Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey – Maturin series was published between 1969 and 1999. The story is set during the Napoleonic Wars, and is centred around the friendship between Jack Aubrey of the Royal Navy and Stephen Maturin, surgeon and spy.
There is high adventure, the descriptions of RN sailing vessels and life aboard are consistently accurate, and the characterisation is totally believable. It is perhaps the greatest roman fleuve written in English. Many people have admired the work, including Iris Murdoch and Jan Morris. The obvious comparison is with the Hornblower series, but the characters transcend their time and location in a way that is reminiscent of Jane Austen.