Captain Blood: Pace
16 lenses on pace for Captain Blood by Rafael Sabatini. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 D7 D8 D9 D10 D11 D12 D13 D14 D15 D16
D1. Chapter length in words, as a chart. Count
31 chapters, median 3,731 words. See the full lens on the book page.
D2. Mean sentence length per chapter. Count
Mean 15.1 words. See the full lens on the book page.
D3. Paragraph length per chapter. Count
Paragraphs average 43 words.
Mean paragraph words, chapter by chapter
D4. Scene against summary: how much is shown live? AI
Most of the book is shown live in scenes. Chapters 1 to 12 and 19 to 31 feature extensive action sequences, dialogue, and immediate confrontations. Chapter 13 uses summary via Pitt's logs to cover Blood's rise as a pirate, and chapters 14 to 18 mix scene and summary.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 9
D5. Action against reflection, per chapter. AI
Early chapters (1 to 3) balance action and reflection as Blood processes his arrest and trial. Middle chapters (9 to 20) favour action and dialogue during piracy and sea battles. Later chapters (21 to 31) increase reflection as Blood broods over Arabella and his redemption, especially chapter 25.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 3, Ch 9, Ch 20, Ch 21, Ch 25
Captain Blood did not hear them; he did not hear anything save the echo of those cruel words which had dubbed him thief and pirate. (Ch 20, para 2)
You conceive the bitterness of his soul. He beheld himself to be as the dog in the fable that had dropped the substance to snatch at a delusive shadow. (Ch 22, para 28)
D6. Tension score per chapter (1 to 5) as a curve. AI
Peak 5 of 5, mean 3.9. See the full lens on the book page.
D7. Emotional arc of the whole book, matched to the six shapes. Count
Rags to riches (rise). See the full lens on the book page.
D8. Chapter endings: cliffhanger, question, reveal or quiet close. AI
24 of 31 chapters end on a hook. See the full lens on the book page.
D9. Chapter openings: in scene, in summary, or after a time jump. AI
Most chapters open in scene with immediate action or dialogue. Chapter 13 opens in summary via Pitt's logs. Chapter 18 opens in summary about Blood's fame. Chapter 25 opens in scene at Tortuga. Chapter 29 opens in scene with Blood rescuing Willoughby.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 7, Ch 9, Ch 13, Ch 18
D10. Do chapters and sentences get shorter near the climax? Count
In the last fifth, chapters run at 0.75 times the length of earlier ones, and sentences at 0.98 times. So things speed up near the end.
D11. Dialogue density against pace. Count
Link between dialogue share and chapter length: 0.04 (1 is a perfect match, 0 none). Between dialogue share and tension: 0.26.
Dialogue % per chapter, chapter by chapter
D12. Time jumps and how they are signalled. Both
27 time jump phrases in the narration, such as 'next morning' or 'years later'.
| Where | Phrase |
|---|---|
| c1p23 | six months later |
| c3p1 | two months later |
| c5p1 | a month after |
| c5p60 | six years later |
| c5p85 | two days later |
| c6p61 | next morning |
| c6p76 | the following day |
| c12p73 | Two days later |
Time jump phrases, chapter by chapter
Ch 1, para 23: That is all his story, or so much of it as matters up to that night, six months later, when the battle of Sedgemoor was fought.
Ch 3, para 1: It was not until two months later--on the 19th of September, if you must have the actual date--that Peter Blood was brought to trial, upon a charge of …
Ch 5, para 1: One sunny morning in January, about a month after the arrival of the Jamaica Merchant at Bridgetown, Miss Arabella Bishop rode out from her uncle's fine house on …
Ch 5, para 60: Justifiable as his reasoning was, plausible as it may seem, yet he would have done better to have trusted the instinct that was in conflict with it. Though …
Ch 5, para 85: It was two days later when the ladies of Bridgetown, the wives and daughters of her planters and merchants, paid their first visit of charity to the wharf, …
Ch 6, para 61: Coming next morning to the wharf, Blood found Dr. Whacker in a generous mood. Having slept on the matter, he was prepared to advance the convict any sum …
Time jumps are signalled through summary passages and chapter breaks. Chapter 13 uses Pitt's logs to skip months of piracy. Chapter 18 summarises Blood's growing fame and Don Miguel's obsession. Chapter 25 jumps to Tortuga with a brief scene-setting paragraph.
Chapters: Ch 13, Ch 18, Ch 25
The fame which he had enjoyed before this, great as it already was, is dwarfed into insignificance by the fame that followed. (Ch 18, para 2)
He has grown rich, I hear. He has translated, so it is said, his Spanish spoils into French gold, which is being treasured up for him in France. His future father-in-law, M. d'Ogeron, has seen to that. (Ch 18, para 35)
D13. Info dump spots: long runs with no action or speech. Both
14 stretches of 900 words or more with no speech at all. These are where description, summary or backstory pile up.
| Starts at | Words | Paragraphs |
|---|---|---|
| c18p1 | 2148 | 24 |
| c16p41 | 1923 | 20 |
| c9p24 | 1541 | 24 |
| c20p1 | 1523 | 19 |
| c4p1 | 1423 | 15 |
| c5p56 | 1366 | 11 |
| c19p35 | 1351 | 15 |
| c1p17 | 1188 | 12 |
Chapter 13 contains the longest info dump, with Pitt's logs summarising Blood's transformation into a pirate captain over several pages without action. Chapter 18 similarly summarises Blood's fame and Don Miguel's revenge quest. Most other chapters avoid long static passages.
Chapters: Ch 13, Ch 18
The fame which he had enjoyed before this, great as it already was, is dwarfed into insignificance by the fame that followed. (Ch 18, para 2)
He has grown rich, I hear. He has translated, so it is said, his Spanish spoils into French gold, which is being treasured up for him in France. His future father-in-law, M. d'Ogeron, has seen to that. (Ch 18, para 35)
D14. Reading time per chapter. Count
About 7.6 hours to read at 250 words a minute. The longest chapter takes 23.1 minutes.
Minutes per chapter, chapter by chapter
D15. Micro tension in quiet scenes. AI
Quiet scenes maintain tension through emotional conflict and unspoken stakes. Chapter 22 shows Blood and Arabella's garden confrontation with bitter dialogue and misunderstanding. Chapter 25 uses Blood's depression and drink to create dread about his lost redemption. Chapter 31 builds tension through reconciliation and forgiveness.
Chapters: Ch 22, Ch 25, Ch 31
Captain Blood did not hear them; he did not hear anything save the echo of those cruel words which had dubbed him thief and pirate. (Ch 20, para 2)
You conceive the bitterness of his soul. He beheld himself to be as the dog in the fable that had dropped the substance to snatch at a delusive shadow. (Ch 22, para 28)
There was never, never anybody but you, Peter. (Ch 31, para 72)
D16. Section breaks per chapter. Count
0 section breaks marked in the text, in 0 of 31 chapters.
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