FLASHMAN AND THE MOUNTAIN OF LIGHT ...

FLASHMAN AND THE MOUNTAIN OF LIGHT by George MacDonald Fraser (Plume: $11.). The Mountain of Light in the title is the English translation of Koh-I-Noor, the Persian name for the 186-carat diamond that was considered the world’s most fabulous gem during the 19th Century. Jack Flashman, Fraser’s cowardly, lying, lecherous and utterly beguiling hero, finds himself trying to guard the great diamond as he stumbles through the political intrigues surrounding the Sutlej Crisis that precipitated the First Sikh War. In addition to the usual complement of rogues, ruffians and stiff-necked officers, Flashman finds himself contending with Dr. Josiah Harlan, an American who may have inspired the character of Daniel Dravot in Kipling’s “The Man Who Would Be King,” and the libidinous Maharanee Jeendan, whom Henry Lawrence described as “a strange blend of the prostitute, the tiger and Machiavelli’s Prince.” Fraser’s encyclopedic knowledge of British Imperial history enables him to show real events from Flashman’s imaginary, behind-the-scenes point of view, and the resulting novel abounds with swashbuckling thrills.