The Salem Frigate

by John Jennings
Category: "Fiction - Historical"
Pages:500
Year of Publication:1946
Date Added:02/23/2021
Date Read:11/16/2025
Notes:Armed Services Edition
Tom Tisdall, Salem doctor during Thomas Jefferson's presidency, finds Ben Price lying in a gutter and carries him to the boarding house run by Mr. Nowell and his daughter, Patience. Tom is in love with Patience but treats her like a sister, so when Ben recovers, he marries her. Tom marries Salina on the rebound but finds out she's pregnant with Ben's child. Angry, Tom signs on to be a doctor on the frigate Essex, where Ben is the carpenter. They make several voyages on the same ship, on one of which they are captured by Tripolitan pirates and held captive for a couple years until the manage to escape across the desert. Meanwhile, Salina has killed herself out of shame. Tom confesses to Patience that he loves her, and she him, but she's faithful to Ben. The Essex takes another cruise to Chili and is defeated in battle by two British ships. Ben is killed, and Tom goes back to Salem to be with Patience.
My Rating: 5

Reviews for The Salem Frigate

Review - Salem Frigate, The

The author actually managed to write a novel about naval warfare and desert escapes and make it boring. None of the action felt real or exciting. The characters, with the possible exception of Patience, were dull and unlikeable. The constant bickering and hatred between Tom and Ben that went on while they were constantly thrown into each other's company just got goofy. Tom kept hanging around Ben "to bring him home to Patience." Just weird.

Reviewed by Roger on 2025-11-17 06:03:26

Back to the list