# Desolation Island (novel)
*Desolation Island* is a historical naval novel by [Patrick O'Brian](https://www.edgepedia.org/patrick-obrian), the fifth volume in the Aubrey/Maturin series about Captain Jack Aubrey of the [Royal Navy](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-navy) and his friend Dr. Stephen Maturin during the [Napoleonic Wars](https://www.edgepedia.org/napoleonic-wars). It was published in 1979 (one scholarly bibliography gives 1978) and follows Aubrey's voyage in HMS Leopard, carrying convicts to Australia, into a pursuit by a Dutch warship in Antarctic waters.[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/) • [2](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC) • [3](https://www.cnrs-scrn.org/northern_mariner/vol18/tnm_18_2_1-21.pdf)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Series position | Fifth of the twenty-volume Aubrey/Maturin series[2](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC) |
| First publication | US release March 19, 1979, Stein & Day, 340 pages; one bibliography dates it 1978[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/) • [3](https://www.cnrs-scrn.org/northern_mariner/vol18/tnm_18_2_1-21.pdf) |
| Mission | Commissioned to rescue Governor Bligh of Bounty fame in Australia[2](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC) |
| Central antagonist ship | The Dutch man-of-war Waakzaamheid, which chases the Leopard south to Antarctica[4](https://www.patrickobrian.com/pobebookrelease.pdf) |
| Later edition | W. W. Norton reprint, 1994, 325 pages, ISBN 0393037053[2](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC) |
| Audiobook | Read by Tim Pigott-Smith, Random House Audio, released July 5, 2000, running 5 hours 17 minutes[5](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/123109/desolation-island-by-patrick-obrian/) |
## Publication
[Kirkus Reviews](https://www.edgepedia.org/kirkus-reviews) records the American release date as March 19, 1979, with Stein & Day as publisher and a page count of 340.[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/) A bibliography of the series in *The Northern Mariner* lists *Desolation Island* among the early volumes with the year 1978, between *The Mauritius Command* (1977) and *The Fortune of War* (1979).[3](https://www.cnrs-scrn.org/northern_mariner/vol18/tnm_18_2_1-21.pdf) The book has remained in print: W. W. Norton issued a 1994 reprint of 325 pages, and the publisher's ebook edition carries the tagline "The Waakzaamheid chases the Leopard south to the glories of Antarctica."[2](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC) • [4](https://www.patrickobrian.com/pobebookrelease.pdf)
## Plot
The novel opens with Jack Aubrey ashore and in trouble, having lost a fortune gambling and buying horses, and much against his will accepting a commission to haul convicts to Australia in his new command, HMS Leopard.[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/) The stated object of the voyage is to rescue Governor Bligh, formerly of [HMS Bounty](https://www.edgepedia.org/hms-bounty).[2](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC) Stephen Maturin sails as the ship's surgeon, which gives the two friends the chance to resume their cello and violin duets.[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/)
Two dangerous passengers travel with the convicts. One is Mrs. Wogan, a beautiful French agent captured by the British and shipped as a prisoner to [Botany Bay](https://www.edgepedia.org/botany-bay). The other is gaol fever, a treacherous disease that decimates the crew.[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/) • [2](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC) Maturin, who is fighting an addiction to tincture of laudanum and needs the time at sea, soon finds himself fighting shipboard plague, tooth decay, and scurvy as well.[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/)
A Dutch warship holds the weather gauge (naval advantage of windward position in a chase), and the short-handed, outmatched Leopard flees southward into the icy [Antarctic](https://www.edgepedia.org/antarctic) seas, with the Dutchman gaining on her amid huge waves.[2](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC) The chase by the Waakzaamheid south toward [Antarctica](https://www.edgepedia.org/antarctica) is the episode the publisher's own series description singles out.[4](https://www.patrickobrian.com/pobebookrelease.pdf) A battle with the Dutch ship in Antarctic waters ruins the Leopard's rudder, and the crippled ship lays over at Desolation Island until a passing American vessel can be induced to give them a forge.[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/)
## Place in the series
*Desolation Island* is the fifth of the twenty completed Aubrey/Maturin novels, following *The Mauritius Command* and preceding *The Fortune of War*.[2](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC) • [3](https://www.cnrs-scrn.org/northern_mariner/vol18/tnm_18_2_1-21.pdf) Kirkus described it as a sequel to *The Mauritius Command*, which it called the opening salvo in the Captain Jack Aubrey series about the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars.[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/) The next volume, *The Fortune of War*, takes Aubrey to the Dutch Indies commanding a fast frigate as the [War of 1812](https://www.edgepedia.org/war-of-1812) breaks out.[3](https://www.cnrs-scrn.org/northern_mariner/vol18/tnm_18_2_1-21.pdf)
## Reception
Kirkus's 1979 review judged that O'Brian's "literate, clear-eyed realism should draw a slightly broader audience than most nautical fare."[1](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/) The publisher's edition quotes *The Guardian*: "Good history, espionage, romance and an action at sea that for sheer descriptive power can match anything in fiction."[5](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/123109/desolation-island-by-patrick-obrian/) An audiobook read by [Tim Pigott-Smith](https://www.edgepedia.org/tim-pigott-smith) was released by Random House Audio on July 5, 2000.[5](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/123109/desolation-island-by-patrick-obrian/)
## References
1. [DESOLATION ISLAND, Kirkus Reviews, March 1, 1979 issue](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/patrick-obrian/desolation-island/)
2. [Desolation Island, Patrick O'Brian, Google Books (W. W. Norton, 1994)](https://books.google.com/books/about/Desolation_Island.html?id=G4c2LhZl-yIC)
3. [From Hells Afloat to Happy Ships: Patrick O'Brian's naval fiction, The Northern Mariner XVIII:2](https://www.cnrs-scrn.org/northern_mariner/vol18/tnm_18_2_1-21.pdf)
4. [Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin Series e-book release](https://www.patrickobrian.com/pobebookrelease.pdf)
5. [Desolation Island by Patrick O'Brian, Penguin Random House](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/123109/desolation-island-by-patrick-obrian/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Literature and written works › Creative written works and worlds › Genre fiction categories › Historical, war, and setting-based fiction › Nautical fiction*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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