In a rousing follow-up to the critically acclaimed A Close Run Thing, Captain Matthew Hervey makes the hazardous sea voyage to India for what the Duke of Wellington has called "deuced tricky work.”
As Wellington's new aide-de-camp, Matthew's covert mission will embroil him in the jostling of native potentates and England's encroaching East India Company — both threatened by lawless bands of horsemen bent on plunder and massacre.
When Matthew's journeying leads him to the small key state of Chintal, he thinks himself close to his objective. But at the rajah's sumptuous court, he discovers that war in India is waged as often with money and spies as with the clear-cut tactics of the battlefield — with battles won through devious conversations and murderous perfidy. And Matthew, torn between his honor and his destiny, is drawn deeper into the court's serpentine coils than he ever dreamed....
Allan Mallinson is a serving cavalry officer in the British army and the author of Light Dragoons, a history of British cavalry. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Rome, where he is military attaché.
Show moreIn a rousing follow-up to the critically acclaimed A Close Run Thing, Captain Matthew Hervey makes the hazardous sea voyage to India for what the Duke of Wellington has called "deuced tricky work.”
As Wellington's new aide-de-camp, Matthew's covert mission will embroil him in the jostling of native potentates and England's encroaching East India Company — both threatened by lawless bands of horsemen bent on plunder and massacre.
When Matthew's journeying leads him to the small key state of Chintal, he thinks himself close to his objective. But at the rajah's sumptuous court, he discovers that war in India is waged as often with money and spies as with the clear-cut tactics of the battlefield — with battles won through devious conversations and murderous perfidy. And Matthew, torn between his honor and his destiny, is drawn deeper into the court's serpentine coils than he ever dreamed....
Allan Mallinson is a serving cavalry officer in the British army and the author of Light Dragoons, a history of British cavalry. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Rome, where he is military attaché.
Show moreAllan Mallinson is a serving cavalry officer in the British army and the author of Light Dragoons, a history of British cavalry. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Rome, where he is military attaché.
“When is a military adventure novel every bit as good as a history
book, with the added pleasure for the reader of living it
vicariously through the eyes, mind, heart and soul of an English
cavalry officer in the early 19th century? When it is written by
Allan Mallinson.”
— The Wall Street Journal
“A marvelous read, paced like a well-balanced symphony ... full of
surprises and excitement.”
— The Times
“First-rate historical fiction.”
— Booklist
“A rousing tale of conspiracy [and] double-crossings ... Hervey is
an enduring hero.”
— Publishers Weekly
Look for Allan Mallinson’s A Close Run Thing
Available wherever Bantam Books are sold
As one reads this book, two authors come to mind: because the opening chapters are set at sea, one is reminded of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin books. Then, once the action shifts to India, one thinks of Paul Scott and his "Raj Quartet." The action takes place just after Waterloo (about 1816), and many of the incidents are based on real events. A spy like O'Brian's Stephen Maturin, Matthew Hervey is sent to India by the Duke of Wellington to assess the political situation. When he arrives at the court of the Rajah of Chintal, Hervey realizes that the war here is fought in a subtler wayDwith covert actions and money rather than battlefront tactics. As he struggles to keep his wits about him, he is drawn deeper into the intrigue surrounding the court. The characters are well drawn, especially Hervey, his friend Locke, and the Rajah, and the well-researched narrative supplies the reader with punctilious detail about such topics as English military attitudes in India. Indeed, it is unusual to have (as we do here) a bibliography included with a work of fiction. This entertaining work will appeal to readers of historical novels everywhere. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 8/00.]DFred M. Gervat, Concordia Coll., Bronxville, NY Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.
"When is a military adventure novel every bit as good as a history
book, with the added pleasure for the reader of living it
vicariously through the eyes, mind, heart and soul of an English
cavalry officer in the early 19th century? When it is written by
Allan Mallinson."
- The Wall Street Journal
"A marvelous read, paced like a well-balanced symphony ... full of
surprises and excitement."
- The Times
"First-rate historical fiction."
- Booklist
"A rousing tale of conspiracy [and] double-crossings ... Hervey is
an enduring hero."
- Publishers Weekly
Look for Allan Mallinson's A Close Run Thing
Available wherever Bantam Books are sold
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