Blue Jackets; or, The Log of the Teaser, by George Manville Fenn.
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Another very exciting nautical novel by this author, who is a master of
suspense. HMS Teaser, a clipper-gunboat, is patrolling the China Seas
on the lookout for pirates. At the time of the story she has proceeded
up the Nyho river, and is at anchor off the city of Nyho. The teller
of the story is one of three young midshipmen, Nathaniel Herrick. A
most important character is Ching, the Chinese interpreter, who would
love to be much more important than he is. The boys and Ching find
themselves in various situations which look pretty terrifying at the
time, but the author manages to slip them out of these situations just
in the nick of time. One particularly well-drawn scene is where the
boys beg Ching to take them to a Chinese theatre, and he decides upon
something that he thinks will really interest them. Unfortunately it is
a public beheading of some pirates whom the Teaser has brought to
justice, but the boys do not enjoy the scene. They realise that if they
tried to walk out they would most probably be beheaded themselves, so
they have to sit tight.
It's a full-length novel with a great deal of suspense, so there's
plenty to enjoy here.
NH
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