Flashman and the Angel of the Lord

Flashman Papers #10

by George MacDonald Fraser

"A jolly read."-- The Wall Street Journal

The tenth installment in The Flashman Papers finds Captain Harry Flashman of Her Majesty's Secret Service in the antebellum South, where the irrepressible, globe-trotting Victorian becomes the target of blackmailing beauties.

Evading danger, bedding women, and profiting from every opportunity, Flashman once again weasels his way into history, this time in John Brown's raid of Harper's Ferry, just before the Civil War. As a result of Flashy's letching, lying, cheating, and stealing on land, on sea, and on the rails, not only did John Brown become a martyr, Lincoln became president, and the nation plunged into a bloodbath.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Humor, Adventure, Comedy, Civil War

394 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

George MacDonald Fraser is best known for his Flashman series of historical novels, purportedly written by Harry Flashman, a fictional coward and bully originally created by Thomas Hughes in Tom Brown's School Days. The novels are presented as "packets" of memoirs written by the nonagenarian Flashman, who looks back on his days as a hero of the British Army during the 19th century. The series begins with Flashman, and is notable for the accuracy of the historical settings and praise from critics. P.G. Wodehouse said of Flashman, “If ever there was a time when I felt that ‘watcher-of-the-skies-when-a-new-planet’ stuff, it was when I read the first Flashman.”

Reviews

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

UPDATE ON HARPER'S FERRY (ORIGINAL REVIEW BELOW):



Like most folks (I'm pretty sure), while I had some previous - if limited - knowledge of John Brown and his raid on Harper's Ferry, I had never heard of the Kennedy Farm (aka "John Brown's HQS," above) prior to reading this book and watching the excellent miniseries "The Good Lord Bird," (and while I've never been a real fan of Ethan Hawke, he is simply outstanding here as John Brown).

And so when we drove back out to the Ferry after Christmas, we found the town - as expected - swamped with tourists visiting the frou-frou coffee shops, "country décor" stores, and other nonsense which has totally filled up the "historic downtown" area. But a further 20 minute drive across the river along a winding, narrow mountain road brought us to the Kennedy Farm, which - aside from one Marine veteran - we had all to ourselves. Not really a lot to see - most of it shown below - but for history buffs, totally worth the side trip.*







* (As is the excellent Asian food truck "Yatai Hibachi" a couple miles west of town, run by a delightful Balinese couple - four stars!)

Note on "downtown:" Fair enough; the town was pretty much destroyed at least twice during the war, so really nothing original remaining. And so the only recognizable piece of history is the old engine house, aka "John Brown's Fort" shown in the background on the jacket of this book, and which is in fact the most visited tourist attraction in West Virginia, even though it has been moved and rebuilt four times over the years, and is less-than-original at this point.
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ORIGINAL REVIEW: The Flashman books are uniformly brilliant, in large part because they are uniformly the same: our dastardly, cowardly hero rogering his way through various violent events of the mid-1800s, generally - but not always - as tied to the then-still-great British Empire.

Fraser's research is also uniformly outstanding, whether uncovering minor details of the historic events themselves, or simply his incredible 19th century world-building, be it Borneo, Ethiopia, Afghanistan or - in this case - late 1850's New York City. So basically, if you're a "Flashmaniac" to begin with, how much you enjoy any particular book depends in large part on how much you care about that particular incident or part of the world.

I personally have never been much interested in "Flashman in America," but now that I live close enough to Harper's Ferry that we can literally just drive out there for lunch, I figured it was time I learned a bit about the place. And while I consider myself fairly well-read on the Civil War, this particular pre-War event largely slipped under my radar, so that pretty much all I knew about John Brown was what I learned from the 1974 "Kansas" album cover,** (and more recently, from watching the excellent "Hell on Wheels" TV series, which touched on it occasionally and featured a rough version of the Pottawatomie massacre in its "Bleeding Kansas" episode).

Well, anyway, now I know a LOT more. As always, Fraser brings his history to vivid life, so that I not only learned about Brown himself - both pre- and (however briefly) post-raid - but could also probably name and describe nearly half of the ridiculously small number of individuals who accompanied him in his lunatic endeavor, (I mean seriously; what was he thinking??) With Fraser's passing in 2008, this is as close as we'll get to an actual book about Flashman and the Civil War (although his involvement serving on both sides of that conflict, and presence at Chancellorsville and Gettysburg are repeated mentioned in asides and footnotes), so while this book is up to Fraser's usual lofty standards, it also serves as a sad reminder of what could have been if Fraser had been able to squeak out just one more adventure…
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** This one here:



…and in fact, I was so little-informed that I wasn't really sure what Brown was so pissed off about or even which side he was fighting for. I know - pathetic.
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EVEN MORE ORIGINAL NOTE: While I am a big fan of the Flashman books, I have always been put off by their almost cartoonish and often TOTALLY un-PC covers, to the point where I was embarrassed to be seen reading them in public.

Well, looks like someone else finally realized that - so kudos to Harper Collins, who from the very-late 1990's on began reprinting them in this semi-respectable series - thanks, HC!!

[Edward Erdelac · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this installment Harry Flashman winds up entangled in abolotionist John Brown's disastrous but seminal Harpers Ferry raid, an event which almost singlehandedly plunged the United States into the Civil War.

I've studied John Brown and the Harpers Ferry raid pretty extensively for other projects, and as an admirerer of Brown, and I was very curious to see how Flashy and Fraser were gonna pull this off. It's a circuitous route that leads the cowardly Flashman into Brown's presence, including being shanghaied by an old enemy and pressed into service by the Kuklos (a precursor to the KKK that may have been inspired by the Knights Of The Circle), Pinkerton and the US Secret Service, and the abolition movement simultaneously.

Again, much of the history is spot on (even learned a few things I intend to look up and verify), but this one felt just a little bit forced, and Flashy a bit out of character. I was pretty forgiving of it because Flashman's estimation of Brown mirrored my own for the most part, but the affection he has for Brown doesn't totally pan out for me, given his preestablished character (Flashman's), his disbelief in the cause, and his constant eye rolling at Brown's methods. Seeing everything through his eyes was interesting as always though.

I did feel like one of the female characters' story lines was tied up and written out almost as an afterthought.

It's evident Fraser has the same fondness (or fascination) for John Brown as his creation.

A good entry, but not as great as the original or Flashman And The Tiger.

[Christopher Saunders · Rating 4 out of 5]

Flashman and the Angel of the Lord sees George Macdonald Fraser's Victorian anti-hero ensnarled in his most improbable adventure yet: at the side of John Brown during his Harper's Ferry Raid in 1859. Flashman runs into an old enemy, Oxford don-turned-slave trader John Charity Spring (of Flash for Freedom) who dragoons Flashman back to the United States to face trial for past misdeeds. At turns Flashy is recruited by detective Alan Pinkerton, a proto-KKK society of slaveowners and the abolitionist Secret Six, forcing the always morally flexible Flashman into an alliance with John Brown and his plan to spark a slave uprising. By this point in the series (this is the tenth of twelve), the Flashman formula had long since staled, with the razor-sharp deconstruction of imperialist adventure tropes replaced with by-the-numbers swashbuckling. Fraser, a dab hand at improbable plotting, really struggles to string the story's disparate strands together here; it takes two-thirds of the narrative before Flashman actually meets Brown, so busy has he been tossed to and fro by different factions represented by an assortment of ciphers. Still, it is Flashman, and the novel contains the usual delights: humorous sex and colorful violence, amusing caricatures of historical figures (Brown, Pinkerton, William Seward and Frederick Douglass), a cynical portrait of antebellum America filled with lunatics rushing towards oblivion. Even formulaic Flashman has its charms, and longtime fans of the series will consider the repetition and daffy plotting part of the fun.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again, the unquenchable Flashman is off on a mad, bad, and totally unintentional adventure. While en route home, Flashy is shanghaied by his old enemy John Charity Spring, the Mad Don of Oxford, with the eager (to put it mildly) assistance of Spring's very sexy daughter. He ends up in America, where not one, not two, but THREE different groups respectively pay, strongarm, or blackmail him into becoming the second-in-command to abolitionist John Brown. Brown is in the midst of planning for -- or, more accurately, waffling about -- his raid on Harper's Ferry, and Flashy is supposed to (a) ensure it succeeds, (b) ensure it takes place, regardless of whether it succeeds or fails, or (c) delay and sabotage it so it never happens. Well, history takes its course and the raid of course does happen, but along the way Flashy manages to bed a number of women, escape by the skin of his teeth more than once, encounters more than one old enemy, and comes out smelling like a rose, as usual.

As always, the history is top-notch, the characters cleverly drawn, and the adventures harum-scarum. However, Flash is a bit more mellow in this one than in others, and seems to actually feel a bit fondness for "old J.B. and his crackbrained dreams," as he puts it. As a bonus, the story is bracketed by scenes of Flash with his grandchildren: Augustus ("young gallows...bursting with sin beneath the mud"), Jemima ("a true Flashman, as beautiful as she is obnoxious"), Alice ("another twig off the old tree, being both flirt and toady"), and John ("a serious infant, given to searching cross-examination").

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, but less than probably any other Flashman I've read. I felt that Fraser was passionately interested - or at least became so - in John Brown while writing this novel, and the parts where he tries to make a portrait of the man are powerful and well-done. It's just the rest of the book seems to have less effort put into it. It's slightly exaggerated: Flashman gets out of scrapes due to ever more unlikely coincidences, there are more sex scenes than usual and they seem just a tiny bit gratuitous. It's like a pulp spy novel married to an in-depth re-telling of John Brown's attack on Harper's Ferry. Still good; Fraser is an excellent writer. But not great, for me anyway.

[Barry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favorite Flashman book. It’s often entertaining, with the funny and creative turns of phrase that I’ve come to expect, but perhaps my familiarity with this chapter in history dampened my interest compared with some of the more exotic events chronicled in previous volumes. If you’re thinking to yourself, “What was Harper‘s Ferry again?” then you may enjoy this one even more than I did.

[Ensiform · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arriving at the Cape of Good Hope in 1858, poor Flashy is once again shanghaied by his old enemy John Charity Spring (who used his wanton, willful daughter as bait). Flashman is sent unwillingly to Maryland, where is forced to once more take on the disguise of Beauchamp Comber, British Navy officer and abolitionist agent. In short order, he is pressed by the Underground Railroad, the Klukos (an inchoate version of the KKK) and the US government itself, via Allen Pinkerton, to aid John Brown in his raid on Harper’s Ferry. (Only the US wants the raid to fail.)

Well, of course I haven’t yet found a Flashman packet that was a waste of time; this is full of the same dense, erudite observation on the people and era, laced with plenty of bawdy misadventure, comic and pusillanimous escapades, and all manner of double- and triple-crossing espionage. Flashman finds Brown to be a demented old coot, but comes away with a lot of respect for him, doomed to failure though his enterprise was (due mostly, it seems, to his own indecision). And though the formula is, eventually, all of a piece --- there will be no time that Flashman congratulates himself that the worst is over without getting himself into hotter water, nor will a buxom doxy appear without giving Flashy the scare of his life at one point --- who cares? It’s terrific, informative fun. A terrific entry in the series, and at nearly 400 pages, it doesn’t feel padded or overlong at all. Indeed, as usual, a final coda seems wanting --- did Spring get any comeuppance for his act of kidnapping, or not?

[David]

One of my favourites in the series, if only for the return of various characters from earlier volumes. Flashman is his usual self—reckless, blind to the idea that a woman might have any agenda of her own beyond being sexually ‘satisfied’ by him, cowardly, ingenious at executing escapes, a master bluffer, a seasoned ‘philosopher’ (by this point into his tenth decade), a liar, bigot, scoundrel, poltroon ... and truth-teller. As always, GMF squares Flashman’s account of the historical events (this time those of 1859 USA which led to the Civil War and the Emancipation Act) fairly securely with the historical record, while allowing his anti-hero plenty of women who are (conveniently) not merely not his wife but also not likely to ever meet his wife. Flashman is a reprehensible cad, and superbly fun to read about.

[Robin Braysher · Rating 5 out of 5]

My continued enthusiasm for 'Flashman' has been made clear in previous reviews, so I shall keep this brief. 'Flash For Freedom' continues directly into the first part of 'Flashman and the Redskins' but, the slaving theme of the book really follows on in this one, which takes us forward ten years. MacDonald Fraser's ability to insinuate Flashy into historical events with key historical characters is nothing short of genius. In this case it is John Brown and Harper's Ferry - yes, the John Brown of the song ('Mouldering in the grave' or with a baby with a pimple on its chest, according to taste). So from this book you will learn about the real John Brown, the situation in antebellum USA and the events that led to the Civil War - and enjoy yourself on the way, at Flashy's expense.

[Ron Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastic foray into the crazy world of Flashman! As usual, the language used is not for everyone, as the author paints a very realistic picture of the way people of the time spoke, thought, and behaved. Will say, the first half of this story did drag a bit slowly for me, but once Flashman finally hooks up with John Brown things really take off, and the last 150 pages are a wild ride, up & down. Can’t get enough of this character and the series, love it all so much. A bit sad I’ve only got three more papers to go through.

[Jamie Riddick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Undoubtedly the funniest series I’ve ever read. George Macdonald Fraser’s turn of phrase is unrivalled.

Flashy has taught me more about history than any teacher ever could, and in the most enjoyable way imaginable.

[David Tuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the time of publication a Flashman fanatics idea of an American adventure was of course his involvement in the American Civil War. That Fraser never got chance (or around) to write it, is of course one of the great disappointments for fans of the papers. Indeed when I first read the book I think I spent quite a lot of time wishing he was writing about my preferred topic, my mood not being improved by the constant references to the great lost beast of the Flashman papers. The inclusion of Flashman and Lincoln's last conversation before the latter's demise was perhaps the first clue that he never intended to write about the Civil War. As it is, Flashman and the Angel of the Lord is one of the lesser instalments but still worth reading. I'm currently re-reading it a full 20 years after publication for perhaps the fifth or sixth time and I'm enjoying it far more now than I did then.

It's not top draw Flashy. The problems with the plot are two fold: firstly it feels initially like a retread of Flash for Freedom (in the same way as The Road to Charing Cross - the novella at the start of Flashman and the Tiger - feels like a rehash of Royal Flash at times). Secondly the story sags when Flashman meets up with John Brown. Mainly because Brown dawdled so before attacking Harpers Ferry and as entertaining a correspondent as Flash is, well there is a lot of sitting about. Some argue that Flashman is too nice in this instalment which I think is unfair, he's only a swine when he can get away with it or if the opportunity arises. Given that he spend the majority of the novel trapped he behaves pretty much to his character.

However, John Charity Spring is as superb as ever (although his daughter Miranda doesn't quite ring true) and makes his last appearance in the papers. Likewise, Joe Simmons is the most complicated -- if not the most dangerous of villains -- that Flashman has faced, and has the readers sympathy. Sticking like a train to it's historical tracks there is less "fiction" within the papers than normal. This makes the book far more of a group ensemble than the usual instalment and in the John Brown part of the novel Flashman is almost a detached narrator at times, which I think is unique in the Papers. This has its upsides, the aftermath of the Ferry debacle is expertly done and earlier in the book his description of the women of New York (a social essay rather than his usual carnal prose) makes you want to explore this forgotten aspect of history. However, it's one of the few times in the papers when Flashman sounds like Fraser rather than himself.

Overall, one for the hardened Flashy fan and should be read in either chronological or publication order. Not a place to start for a new reader to the Flashman papers.

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was funny and sad at the same time.

[வானதி வானதி · Rating 4 out of 5]

The problem with historical fiction is that it needs to have the right mix of history intermingled with the fiction without sounding ridiculous in the process. This installment of the Flashman papers suffers because the history part gets a little overwhelming with Flashman dangling in the midst.

And the great ensemble of the cast starting with the Governor of the Cape colony, Edward Grey to the (in)famous Allan Pinkerton, William Seward, more senators, Crixus from the Underground railroad, the Kuklos, Robert Lee, JEB Stuart and of course, John Brown and his puppies, as Flashman calls them. Not including the fictional cast, that is a lot of people to just keep track of their movements in the real history. It shows as Flashman gets into places when it is convenient and gets back when it is not.

That however, does not diminish in anyway the joy of reading another Flashman (mis)adventure. He is his usual self again, bawdy, cowardly, ready to run in a moment, bumbling his way into the great events that always have a knack of happening around him. John Charity Spring makes another appearance, packing Flashman back into the United States for just punishment for 'lusting' after his daughter, Miranda.

Flashman gets abducted, first by the underground railroad, then by the Kuklos and then again by Pinkerton's agents. So, he kind of becomes a triple agent in the midst of John Brown's group preparing for raiding Harper's Ferry. What happens next is classic Flashman as he tries his best to run from the raid, only to find himself sucked more and more into the middle of it. Of course, he finds ways to end up in bedrooms in the middle of the raid.

Fraser obviously is enamored by John Brown, the man. Though Flashman says the darnedest things about him, Brown comes out of the book with a halo around his head. Of course, the man deserves it for swaying the opinions of the country with his raid.

My only regret is that Fraser never wrote the Flashman volumes on his service with the Union and Confederate armies. That would've been something.

[Rick Brindle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Flashman roams through history again, this time playing a hand in John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry. As usual, there are the incredible strokes of bad luck, which usually involve a woman, that leads him halfway round the world to his new (mis) adventure. This time, he changes sides (unwillingly) a bewildering amount of times.
As ever, there has to be a redefinition of Flashman. I'm still not convinced of his bad side, and still maintain he's no more or less of a coward than any of us, and quite probably braver. Of course, thanks to GMF's delightful storytelling, the examination of Flashy's character is always an enjoyable, rib-tickling experience.
My only problem with this novel is that there seemed too much emphasis on the character of John Brown, too much conversation, not enough action, and just a bit too much of local dialects my characters that are just setting the scene. This is a common Achilles hell of GMF, but is normally edited back in other novels in favour of humour, action, or both. This is though, in some way offset by Fraser's obvious passion for America and its peoples, who are described with great affection and humour. As always, there is much more than just a funny romp when reading Flashman.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

The fictional Harry Flashman leaves Calcutta for home, but when he stops in Cape Town on his way to England, an alluring female attracts him ... and he ends up landing in the USA. The bulk of this occasionally raunchy tale is concerned with Harry's involvement with the anti-slavery activist John Brown and his famous assault on Harpers Ferry.

This book is history in the guise of a novel. Peppered with annoying references to lengthy historical endnotes, the author does not fictonalise American history nearly as well as Gore Vidal.

I felt that the author's apparent desire to show the reader how close his tale is to historical reality damages the flow of what would otherwise have been a good work of fiction. To better enjoy this amusing book I recommend that the reader should avoid looking at the endnotes until he or she finishes the actual novel.

[Steve Shilstone · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fine piece of historical fiction cleverly inserts self-proclaimed coward and accidental hero Harry Flashman into anti-slavery zealot John Brown's Harper's Ferry fiasco.

[Christian Schwoerke · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve been reading in the Flashman corpus since 2014 in a haphazard way, though I did begin with the first packet, which at least gave me the proper grounding in understanding the origins of the cad who would be a hero.

Good comedic writing is rare, so part of my enjoyment of these Fraser novels is spacing them out, savoring them. I’ve found it little matters which you dip into: there’s always a good précis of the current situation and there’s adequate allusion to previous adventures to fill in the missing bits.

Flashman and the Angel of the Lord returns Flashman to the United States, ten years after his original visit, when he was obliged to help man a slave ship that gets scuppered in Cuba. At least three of the characters from that adventure (Flash for Freedom!) reappear, including the slaver J.C. Spring of Oriole College, and as in the former novel, he propels Flashman to the States. In the current adventure, Flashman lands in Baltimore, penniless and without papers, but he is immediately assailed by three different groups who want him to clandestinely work for and against John Brown in that man’s plans to arm the impending slaves’ rebellion by raiding the Harper’s Ferry armory.

Ha! As Fraser amply displays in the clever use of history and its appurtenances (the foot- and endnote), the raid on Harper’s Ferry was a spectacular failure—with spectacular ramifications for a nation teetering on the brink of a civil war. I was interested in seeing how Flashman would fit into the interstices of this particular historical episode, and it’s well done, with sufficient justification to keep Flashman from exercising his native instinct to withdraw from any foreseeable danger.

In mid-2018, I read The Good Lord Bird (James McBride), which is another comically skewed version of the same historical moment, though told from the vantage of a small black boy who, mistaken for a girl, becomes one of John Brown’s darling lambs. Interestingly, both authors mock, deplore, and end up admiring John Brown.

The humor quotient in this packet of Flashman’s autobiography was above middling, but the whole premise hung together well, and the de rigueur testaments to Flashy’s bedroom prowess were more than just perfunctory. The general shape and character of a Flashman novel might be likened to the cinematic James Bond, circa Goldfinger, but Bond is a coward and only we and Bond know it, thus enjoy his attempts to maintain the suave, heroic image whilst becoming entangled in adventures that make him squirm. While the actual depiction of Bond has always been a near parody, Fraser does the full monty with Flashman, to better underscore the absurdity of trumped-up notions of heroism and gallantry, how they are veneers hiding the fact that feats earning such approbation are conducted in dizzying terror.

With four more unread Flashmen in my library, I expect to continue chuckling through 2024…

[Karl Arney]

Flashman & the Angel of the Lord probably is the weakest Flashman to this point (I haven't read the last two after it), but once it hits its stride it proves how good Fraser was at writing these things, because it winds up plenty compelling.

The first third is what makes it the weakest - anyone who's read this far in the series knows there's a formula to Flashman books, one that rarely hinders because the writing is so sharp and funny and the actual historical writing so engrossing. But the whole setup of this one, which takes place more or less immediately after Flashman & The Great Game (a strong contender for pinnacle of the series), finds a big part of that formula - Flash's base instincts landing him in globe-trotting trouble - feeling pulled to its breaking point. His lusting after an old nemesis' daughter feels tired and forced, like it's just a necessity Fraser has to dispense with to get Flashman on the way to Harper's Ferry, and then when that lands him in the US, it requires an absurd amount of coincidence calling back to his previous adventures in the States to get things really set up (in fact the coincidences start well before he crosses the Atlantic). There was already a sense of that in the Custer's Last Stand part of Flashman & the Redskins, but that book was otherwise peak Flashman and so it was easy to forgive. Getting a peak of mid-19th Century South Africa is the easy highlight of the set-up portion.

But then once things are in place and Flashman is on his way to meet John Brown, Fraser weaves the old magic. We get compelling, believable takes on historical figures from the Allan Pinkerton (founder of the Pinkerton detective agency) to Frederick Douglas and William Seward, tense, thoroughly-researched life-or-death situations, and that sense of impending, spiraling doom that these books have so often been able to capture in their true-history reporting. And of course some good belly laughs. But John Brown is clearly the animating spirit of the book, and Fraser gives it a serious go at capturing various facets and contradictions of the man and why he left such an imprint on our history.

Oh and I guess I lied in second paragraph - there's one other great element of the opening hundred or so pages that's every bit as fun as hearing Fraser's take on South Africa, and that's the opening, where we get our first real look at old-man Flashman interacting with his grand (or are they great grand?) children, who are an absolute hoot and welcome expansion of Flash's personal world.

In any case, this is ultimately an enjoyable read with a lot of the charms of the rest of the series. Its early stages were a bit tedious to me, but come on - you're not going to stop reading these misadventures at this point just because of a little extra fluff.

[Antonio Stelzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll admit this one was a hard read, being a non native speaker and all, but i managed. I must say i enjoyed this book more than the The Charge and a lot more than The Great Game (i'm reading in chronological order). The setting is more my cup of tea and the return of some old characters made this a very pleasant spiritual sequel to Flashman for Freedom, which i still regard as the best one so far. In this book Flashman goes into one of the most incredibly strange happenings of the 19 century that you probably never heard about. It's a mystery to me how G.M.F could muster the genius to write two books based in the US setting and die without publishing the much anticipated Civil War book. It would have put all other books to shame. His knowlege and Research capabilities are astonishing and are amply demonstrated here. It is also a fun book, with the tone much here lighter than The Great Game (chronological prequel) while still retaining the occasional brutality and soldierly vibe. This ligther tone is welcome change i must say as the previous almost made me gave up on finnishing the series.
In any case i enjoyed this one a lot. John Brown and the Raid on Harper's Ferry were very interesting subjects to learn about, and the secret organizations and brilliantly written characters added much weight to the story. The only bad thing i'll say about this book is that it goes into too much detail on things that are not important to the plot. It could definetely have been a bit shorter and more focused. But it doesn't matter, it's still a solid read, which i managed in five to six sittings. Now i'll keep my chronological order and move to Flashman and the Dragon, and as i enjoy chinese history i expect it to be great.

Ps: This book contains a lot of racism, as it would be simply stupid to even write about the time and subject without including it. In this age of political correctness i will add a personal note that i find this unwillingness to sugar coat most welcome. It brings credibility to the characters and the story. That said, if must strike you as hypocritical that i dislike Flashman and the Great Game because of the excessive discription of violence but condone the racism here, and to that i will say that i'm not easily ofended, but i'm easily disgusted by gore. I don't watch horror movies for good reason, my imagination is very strong.

[Mike Futcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

By the time of this, the tenth Flashman book, I'd have thought there'd be nothing further that this series could do to surprise me. And, in a way, I'd have been right: Flashman and the Angel of the Lord is a classic Flashman adventure. However, I still experienced surprise; not at the book, but at the apparent general consensus among reviewers on this and other websites that Angel of the Lord was a poor addition to the series.

I was a bit wary about this one, given all the naysaying about it, but it was bloody fantastic as usual. What do people want? Rip-roaring adventure? (Antebellum USA: check.) Fantastically-drawn characters? (Joe, Annette, the welcome return of John Charity Spring: check.) Well-realised real historical figures? (John Brown, Allan Pinkerton, even Abe Lincoln: check.) Luscious ladies and all sorts of bedroom-based depravities? (Miranda, Annette, Hannah: check.) Shameless poltroonery from our beloved Flashy? (On page 328, he reminds us he has "no more of the milk of human kindness than you'd put in a cup of tea." So check.) Well-researched historical fiction (erm, antebellum USA again, and one of the most legendary raids in history: Harper's Ferry. That's a check.) A deliriously funny romp? (Is there anything more humorous than Flashman indignantly squirming under the yoke of not one, not two, but three different factions?) You get the picture. It's not the best of the Flashman series, but then again, that is a very high bar. Damn your eyes, if you don't enjoy this then just what have you been doing for the last nine books?

"What the deuce was I, Harry Flashman, V.C., and soon to be knighted by Her Majesty, en route from India to England, doing toting a tittering whore down a reeking lane in America's capital city? Well, the wind bloweth where it listeth, you see, and if it carries you up several flights of back stairs, along corridors where the air has been replaced by cigar smoke and the carpet fairly squelches with tobacco juice, and at last into a dimly lit salon whose ornate gilt-and-plush décor would do credit to a Damascus brothel, why, you must make the best of it and get her stripped and on the bed before your luck changes." (pp109-10)

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

More Flashman! I find these really light books to read between some of the heavy material that I am called upon to read, especially with my work. Yes, the books could well be described as sexist and racist in modern terms, but that doesn't prevent them from being entertaining and funny for me.

This volume covers Flashman's involvement with John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry in 1859. It continues the story from the previous volume, where he was leaving India in as quick a route as possible. He has an interlude in South Africa and finds himself Shanghaied and aboard a boat heading for America. From previous volumes, we know that a number of US citizens have a certain amount of unfinished business with him, and that's where the story starts in earnest.

Through a series of unfortunate events, Flashman finds himself dragooned into acting as John Brown's military adviser by interests in the South, interests in the North, and the US Federal government. It all seems a little improbable, mainly because it is. However, it's just a story and I'm happy to suspend my disbelief. In return, the reader gets an incredibly well researched and detailed account of the goings on at Harper's Ferry.

I have to admit that I knew virtually nothing about John Brown and his raid. I knew very little about the Kansas border skirmishing in the 1840s and 1850s. Why would I? They are overshadowed by the conquest of the West later in the century and the Civil War exerts a magnetic pull to our attention. It is the sort of detail that you brush over in order to get to more interesting things. This book has filled the gap in my knowledge using the device of engaging fiction.

As always, the book is well researched and well written. I do enjoy the character of Flashman and his escapades. This volume has more of a serious tone than previous ones, possibly because it was dealing with a more serious topic. However, it is still written with humour and irony, which I like. The story flows along and doesn't plod through the narrative. The characters are three dimensional and not wooden at all. On the whole, I quite enjoyed it.

[Eva Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like the other books in the series this one also is well researched and well written. I've found out that I find Flashman's adventures in the East more interesting then those in the West, probably becauce I know less about it.

There’s one thing that bothered me in this installment in the series. The stories about Flashman are not for prudes, and having read this far into it with huge enjoyment, I didn’t really think I was one. But there’s one segment in this story that really made me balk, and I’ve read through the reviews looking for mention of it. I’ve found nothing.

The thing is how Annette Mandeville is being routinely raped by a man she loathes, Joe Simmons, by order of her husband, Charles La Force. Annette is so upset about this that she cries on Harry Flashman’s shoulder! And she doesn’t like him in particular, either! I think this is a lot nastier than the usual on-the–edge sex scenes I’ve come to expect from these books. I’ve been wondering why I think so, Is it because it’s not Flashman doing it? Is it because Joe is black and Annette is white? (I hope not!)

I am very interested in hearing what others think of this, because my own reaction really made me curious.

[Tim Schneider · Rating 3 out of 5]

Flashy is back and he's working to start the American Civil War. Well, not purposefully. But a chance run-in with John Charity Spring finds Flashman again shanghaied to the United States where he is wanted under a few different alias'. And Spring makes sure that the authorities know he's there. Ultimately he ends up with John Brown and is tasked with both aiding him in his raid on Harper's Ferry and with stopping it.

While this may not be my least favorite Flashman novel it's really close. Partly it's the fault of the book. It's one of the least action packed in the series and has long stretches of the literary equivalent of talking heads. Flashman also isn't particularly cowardly or cad-like in this one. Not that he's a hero in any way. But he's really not terribly despicable.

Partly my apathy toward the book is probably partly on me as well. I generally prefer my Flashman to be in a historical setting I'm not particularly familiar with. My least favorite of the novels have all been largely set in the U.S., almost certainly because I'm already very familiar with the historical background.

Still it's a decent read and I'm glad I didn't skip over it. But weak Flashy nonetheless.

[Mark White · Rating 3 out of 5]

Far from Flashy at his best, our hero spends half the book being shanghaied, kidnapped and coerced by all sides on the conflict that led to the American Civil War. While some of the scenes are exciting enough, it often feels forced and there are lots of recycled characters and situations.
Flashman then goes on to meet the famous John Brown and as far as I can tell his character picture of Brown is spot on - fervently abolitionist, a magnetic personality, yet dithering and largely ineffectual as a commander. The raid on Harper's Ferry as described here is true to history - a complete shambles despite Flashman's best efforts (surprising or what?) to keep it on track.
So there's a lot to be learned for students of American history but really it doesn't do much for the rest of us, for whom a half baked raid in America is never going to be as important as the Indian Mutiny etc. You can't help thinking both Flashman and Fraser were running out of steam by this book and that it's largely a thank you to American readers.

[Nate Hendrix · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting to see Flashman inserted into the raid at Harper's Ferry. This novel was as funny as the others, but I miss the way Fraser write large scale battle scenes. As there was no large scale battle in this book I didn't enjoy it as much. I've gotten this far I will be reading the last two books in the series. I discovered that an author is carrying on the Flashman tradition; in 2011, H.C. Taylor wrote Harry Flashman and the Invasion of Iraq. Before you can ask, yes it is on my reading list. Between teaching and earning my credential, I don't have as much time to read as I used to. The drive from Sacramento to Hollister was good for two things, a nap and reading a good book while the EMT drove.

[EU · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tout comme les volumes précédents, ceci est d’abord un formidable roman d’aventures. Il est possible de le lire comme tel. Mais ce serait manquer une fois de plus la richesse de la reconstitution historique qui sert de cadre à ces aventures, richesse qui n’est pas imposée par gros paquets pesants mais qui innerve tout le récit et nous plonge dans le bouillonnement des Etats-Unis à la veille de la guerre de Sécession. Ajoutez à cela que l’auteur fait de Flashman un observateur détaché, amoral mais honnête et cela donne une œuvre qui est bien plus qu’un roman d’aventure : une fable morale.
On ne peut donc que regretter - une fois de plus! - que Georges MacDonald Fraser n’ait pas eu l’occasion d’éditer les Flashman Papers traitant de la décennie suivante aux Etats-Unis.

[Tim O'Neill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another ripping yarn, this time about the Abolitionist raid that effectively triggered the American Civil War. Flashie stumbles from one fine mess to the next, getting increasingly entangled in the rival plots of the Secret Service, the Abolitionists and the precursor of the Klan and winding up a triple agent for all of them. Once again he escapes more or less unscathed, with his usual cowardice and indignity. This story really brings home how regularly this lecherous sexist is undone and outsmarted by intelligent women and usually only escapes various awful fates thanks to his blind luck and his dashing whiskers. The cad.

[Juan Antonio · Rating 4 out of 5]

No es el Flashman de sus primeras novelas, aunque él repite continuamente que es un cobarde, un inmoral y un sinvergüenza, la verdad es que mucho de sus actos no coinciden con el Flashman de sus primeros libros. No obstante sus libros tienen para mí algo interesante: las historias de muchos hechos del siglo XIX que no son apenas tratados en las novelas históricas españolas. En este libro trata del intento de liberación de los esclavos de Virginia por parte del abolicionista John Brown y parece ser que este fracaso fue el preludio de la Guerra de Secesión americana. En fin que he podido aumentar bastante mis conocimeintos sobre este hecho

[joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of preamble to drive home the idea that politics is so stuffed with double agents, blackmail, provocateurs and spies that there is no organic bottom-up action going on, at all. And then the second half of the book takes the fragile reed of the Christian Golden Rule and piles on top of it self delusion, vanity, lunacy.. So that Flashman’s ultra-selfishness and ridicule of all ideology seems quite reasonable. But the author lets just enough glimpses of real honest commitment show through, and enough gaps in F’s own cynical perception of events, to redeem matters.