Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Napoleon and His Court | 1924 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 2 | Josephine, Napoleon’s Empress | 1925 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 3 | Victor Emmanuel II and the Union of Italy | 1927 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 4 | Louis XIV: King of France and Navarre | 1928 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 5 | Lord Nelson / Nelson | 1929 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 6 | The Voyage of the Annie Marble | 1929 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 7 | The Adventures of John Wetherell | 1954 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 8 | The Naval War of 1812 / The Age of Fighting Sail | 1957 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 9 | The Age of Fighting Sail | 1957 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 10 | Hunting the Bismarck / Sink the Bismarck / The Last Nine Days of the Bismarck | 1958 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 11 | Long Before Forty | 1967 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
| 12 | Fatal Fascination: A Choice of Crime | 1968 | C.S. Forester | Buy |
C.S. Forester’s nonfiction spans biography, naval history, and memoir. His early works include biographies of Napoleon and His Court (1924), Josephine, Napoleon’s Empress (1925), and Louis XIV (1928), reflecting the same interest in European history that would fuel his Hornblower novels. His biography of Lord Nelson (1929) brought him close to the real-life figure behind his fictional naval hero.
Later nonfiction includes The Naval War of 1812 (1957), Hunting the Bismarck (1958, later retitled Sink the Bismarck), and Long Before Forty (1967), his autobiography covering his youth and early career. These works complement his fiction by revealing the historical research and personal experiences that informed his storytelling.