Flashy — after, incidentally, pulling a hat trick on the three most
celebrated cricketers of his time — accepts a "friendly" wager in a
single-wicket match against Don Solomon, a half-breed Etonian socialite.
The tie score results in he and Elspeth accompanying Solomon on a
cruise to the Far East, where Solomon’s true colors are revealed, and he
absconds with Elspeth. Flashman must fight, however unwillingly, to get
her back — until they both end up in the hands of the bloodthirsty
queen of Madagascar, Ranavalona I.
This is a fine entry in the
series, possibly a little more heavy on the humor this time around than
the adventure. The first half of the book is all cricket and social
intrigue; a more thorough look at Madagascar might have been in order,
tho' perhaps Fraser was dealing with limited intelligence on that
subject. Another minor quibble: At the book’s opening, our hero is
caught in a damned-if-he-does-damned-if-he-don’t trap that pushed him
again into adventure (lose the cricket match and see Elspeth go on a
cruise with Solomon, or win and be beaten by crooked bookies?). And, as
in Flash for Freedom!,
the dilemma that prompted him into action, when he returns (in that
case, cheating at cards), is completely forgotten. I would have liked to
see some closure in the matter of the threatening bookie, at least. All
that aside, this is, of course, another witty, well-researched
adventure. Bravo!
five stars
