''Flashman's Lady'' is a 1977

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

George MacDonald Fraser George MacDonald Fraser (2 April 1925 – 2 January 2008) was a British author and screenwriter. He is best known for a series of works that featured the character Flashman. Biography Fraser was born to Scottish parents in Carlisle, England, ...

. It is the sixth of the Flashman novels.

Plot introduction

Presented within the frame of the supposedly discovered historical Flashman Papers, this book describes the bully Flashman from '' Tom Brown's School Days''. The papers are attributed to Harry Paget Flashman, who is not only the bully featured in Thomas Hughes' novel, but also a well-known Victorian military hero. The book begins with an explanatory note that while this is the sixth packet of the papers to be published, the story contained within actually takes place chronologically after '' Flashman'', the first packet to be published, and between the two timeframes featured in '' Royal Flash'', the second story to be published. ''Flashman's Lady'' begins with Flashman's encounter with Tom Brown, a former acquaintance from

Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. ...

, and progresses through

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

, battling pirates with James Brooke in

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java Isl ...

, and enslavement in

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

under Queen Ranavalona I, detailing his life from 1842 to 1845. This book is unique among the Flashman series for containing extracts from the diary of his wife, Elspeth. It also contains a number of notes by Fraser, in the guise of editor, giving additional historical information on the events described.

Plot summary

The story begins with a chance meeting between Flashman and Tom Brown in a London tavern, the Green Man. As Flashman was a good cricket bowler at school, Brown invites him to join a scratch team of Old Rugbeians Brown is organising, to play in a cricket match at Lord's. Flashman's impressive play (performing possibly the first ever

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wi ...

) leads to more matches, and an encounter with Daedalus Tighe, a notorious bookie. He also meets Don Solomon Haslam, a businessman from the

East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and aroun ...

, who has a lot of money, prestige, and a fascination for Elspeth, Flashman's wife. Due to a wager with Haslam, blackmail from Tighe, and threats from an angry, cuckolded duke, Flashman is forced to accompany Haslam, Elspeth, and Morrison (his father-in-law) on a trip to

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

. Haslam kidnaps Elspeth and flees east; investigations reveal that "Don Solomon Haslam", Old Etonian and prosperous businessman in London and Singapore, is also "Suleiman Usman", a well-known pirate prince based in Borneo. Flashman must reluctantly chase after them, with the help of James Brooke. This chase takes him to the jungles of Borneo, the nests of pirates, and finally to Madagascar, where the Malagasies enslave him and Queen Ranavalona makes him her military adviser and lover. Escape from the island seems impossible, and with his wife's help he has to overcome his cowardice to evade their minders.

Characters

Fictional characters

* Harry Paget Flashman - The hero or

anti-hero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who may lack conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform actio ...

*Elspeth - His loving and possibly unfaithful wife *Morrison - His father-in-law * Tom Brown - His former rival at Rugby

Historical characters

Suleiman Usman Suleiman (Arabic: سُلِيمَان ''sulaymān''; or dictionary.reference.comsuleiman/ref>) is the Arabic name of the Quranic king and Islamic prophet Solomon meaning "man of peace", derived from the Hebrew name Shlomo. The name is also spe ...

/Solomon Haslam - The society man who went to

Eton College Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...

is also the notorious pirate whose stronghold is in

. Flashman describes him as "portly, you might say, if not fat, with a fleshy, smiling face, and fine teeth which flashed white against his swarthy skin." * Fuller Pilch - Considered to be the best

batsman of his time, who Flashman catches out. Flashman says "I'm not sure that the sincerest tribute I got wasn't Fuller Pilch's knitted brow and steady glare as he sat on a bench with his tankard, looking me up and down for a full two minutes and never saying a word." * Alfred Mynn - A renowned all-rounder cricketer of the era known for his roundarm bowling. *

Nicholas Felix Nicholas Wanostrocht (5 October 1804 – 3 September 1876), known as Nicholas Felix, was an English amateur "gentleman" cricketer. He was one of the few players who – at his request – was routinely known by his pseudonym, Felix. When his fa ...

- The third famous cricketer Flashman defeats. * Richard Harris Barham - Noted novelist who Flashman meets at a hanging * Whampoa - Chinese merchant who is the Flashmans' host in Singapore * Joseph Balestier - Planter and merchant who was the first United States consul in Singapore *

Catchick Moses Sir Catchick Paul Chater ( hy, Փոլ Չաթեր; ; 8 September 1846 – 27 May 1926) was a prominent British businessman of Armenian descent in colonial Hong Kong, whose family roots were in Calcutta, India. Biography Early life Chater was ...

- Armenian Jewish merchant and co-founder of ''

The Straits Times ''The Straits Times'' is an English-language daily broadsheet newspaper based in Singapore and currently owned by SPH Media Trust (previously Singapore Press Holdings). ''The Sunday Times'' is its Sunday edition. The newspaper was establish ...

'' * Henry Keppel - British

post captain Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of captain in the Royal Navy. The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from: * Officers in command of a naval vessel, who were (and still are) addressed as captain ...

who accompanies Flashman and Brooke to Borneo * James Brooke - The White Rajah who saves Flashman in Singapore and then takes him to rescue his wife. Flashman is impressed with him despite himself. * Angela Burdett-Coutts - Flashman finds an image of her in Brooke's possession, and finds out that Brooke has a crush on her. Flashman remembers her not as fondly - "I'd taken a loving fumble at her myself...but she'd simply stared straight ahead of her and dislocated my thumb. Wasteful little prude." *

Charles Anthoni Johnson Brooke Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was "f ...

- Brooke's nephew and eventual successor as White Rajah * Jean Laborde - A Frenchman and former slave in Madagascar who helps Flashman on his arrival in that country * Ranavalona I - The queen of

and Flashman's lover. Flashman describes her as "a diabolical despot who was undoubtedly mad, fickle, dangerous, and fiendishly cruel," although he later decides she is more wicked than mad. *

Radama II of Madagascar Radama II (September 23, 1829 – May 12, 1863 'contested'' was the son and heir of Queen Ranavalona I and ruled from 1861 to 1863 over the Kingdom of Madagascar, which controlled virtually the entire island. Radama's rule, although brief, ...

- Ranavalona's son, who protects Elspeth in Madagascar.

Notes

{{George MacDonald Fraser 1977 British novels Flashman novels Barrie & Jenkins books Novels set in Madagascar Novels set in Borneo