Royal Flash (Flashman)

This is based on Anthony Hope's A Prisoner of Zenda, in which Harry Flashman (the bully from Tom Brown's School Days) takes the place of Rudolf Rassendyll and must fight, very unwillingly, to save the rightful monarch from Otto von Bismarck (played by Oliver Reed) and his cohorts including a counterpart of Hope's antagonist Rupert von Hentzau.

Our intrepid hero, Harry Flashman, is back for volume two 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. This installment picks up where the first volume left off; Harry returns from his Afghan adventures, quite the conquering hero and the toast of London. Soon, however, the bloom is off the rose and further adventures await, this time among the nobility of the continent. Soon, Flash matches wits with one of the greatest statesmen of the 19th century, Otto von Bismarck, and changes the course of European history as a result. As in the original Flashman novel, our Harry is revealed as the premier coward and opportunist of his era; faults which he quite willingly admits and even boasts of. This passage, relating to his beautiful, vacuous wife Elspeth gives a glimpse into the Flashman psyche: "At that moment I was overcome again with that yearning affection for her that I sometimes felt, in spite of her infidelities; I can't explain it, beyond saying that she must have had some magical quality, something to do with the childlike thoughtful look she wore, and the pure, helpless stupidity in her eyes. It is very difficult not to like a lovely idiot." Uproariously funny and entertaining, this sequel is every bit the equal of the original.

The blurb in the front of George MacDonald Fraser's Royal Flash - the second book in the Flashman Papers - is a New York Times quote that says: "If anyone is looking for a successor to James Bond, Flashy is the one." This is inaccurate; if anything, Harry Flashman is the anti-Bond: cowardly where Bond is courageous, self-serving where Bond is selfless, but human where Bond is superheroic (although the literary Bond is considerably less so than the cinematic one). Flashman, in short, is one of the great cads in fiction, and gleefully unrepentant in his roguishness. Royal Flash starts where the first volume (Flashman) ended, with the narrator resting on his laurels from his campaigns in Afghanistan. Of course, readers of the first volume are well aware that his heroics are essentially pure fiction, but the British public of 1842 is not onto him. For around 70 pages, Harry is relishing his status while antagonizing various historical figures, most particular, a young Bismarck. This will come back to haunt him years later, when he receives a mysterious summons to come to Germany. Harry smells a trap, but the scent of money is stronger, so he goes, only to be forced into a scheme of Bismarck's. As it turns out, Flashman is a virtual twin for Prince Carl Gustaf, who is soon to marry a princess that will solidify certain political alliances that Bismarck wants. Unfortunately, Gustaf has taken ill with a sexually transmitted disease and the cure will take too long; the wedding would be threatened and with it, Bismark's plans. Enter Flashman, who will impersonate Gustaf temporarily. Harry suspects there's more to this than what he's been told, but he has little choice to go along with the plot. I enjoyed the first book in this series, but I like this one even more. The book Flashman is a bit more episodic, while Royal Flash has more of a single plot, allowing a better narrative flow. A wonderful blend of history and satire, Royal Flash will continue to entertain those who found the first book a pleasure.

Flashman is a man for our time. Although his exploits take place in the 19th century, his cowardice, lust, betrayal, and perfidy make him au courant.

Perhaps not as sharp as "Flashman," the first of the series. Some of the forward momentum of the plot dissipates in a few places, and one has to wonder how someone as calculating and astute regarding the conniving plans and motives of others can turn a blind eye to his own follies, but that's people and that's Harry Flashman. For fans of the series, there's plenty of swash and buckle, and enough wry observations of human nature to make it a ripping good yarn.

There is a whole series of Flashman books. All pure entertainment. I am very fond of them all but this, in my most humble opinion, is the best. Like a warm tub, once you put a foot in, the rest must follow.

Given that my introduction to the Flashmen series almost coincided with the tragic (although not unexpected) death of George Macdonald Frasier I have made it my news years resolution to let people know about his (mostly) wonderful books. They wouldn't be good without the main character Sir Harry Flashman VC; who without ever really meaning to became the most highly decorated solider of the Victorian Era. This is all of course just a byproduct of his attempts to save his own worthless hide, with the reader cheering him all the while. They are also outstanding in their great attention to historical accuracy backed up with a large amount of footnotes. This particular installment "Royal Flash " involves a particular set of circumstances (seems like a pattern) whereby Flash leaves London and is asked to do what only he can do best impersonate a Danish Prince so the German state can be founded. This is to be facilitated by Flash and the actions of one Otto Von Bismark. I don't understand it myself out of the seven Flashman books I have read up to this point this is my least favorite. While it is all well and good to see Harry Flashman lording it over people who have to obey his every command nothing really happens in the first part of the book. The prose and the sardonic humor are still excellent but that doesn't make up for a ponderous plot.

The second instalment in the exploits of the most fascinating of characters, Harry Flashman, begins as the first finishes in 1842, but then leaps forward to a period some 4 years later. Flashy, fortuitously lauded after his yellow-bellied antics at the First Afghan War has become somewhat of a national hero, having been decorated by the Queen, and though he has clearly done nothing to deserve it, he will certainly not complain. Flash is still married to the beautiful but vacant Elspeth, who he now concedes is cheating on him ('You would never have thought, to see her angelic face, golden hair, and expression of idiotic innocence, that she was the biggest trollop that ever wore out a mattress'). After escaping a police raid on a brothel in London, Flash is rescued by Spanish dancer Lola Montez (and future mistress of King Ludwig I of Bavaria), insulting a young Otto Von Bismarck ('foul-mouthed foreign dog!') in the process. Flash beds her, naturally, and years later he accepts an offer he can't refuse and follows her to Munich. Yet again his propensity for wanton fornication lands him in deep water and he unwittingly becomes embroiled in an evil plan devised by the dastardly Otto, to swap him with a Danish Prince to satisfy his own political agenda. MacDonald Fraser writes with the same wit and dedication to historical accuracy that made the first volume such a joy to read. Royal flash is just as damned funny and informative, if not more so. It has in fact encouraged me to read up on this period of history and particularly about the quite incredible story of legendary femme-fatale Lola Montez, from her Irish beginnings to Countess of Landsfeld. We are again drawn by MacDonald Fraser to inexplicably liking a protagonist who toadies, cheats and copulates his way across Europe with little regard for anything or anybody except saving his own skin. Flashy's instinct for survival is what makes us root for him, and he will do absolutely anything, beg, lie and flee, to ensure that he does. He even exhibits the occasional bout of uncharacteristic bravery, when no other option is available to him of course. Just like the first outing, Royal flash features a slew of real historical figures that are woven skillfully into the story, though this is the only Flashman novel to be set in a fictional setting. Aside from Von Bismarck and Montez, the boxer John Gully, Prince Edward, Ludwig I, even composer Franz Liszt all feature among others. He is a wonderfully complex character, Flashman, delightfully honest, witty and crass, and superbly constructed by MacDonald Fraser in another winning installment of the Flashman papers. Absolutely brilliant.

So glad I was introduced to Harry Flashman by a British colleague. Language of the book is wonderful, the adventures themselves are riveting, AND one learns history -- real history -- in the bargain. Really fun.

None better. The greatest.

Hysterical and very dry British humour.

Not my favorite Flashman but a good story none-the-less. The vendor was quick!