Flashman’s Lady

by George MacDonald Fraser Book 6 in the The Flashman Papers series.

First published 1977

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A cricket match at Lord’s introduces Flashman and Elspeth to the gambler and pirate prince Sulieman Usman. When Elspeth is abducted, Flashman follows her through Singapore and Borneo, where James Brooke’s campaigns against river piracy force him into fighting he would rather avoid. Elspeth’s own diary provides a second account of events and exposes the distance between Flashman’s jealous suspicions and her cheerful innocence.

The pursuit continues to Madagascar, where Queen Ranavalona I keeps the couple under surveillance and subjects Flashman to court danger, forced service and sexual exploitation. Escape depends on surviving an island kingdom resisting foreign pressure while European traders and missionaries pursue their own interests. The novel combines sporting celebrity, maritime adventure and imperial captivity across 1842–1845.