Patrick OBrian Books in Order

Caesar, the imagined offspring of a giant panda and a snow leopard, narrates his own life. His development from cub to hunter brings encounters with people, capture, and taming amid the dangers of the natural world.

Young elephant handler Hussein falls in love with Sashiya in British-ruled India and arranges a rival's death. Pursued by the dead man's relatives, he flees into a life of dangerous adventures involving deception, spying, and sword fighting.

An Oxford academic retreats to a Welsh valley and falls in love with his neighbor's unhappy wife, Bronwen. A preacher's accusations turn the community against them, and several witnesses recount the tensions surrounding their troubled relationship.

Doctor Alain Roig returns from China to his Catalan hometown, summoned by relatives hoping to prevent his cousin Xavier's marriage. His efforts to understand the intended bride and groom draw him into family interests and a crisis of faith.

Orphaned American teenager Derrick faces leaving his uncle's ship for school in England. An overland journey through Asia, proposed by his archaeologist cousin, offers a last adventure but exposes their party to dangers far beyond the classroom.

Peter Palafox, a poor Irish parson's son, joins Commodore Anson's expedition as an inexperienced midshipman. Accompanied by his friend Sean, he seeks fortune while confronting unfamiliar lands, disease, dangerous waters, and the demands of naval life.

Midshipman Jack Byron and surgeon's mate Tobias Barrow sail aboard the Wager on Anson's expedition. Shipwreck off Chile strands them among survivors whose dwindling provisions, hostility toward their captain, and mounting disorder threaten their chances of survival.

Imprisoned and tortured by the Gestapo in wartime France, Richard Temple retreats into memories of his earlier life. His reflections trace unhappy childhood, artistic ambition, forgery, and love while he struggles to protect secrets from his captors.

Jack Aubrey receives his first command, the small warship Sophie, and recruits physician Stephen Maturin as surgeon. Their emerging friendship accompanies the challenges of leading a crew and seeking prizes in the Mediterranean during war with France.

During the brief peace following the Treaty of Amiens, Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin return to England. Financial ruin sends Aubrey fleeing creditors on the continent, where renewed hostilities bring fresh threats to his freedom and career.

Jack Aubrey commands the Surprise on a voyage carrying a British envoy toward the Malay Peninsula. Alongside surgeon Stephen Maturin, he faces powerful French opposition in distant waters while hoping prize money can resolve his financial and romantic difficulties.

This illustrated companion examines everyday life in Nelson's navy, from food and watches to wages and prize money. O'Brian also explains ship construction, rigging, weapons, and battles, providing historical context for the Aubrey–Maturin adventures.

O'Brian follows Pablo Picasso from childhood through an influential artistic career, examining his Spanish roots, friendships, relationships, and working habits. The biography connects the painter's changing circumstances with his art and the pressures brought by fame.

Jack Aubrey reluctantly takes command of the Leopard to transport convicts to Australia. Shipboard illness, an enemy warship, and a French agent among the prisoners challenge his seamanship while Stephen Maturin pursues intelligence work and battles personal difficulties.

Living ashore on half pay, Jack Aubrey receives orders to lead an expedition against French-held Mauritius and Réunion. Stephen Maturin joins him as rivalries among subordinate captains complicate the coordination of a demanding Indian Ocean campaign.

Returning toward England from the Dutch East Indies, Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin encounter the outbreak of war with America. Naval clashes disrupt their passage, and Maturin's intelligence activities expose him to enemies seeking revenge.

Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin sail home carrying news of a victory, but American privateers pursue their packet through the Grand Banks. Maturin's damage to French intelligence has made him a target, complicating an already hazardous journey.

Jack Aubrey commands a ship of the line in the grueling blockade of Toulon, accompanied by Stephen Maturin. A change in orders sends them toward the Greek islands, where diplomacy and naval danger require different skills.

While Jack Aubrey waits in Malta for ship repairs, Stephen Maturin confronts a network of French agents. An unwilling informer's predicament draws him into counterespionage, as hidden enemies threaten the security of British plans and personnel.

During the War of 1812, Jack Aubrey heads toward Cape Horn to intercept an American frigate threatening British whalers. Stephen Maturin pursues intelligence work as Pacific storms, shipwrecks, and troubles among their company complicate the mission.

After a successful cruise, Jack Aubrey follows an acquaintance's investment advice and becomes entangled in criminal allegations. As his naval career faces ruin, Stephen Maturin examines the possibility that espionage and deliberate manipulation lie behind his friend's predicament.

This biography follows naturalist Joseph Banks through exploration and scientific influence, including his voyage aboard Cook's Endeavour. O'Brian examines the conditions of maritime discovery and the achievements that made Banks a significant figure in natural science.

Dismissed from the Royal Navy for a crime he did not commit, Jack Aubrey commands the Surprise as a privateer. Stephen Maturin supports a mission against the French that could offer his disgraced friend a route to rehabilitation.

Jack Aubrey sails the Diane to the South China Sea, escorting Stephen Maturin on a diplomatic mission. French influence at a Malay court threatens British trade, while rival intelligence agents and dangerous weather complicate their efforts.

Shipwrecked in the Dutch East Indies, Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin must find a way back to sea. Their subsequent journey toward Australia brings fresh danger and confrontations over the brutal conditions within the penal colony.

A young convict secretly brought aboard the Surprise creates discord among Jack Aubrey's officers. As Stephen Maturin probes Clarissa's guarded history, her knowledge offers possible intelligence about a British traitor working for Napoleon's secret service.

Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin pursue an American privateer across the Pacific. Their voyage combines naval threats with Maturin's intelligence responsibilities, as the vast South Seas expose their ship and company to unfamiliar dangers and uncertainty.

Jack Aubrey takes command of a squadron tasked with suppressing the slave trade off West Africa. Secret orders also require him to intercept a French expedition toward Ireland, placing Stephen Maturin's intelligence expertise alongside naval strategy.

Twenty-seven stories explore human passion and suffering through encounters with destructive impulses and unsettling forces. Moving from humour to psychological menace, they follow people in rural Ireland, the Pyrenees and confined domestic spaces where ordinary life reveals unexpected danger.

Troubles ashore and difficult service off Brest complicate Jack Aubrey's hopes for promotion. With peace threatening to end his usefulness, Stephen Maturin brings news of opportunities in Chile while renewed European conflict unsettles their plans.

Napoleon's escape from Elba sends Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin back into action. They must stop French gold from reaching mercenaries who could strengthen his army, pursuing a dangerous mission through North Africa and across the Atlantic.

After Waterloo, Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin sail toward Chile to assist its struggle for independence from Spain. The mission offers Aubrey a chance to advance his career in a navy confronting the uncertainties of peace.

Newly promoted to rear admiral, Jack Aubrey prepares to leave Chile for the South African station with Stephen Maturin. This unfinished continuation presents the surviving portion of their next voyage alongside the author's manuscript material.

Ross reluctantly joins Sullivan in searching northern Pacific waters for an island rich in sea otters. An encounter with a suspicious ship deepens his unease, and a second meeting gives Sullivan’s nephew Derrick reason to question the absence of pirates.

Shark fishing near the Great Barrier Reef sends Sullivan and Ross into shelter during a violent storm. Returning to sea in a blood-scented whaler, they find themselves becalmed among predators, reversing the roles of hunters and hunted.

Sullivan and Ross take work together at an isolated northern lighthouse, hoping companionship will ease the loneliness. A stranded whale and unexpected visitors provide temporary diversion, but prolonged confinement and boredom begin testing the friendship they expected to sustain them.

Twelve animal adventures follow creatures and people confronting the dangers of the natural world. A shark attacks sailors, a python plots against a crocodile, and snake-charmer Hussein escapes on an elephant in an early collection that helped shape O’Brian’s later fiction.

More than a hundred poems trace Patrick O’Brian’s experiences from youthful energy to reflections on ageing. Observations of places and people mingle with humour and melancholy, revealing the personal world behind a lifetime devoted largely to fiction.