Young Christopher Carey, a member of the cadet branch of the Carey family, and the cousin of Richard Carey, hero of Escape from France (and the Earl of Aubigny in this book), participates in the Peninsular War in this ninth installment of Ronald Welch's Carey Family Chronicles. Opening in 1808, during the British retreat to Corunna, the story follows Christopher through a series of engagements, from the Battle of Benavente to a final (fictional) fight at the Ponte Mucella. A brief sojourn with Spanish partisans under the command of "El Empecinado"—something repeated later in the book—a time of respite back home in Wales, and a series of battles and engagements are all depicted, until Christopher is finally slain while defending the bridge at Mucella.

Originally published in 1959, one year after Escape from France (1960), in which Christopher Carey appeared as a young child—as a series, the Carey Family Chronicles are now ordered by historical chronology, rather than publication date—Captain of Foot is probably the weakest book from Welch that I have read, to date. Which isn't to say that it wasn't engaging, and that I didn't enjoy it. But I think that its structure—essentially, it is one long series of battles—and lack of interesting secondary characters made it less moving than it could have been, if Welch had concentrated on a more limited range of engagements, and focused more on his main character and his relationship with the people around him. I appreciated the fact that the author was trying to do something different here—the narrative offers scenes from the perspective of one of Christopher's adversaries, and Christopher himself is slain—but somehow the end product wasn't as engrossing as it could have been. Perhaps my knowledge of the outcome, telegraphed by the family tree to be found on the endpapers of the Slightly Foxed edition of this book that I read, also contributed somewhat to the lack of suspense I felt, regarding the outcome.

All that being said, this was still a good book, and one I would recommend to young historical fiction lovers, to those interested in the Peninsular War (or the Napoleonic Wars in general), and to readers who have enjoyed other books about the Carey family. ( )

One of the more unusual books in the sequence of Carey novels, Captain of Foot is also one of the most moving. Set during the Peninsular War, the book begins in media res, without the usual backstory for its protagonist. It proceeds in discrete episodes, moving from one engagement to another with gaps of many months at a time. Unlike the earlier Carey novels, it also contains scenes showing the events from the perspective of the adversary. The denouement is heroic but tragic. Captain of Foot is a sophisticated addition to the series. ( )