Flashman's Lady

Rating:
Summary: Flashy again
Review: At his best. The only fault with Flashman is that Fraser had to squeeze him into a single lifetime. Flashman of Flashman's Lady is a great place to begin the Flashman tour of the British Army during the 19th Century, the roll on the floor laughter of Frazer's characterization, the relatively accurate history that goes with this historical fiction. If you haven't read Frazer's Flashman books you are missing a great lot of evenings.

Rating:
Summary: Flashy again
Review: At his best. The only fault with Flashman is that Fraser had to squeeze him into a single lifetime. Flashman of Flashman's Lady is a great place to begin the Flashman tour of the British Army during the 19th Century, the roll on the floor laughter of Frazer's characterization, the relatively accurate history that goes with this historical fiction. If you haven't read Frazer's Flashman books you are missing a great lot of evenings.

Rating:
Summary: three books for the price of one?
Review: Flashman's Lady is yet another installment of the Flashman series. For those who are not aware, the Flashman series is about a mythical 19th century British soldier who, despite being a coward and a cad, finds himself on the winning end of some of the most historical battles/situations. The books succeed by being both well-researhed historical fiction and, well, comic novels. So how does Flashman's Lady hold up?

Not so well I'm afraid. Flashman's Lady is really three separate novels. The first third is, inexplicably, a historical piece on cricket in the 1840s. The subject is completely out of context with the remaining two-thirds of the novel and, well, I found it to be only marginally interesting.

The second third of the novel picks up nicely with a pirate adventure in Indonesia. Flashman's ditsy wife is kidnapped and, reluctantly, Harry Flashman runs to the rescue. Unfortunately the author doesn't do enough with this promising story. Flashman rescues his wife and soon finds himself back on the high seas.

On to the last section of the novel, and Harry Flashman and his wife are captive in Madagascar. Madagascar in the early 19th century was rule by a tyrant queen that defies believe (..in terms of the atrocities she inflicts on her subjects). Naturally she can't help to fall in love (or at least 'in lust') with Harry. Silly, yet the Madagascar setting is most intriguing.

Bottom line: three disjointed stories. Fortunately the last story is the most interesting. Too bad George MacDonald Fraser didn't choose to devote more on the latter two stories. So overall I consider Flashman's Lady something only a loyal Flashman fan would want to read.

Rating:
Summary: Flashman and the Pyrates, or, Flashman in Madagascar
Review: Flashy - after, incidentally, pulling a hat trick on the three most celebrated cricketers of his time - accepts a "friendly" wager in a single-wicket match against Don Solomon, a foreign-born Eton-educated socialite. The tie score results in he and Elspeth accompanying Solomon on a cruise to the Far East, where Solomon's true colors are revealed, and he absconds with Elspeth. Flashman must fight, however unwillingly, to get her back - until they both end up in the hands of the bloodthirsty queen of Madagascar, Ranavalona I. This is a fine entry in the series, possibly a little more heavy on the humor this time around than the adventure. The first half of the book is all cricket and social intrigue; a more thorough look at Madagascar might have been in order, tho' perhaps Fraser was dealing with limited intelligence on that subject. Another minor quibble: At the book's opening, our hero is caught in a damned-if-he-does-damned-if-he-don't trap that pushed him again into adventure (lose the cricket match and see Elspeth go on a cruise with Solomon, or win and be beaten by crooked bookies?). And, as in Flash For Freedom, the dilemma that prompted him into action, when he returns (in that case, cheating at cards), is completely forgotten. I would have liked to see some closure in the matter of the threatening bookie, at least. All that aside, this is, of course, another witty, well-researched adventure. Bravo!

Rating:
Summary: Flashman and the Pyrates, or, Flashman in Madagascar
Review: Flashy - after, incidentally, pulling a hat trick on the three most celebrated cricketers of his time - accepts a "friendly" wager in a single-wicket match against Don Solomon, a foreign-born Eton-educated socialite. The tie score results in he and Elspeth accompanying Solomon on a cruise to the Far East, where Solomon's true colors are revealed, and he absconds with Elspeth. Flashman must fight, however unwillingly, to get her back - until they both end up in the hands of the bloodthirsty queen of Madagascar, Ranavalona I. This is a fine entry in the series, possibly a little more heavy on the humor this time around than the adventure. The first half of the book is all cricket and social intrigue; a more thorough look at Madagascar might have been in order, tho' perhaps Fraser was dealing with limited intelligence on that subject. Another minor quibble: At the book's opening, our hero is caught in a damned-if-he-does-damned-if-he-don't trap that pushed him again into adventure (lose the cricket match and see Elspeth go on a cruise with Solomon, or win and be beaten by crooked bookies?). And, as in Flash For Freedom, the dilemma that prompted him into action, when he returns (in that case, cheating at cards), is completely forgotten. I would have liked to see some closure in the matter of the threatening bookie, at least. All that aside, this is, of course, another witty, well-researched adventure. Bravo!

Rating:
Summary: All in the family.
Review: I read this book as number three in a chronological review of the life and times of the "heroic Flashman". While my previous reads Flashman and Royal Flash had been Fraser's first two volumes in the Flashy saga, this book is one of the later ones.

Like he previous two volumes Fraser entertained me greatly with the life and times of a master in the arts of cowardess and fornication. In this book there is again plenty of historical perspective and adventure. In addition, this later Flashman goes a little deeper in the self-analysis of our hero's strengths and weaknesses and adds extra "depth" to a better understanding of what makes good old Flashy tick.

Using the sport of cricket Fraser goes back to his roots as a sports writer in giving a really engaging description of the game. I should mention that knowledge of the basics of this sport is required to fully appreciate the finesses of Fraser's description.

As a pleasant extra, many of the chapters end with entries from the diary of Elspeth, Flashy's one, but certainly not only. These little nuggets really work in giving the reader some extra perspective on the narrative and Flashman himself.

In all, this book was another joy from beginning to end. With books as enjoyable as this one, a reader might wish to be on the ship at the end of Marquez' "Love in times of cholera", and hope the journey would never end.

Rating:
Summary: All in the family.
Review: I read this book as number three in a chronological review of the life and times of the "heroic Flashman". While my previous reads Flashman and Royal Flash had been Fraser's first two volumes in the Flashy saga, this book is one of the later ones.

Like he previous two volumes Fraser entertained me greatly with the life and times of a master in the arts of cowardess and fornication. In this book there is again plenty of historical perspective and adventure. In addition, this later Flashman goes a little deeper in the self-analysis of our hero's strengths and weaknesses and adds extra "depth" to a better understanding of what makes good old Flashy tick.

Using the sport of cricket Fraser goes back to his roots as a sports writer in giving a really engaging description of the game. I should mention that knowledge of the basics of this sport is required to fully appreciate the finesses of Fraser's description.

As a pleasant extra, many of the chapters end with entries from the diary of Elspeth, Flashy's one, but certainly not only. These little nuggets really work in giving the reader some extra perspective on the narrative and Flashman himself.

In all, this book was another joy from beginning to end. With books as enjoyable as this one, a reader might wish to be on the ship at the end of Marquez' "Love in times of cholera", and hope the journey would never end.

Rating:
Summary: Flashy's best
Review: The author brings several worlds to vivid life, in this novel that links several stories into a seamless whole. I personally think that Frasier missed his calling: he should have been a sportswriter. The cricket game, with poor idiot Elspeth as the prize, is told so well that I've re-read it several times. Each of the worlds he creates, Frasier fills with such colorful characters that they are three-dimensional. The cricket game brings us Deadlius Tighe, esq., a classic scoundrel; Singapore is personified in Catchick Moses; and British imperial/missionary zeal in James Brooke. (The depiction of Brooke inspired me to read everything that I could find on this fighting seaman and colonizer.) Best of all is a villan equal to Flashy himself: Sulemann Usman. The novel gives the reader the wide world, and does it in such a way as to make it seem real, as in the eyes of a 19th century mind. A keeper that brings genuine enjoyment with every re-reading. -Lloyd A. Conway

Rating:
Summary: Flashman's idiot wife, Elspeth, is captured by a vile pirate
Review: This is a deeply moral book in that for the first and last time the scrapes that Flashman gets into are the result of beastliness of someone other than himself. I hope that Mr. Fraser is as good a historian as he is a novelist, as most of my knowledge of Victorian history comes from his books. Particularly worth savouring are his narratives about the White Raja and Queen Ranavalona of Madagascar; splendid, gripping stuff and all the more memorable for the author's wonderful gift for character portrayal.