From my perspective, the circumstances of Alexander Clay have shifted abruptly since last we parted ways. I had only recently finished reading The Turn of the Tide, the sixth book in Philip K. Allan's ongoing series, when Clay & the River of Silver arrived in the mail for review. Since River of Silver is the 11th book in the series, I had missed quite a few significant adventures in the saga, including the birth of two children to Clay and his wife Lydia and, of more global significance, the pivotal Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, which greatly advanced England's cause in the war against France and Spain but cost the nation its revered naval hero, Vice-Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson. There are also some new characters on Clay's ship, HMS Griffin, and one well-liked character from earlier books has died.

Obviously I have some catching up to do. But the intervening books can wait while I inspect this newly published volume.

It begins with Clay relaxing at home, enjoying a well-earned respite with his wife and children. However, forces are at work to enlist England's assistance in sparking a revolution in South America, the product of which would weaken Spain's grip on the New World while helping to fill England's depleted war chest with Spanish silver.

So, while Clay ostensibly is assigned to a small fleet tasked with retaking the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, his fleet commander, Captain Homes Rigg Popham, is further directed to sail across the Atlantic to see what might be accomplished in South America. There's action aplenty, but Cape Town is fairly easily captured and, more surprisingly, so is Buenos Aires, a major Spanish colony along the Rio de la Plata.

However, holding the colony is more of a problem, considering the relatively small British force that was sent on the mission. What was intended as a liberation instead becomes an occupation, as the self-appointed Commodore Popham decides to seize the city and keep it for Britain. Quickly, the natives who invited the British there for their assistance instead become an organized resistance against them, even going so far as to invite the Spanish back to reclaim their colony.

The resistance proves a little more than an annoyance to the seasoned British soldiers and sailors holding on to Buenos Aires, even though they are greatly outnumbered. But when trained Spanish soldiers join the fray, the numbers are overwhelming, and the British defense becomes more desperate by the hour. And, of the naval forces safely afloat off the coast, only Clay seems inclined to mount any kind of rescue to try and bring the British forces home.

Clay & the River of Silver covers a fascinating chapter in British military history, and Allan provides some context in a several-page historical note at the end. His account of fictional Alexander Clay's role in the ill-conceived invasion is well-researched and thoroughly exciting reading, with Clay providing the more reasoned approach that Popham lacked. Another excellent book in the series!! Now, I need to find copies of those four books I missed....

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