BookBrowse Reviews The Oceans and the Stars by Mark Helprin

BookBrowse:

An exciting maritime epic about battle on the high seas from the author of Winter's Tale.

Mark Helprin's novel The Oceans and the Stars introduces readers to Captain Stephen Rensselaer – "of senior rank, expert in nuclear strategy, an experienced combat veteran and SEAL" as well as the recipient of a Ph.D. from Harvard. Currently serving as an aide to the Secretary of the Navy, his promotion to admiral all but assured, Rensselaer has been tasked with talking the President of the United States out of retiring a class of vessel known as a Patrol Coastal. Rensselaer manages to infuriate the Commander in Chief instead, and, because the man is vindictive, Rensselaer ends up in command of the Athena, one of the very ships in question – a marked demotion. When war breaks out with Iran, the president goes further, ordering the little Athena into battle, which all expect will be a suicide mission. What ensues is an epic tale of increasingly dangerous sea encounters where the intrepid captain must make life-and-death decisions and come to terms with the consequences of his actions.

The subtitle of the book is "A Sea Story, A War Story, A Love Story," and its first half focuses on the sea itself and Rensselaer's love of it – as well as his love for Katy, a beautiful lawyer whom he plans to marry should he survive his deployment. Helprin's descriptions throughout this section are poetic and vivid:

"Morning on the first day at sea was auspicious as Athena swifted through almost flat waters in a world of blue…The color blue is the mariner's happiness, for so much of one's time on the sea is gray. This was one of those blue days between giant weather systems visible on computer screens and from space as their white pinwheels swirl like global cotton candy."

Although the protagonist is a bit stereotypical, one can't help but find Rensselaer appealing. He's the hero of classics who places honor and duty above personal safety, all the while doing everything he can to protect those around him. He's intelligent and educated (he quotes Shakespeare to his bewildered crew), wise as he directs his inexperienced sailors at sea and in battle, and wily, using unorthodox techniques to best forces that are larger and better armed than his own. Helprin's crafting of this character is exceptional and I found getting to know him through the pages of this novel quite a treat.

The battle sequences, too, have a timeless feel to them, as the Athena engages in seven increasingly dangerous confrontations reminiscent of the mythical seven voyages of Sinbad or the trials of Odysseus (the latter comparison being particularly apt as Katy plays the role of Penelope, waiting at home for her lover to return while fending off suitors). Helprin's descriptions of the ships, weapons and tactics could have been penned by C.S. Forester or Patrick O'Brian, so much so that at times it's hard to remember that The Oceans and the Stars is set in the current day and not the Napoleonic era. The combat sequences set the pulse pounding, and once the action commences the book becomes unputdownable.

It does have its flaws, some serious enough that many readers may put it aside before reaching its real meat – which is found about halfway through this relatively long book. While the beautiful descriptions add a lovely dimension to the narrative, they also slow it down; it's basically too much of a good thing, and it gets tiresome after a while. The author also goes to great lengths to describe ships and armaments. It's something naval enthusiasts will likely love but most readers will find tedious (at one point the author actually instructs those only interested in the story to skip ahead ten pages as he talks about the Athena's architecture). Conversations are often unrealistic and ponderous, tending toward monologue, and the seamen characters are well-developed but not unique. And then there's Helprin's depictions of the few women in the novel, each of whom is stunningly beautiful but offers no value to the plot. The romance between Rensselaer and Katy could have been left out entirely without impacting the story in the slightest.

Although those are fairly major complaints, the second half of The Oceans and the Stars makes up for those issues; indeed, if I were to grade the book just on its latter portion it would be a five-plus-star read for me and I'd be raving about it. Readers willing to persevere to the story's midpoint will be amply rewarded, discovering a thrilling novel of the sea – but you've got to get there first.

This review was originally published in The BookBrowse Review in January 2024, and has been updated for the November 2024 edition. Click here to go to this issue.