Flashman and the Mountain of Light

Written by George MacDonald Fraser

Narrated by David Case

This ninth volume of The Flashman Papers, faithfully edited and transcribed by Fraser, finds that Sir Harry Flashman is back in India, where his saga began. This time, our hero is sent by Her Majesty's Secret Service to spy on the corrupt court of Lahore, on India's Northwest Frontier. Flashy's most challenging exploit yet is as politically shrewd and thoroughly lewd as ever.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
• Release date: Jan 5, 2010
• ISBN: 9780307734884

George MacDonald Fraser

The author of the famous ‘Flashman Papers’ and the ‘Private McAuslan’ stories, George MacDonald Fraser has worked on newspapers in Britain and Canada. In addition to his novels he has also written numeous films, most notably ‘The Three Musketeers’, ‘The Four Musketeers’, and the James Bond film, ‘Octopussy’. George Macdonald Fraser died in January 2008 at the age of 82.

Reviews for Flashman and the Mountain of Light

[seriousgrace · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Harry Flashman is back again! It almost seems like he won't go away. The year is 1845 and this time Flashy is a spy for Her Majesty's Secret Service! When we last left Flashy he was in Singapore. I have to admit, the start to Flashman and the Mountain of Light was a little slow this time around. It took me two chapters before I really got into it. If you are looking for Fraser's trademark sex and violence, Flashman and the Mountain of Light does not disappoint. It just takes a little longer to get to. For the historians out there, Fraser covers the Sutlej Crisis and of course, the Mountain of Light or Koh-i-Noor, one of the largest diamonds in the world.

[antiquary_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Oddly enough, I recall very little of this one, though I believe it explains how Flashman go the Koh-i-nur diamond and how Kipling got the idea for The Man Who Would Be King

[santhony_35 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Our intrepid hero, Harry Flashman, is back for volume nine of the Flashman Papers, a narrative of the life and times of one of the most ne’er-do-well wastrels to ever grace the pages of a published autobiography.

The first five Flashman novels were presented in chronological order. This “packet”, like its three immediate predecessors, acts to fill in a previous “gap” in the Flashman timeline. From a chronological standpoint, the adventures of this novel immediately follow those contained in Flashman’s Lady, wherein we left Flashman on the heels of his escape from Ranavalona, the mad queen of Madagascar, that following his rescue of his wife, Elspeth, from South Sea pirates. Believing himself to be returning to merry, old England, Flashy is diverted instead to India, where the services of the Afghan hero are desperately needed to quell the restless natives.

As in the previous Flashman novels, our Harry is revealed as the premier coward and opportunist of his era; faults which he quite willingly admits and even boasts of. Much as a prior day Forrest Gump, he has a way of finding himself among the most powerful and famous personages of his era, as he takes part in the great events of the period, in this case, quelling the Sikh Rebellion of 1845-46 and securing the Koh-i-Noor, the greatest jewel then in existence.

Aside from uproarious fun and games, the Flashman series is set against historical events and actually serves as an educational experience. On to volume ten of the Flashman Papers.

[ehines_20 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Of a piece with Flashman's other adventures in this area of the world. Well done, lots of interesting historical detail, and fine adventure.

[cecrow · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The author George R. R. Martin recommended this series via his internet site. I'm glad he did, as it's a wonderful find. In this outing, Flashman finds himself at the verge of the First Sikh War in India, sent as delegate into the Punjab and later as unwilling messenger to the front lines. He's a coward at heart and makes no bones about it, but he's always in the right place at the right time to witness military history in the making. This is the only novel in the series I've tripped across so far. Reading the others wasn't necessary at all to enjoy it, though it comes fourth chronologically. I'll be watching for more, if they're all this smooth a blend of factual history and ribald fiction.

The author's grasp of time, place and language feels very authentic. My one quibble is that his two American characters sound very British, but that could be passed off as an effect of their working with the British for so long. I've read quite a bit of historical fiction, and this is among the most impressive in terms of careful distinguishing between fiction and fact via footnotes, appendices and sources cited. Rather than coming away with a hazy about what was made up, this one left me pretty clear on that account. I had a lot of consequent fun with scouting all over Wikipedia, learning more of the background behind these people and their circumstances (Flashman himself being the obvious fictional exception.) Surely there's a way to make educational entertainment like this part of highschool curricula? I would have enjoyed that.

[mrsplum_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Discovering Flashman has been my highlight for 2010.

Fraser’s skills as a novelist and historian is such that he created a character who remains ultimately likeable, despite his treatment of women. There have been many such men in life – why not in art?

In a particularly saucy edition of the Flashman papers, Flashy near single-handedly saves the British cause in India, by virtue of his manly virility, stamina and performance.

[jztemple · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The recent death of George McDonald Fraser has brought a close (maybe permanent, maybe not?) to this delightful series of books. I have had the pleasure of following this series every since the release of the first book back in the sixties. The Flashman novels combine history (including substantial endnotes) with sex, action, adventure and the secret pleasure of enjoying the exploits of one of the most notoriously popular non-politically correct characters of 20th Century literature. Flashman is a womanizer, a coward, a scoundrel and a cheat, but in the novels, which are all narrated by Flashman himself, he is utterly honest with his readers. He is a man not proud of his faults, but certainly unabashed about them.

The Flashman novels could be dismissed as sensationalized light reading , but Fraser cleverly tied his character into most of the major events of the last sixty years of the nineteenth century, a Victorian Zelig or Forrest Gump. Flashman casually mentions this minor detail or that simple observation, then Fraser in his assumed role as editor of the Flashman papers meticulously explains in the endnotes how these mentions by Flashman confirm the truth of his narrative, since only if Flashman was there could he have known about this fact or that. Fraser's endnotes also round out the historic details of the narrative, giving background and elaboration to the history-as-I-lived-it tales told by Flashman. It all works wonderfully, even if you somewhat suspect that some details are being outrageously fabricated.

I very strongly recommend these books to anyone who has an interest in history and is willing to keep an open mind towards the womanizing and the language (the n-word appears quite a bit, but completely in character for Flashman). I would suggest the best way to read them is in order of publication. This doesn't follow Flashman's own life chronology, but the books published later often make reference to previous editions of the "Flashman Papers" and so is more fun for the reader to follow.

[dougwood57 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In George MacDonald Fraser's 'Flashman and the Mountain of Light', our man Flashy sees Queen Vicky holding the Koh-I-Noor diamond and flashes back to India - more precisely, the Punjab where he arrives just in time for the first Anglo Sikh War (1845-46), not to suggest that Flashman had a hand in the war or anything.

The reader meets some of the most colorful figures ever to occupy the historical stage - as Flashman says "there were some damned odd fellows about in the earlies" - many of whom have just about slipped into the obscuring mists of time before Frasser rescued them. There's the White Mughal Alexander Haughton Campbell Gardner, the Queen Mother Maharani Jeendan (ohh, what a mother!), British 'agent' George Broadfoot and more. Flashman even meets up with a couple of fellows who are bigger cowards than he - Lal Singh and Tej Singh.

Fraser also takes the reader through the war in some detail, especially the battles at Ferozeshah and Sobraon. If anything the battle scenes last too long, but that will be a matter of taste for the individual reader.

Along the way, Harry engages in some rather disturbing behavior, which other reviewers have suggested indicate a degree of bravery heretofore undetected. Bosh! While Flashy isn't always the quivering mass of jelly we have come to expect, any actions suggestive of courage are simply acts of self-preservation. And anyway, Flashy gets his just reward for such behavior in the end.

Highest Flashman recommendation