Flashman at the Charge
George MacDonald Fraser
301 pages
published in 1973

Sir Harry Flashman is a bounder, a cad and a rascal. Kicked out of Eton for bullying, as depicted in Tom Brown's Schooldays, his further adventures and rise as one of Victorean England's greatest heroes is depicted in the Flashman series by George MacDonald Fraser. This is his fifth adventure. I first came across the Flashman series when it was recommended by John Ostrander, who acknowledged its influence on his writing. I've read about four-five of them now and I like them very much.

The setting is the Crimea War and while Flashie does his best to worm out of it, he is send to the front, just in time to take part in the battle of Balaclava, where he takes part not only in the famous Thin Red Line, but also in the Charge of the Light Brigade. Taken prisoner afterwards, he meets an old school cum also held in captivity and together they have to escape and foil the Russians' plans to invade India.

In between all this excitement, Flashie finds enough time to romp thorugh several bedrooms with various more then willing ladies. As always, the novel is researched pretty well, with foot notes explaining sources and various snippets of history. As always, this is both an engrossing adventure and just very funny.