The Nizam's Daughters

Intrigues in a minor state to prepare for Wellington's return to India or to erase compromising proofs of his prior sojourn? This Matthew Hervey serie finds a well told narrative in "Honorable Company" a book in which few are honorable or even good to keep company with. His wedding preparations thoroughly cut short by Hervey's departure for India will not prevent his brief romance with the Rajah's daughter before an all out charge of the thin red line against thousands of armed opponents.

What is fantastic with Mallinson is that even if you have never set foot in India, you know after a few pages, the best places to go hunting hogs on horseback with a lance. Strangely you feel acquainted with this risky exercise, almost as well as a local.

Perspicacious action, sagacious intrigue and a subtle wry humor abound in Allan Mallinson’s “The Nizam’s Daughters” the second novel in his Mathew Hervey series. Mr. Mallinson’s moves from trot to gallop in his adventures with Hervey of the light dragoons and this time they are charging the redoubt known as India. A number of old faces are back like Johnson, Jessye and Selden in addition to the new cast of characters fully realized and thee-dimensionally written. The novel, although it took some time to take off, was exciting to read and was replete with both daring dos and 19th century royal cozening. Some readers may find the 189th century vernacular difficult to interpret but I found it challenging and historically show more accurate. My sense was that Mr. Mallinson really came into his own, with this novel, and I look forward to snatching up his next volume in the Hervey series. show less

If you get emotional reading about the British Empire (as I do), this can be a very hard read. But if you're going to be able to convincingly blame the English for most of the world's current problems (as I do when under the influence of ignorance or tequila) you ought to read it and be armed with facts.