavor. Also like O'Brian, he tends to be a bit more cerebral than your average action/adventure writer. He makes allusions to classical literature, throws around phrases from other languages and uses the technical jargon of the cavalry with abandon. He does this all without making the reader work too terribly much.

The story is of a young coronet of the light dragoons. He is a capable young man with high ideals and has been fighting with the peninsular army under Wellington. His ideals come at a price, however. They earn him the enmity of an incompetent general much higher up the food chain. By a feat of daring, he manages to overcome an enemy force and save a battle but doing so allows the general's baggage to be pilfered. That does not sit well with the general and our hero is marked for trouble. The general does manage to make a bit of trouble for the young man but his ideals and standards help him get out of it. Having earned the respect of other in high places helps as well.

The story begins during the final drive of the Peninsular campaign. When Napoleon abdicates, the hero's regiment is sent to Ireland. To his chagrin, so is the incompetent general. Again, ideals put him in harms way and help him out again, also with the help of those in high places. The peace does not last too long, though. Napoleon escapes and the regiment is back on its way to Flanders where attrition due to casualties makes a hero and a commander out of our hero.

The story is somewhat predictable but no less enjoyable for that. It is well done and ends with the promise of more to come.

A Close Run "Second"
If you can't believe that Aubrey and Maturin will never set sail again, Mallinson offers another perspective on the romantic Napoleonic era.Not as literary as O'Brian, and without much of the political intrigue. This hero doesn't have as many endearing character flaws as that seafaring duo, but M. Hervey is a truer than blue paragon of honor and ambition.You'll root for him.

The first in a splendid series
This is the first book of Allan Mallinson's steadily-growing series of Matthew Hervey novels, and the place to start.Like all really good novels, while well plotted, these splendid books are character-driven, and it is not very long into each book that one begins to be involved with Hervey, the main character, and with the individuals around him.

A Close Run Thing is a wonderfully clear, engaging telling of the battle of Waterloo, and events leading up to it, as well as, of course, the main character's life and growth.The battle scenes are as well-written as one will find, and Mallinson makes the action comprehendible - no easy task (he also has fun introducing the Iron Duke as a minor character, and manages to hit the man's character "to the life.")

Where many such novels fail is in the use of language.Mallinson has succeeded admirably in making his people speak the language of their times, as well as reacting in the way such people - officers, men, gentry - would have done.

The actions, gear, drill...all are detailed, accurate, and easy to follow.

This is a superb start to a series that improves with each volume.In later books, Hervey takes on a reflective wisdom which may reflect Mallinson's own life, and by the end of the series (as it now is - I hope there will be many more), Matthew Hervey is a valued friend.

It is a neat "coincidence" that one of the reviews quoted on the jacket is by Patrick O'Brian.Readers who appreciate the O'Brian books will surely enjoy these, while those who are not interested in naval maters, or simply looking for a rewarding read, will find in all of the Mallinson books writing which engages the mind and keeps the attention.

Highly recommended!

Sure he is no Bernard Cornwell.....
Sure he is no Bernard Cornwell.....But he is not that bad either.This book actually was something of a breath of fresh air considering my favorite adventure authors have been slipping recently.In fact, I've been trying to think I don't know of an author that has ever written a fictional book about the Napoleonic cavalry before.

Very good and well written with characters you can get attached to.
Overall-All I know is, I want more. If you are a Bernard Cornwell fan or a Patrick O'Brian fan do yourself a favor and check this guy out.
... Read more

Product Description
Magic routines. ... Read more