Flashman Rides Again | Pack, Charles

Roly Flashman, aged seventy, lives in his comfortable apartment at Westridge, a retirement complex in Southern England. He is a prodigious dreamer. Grandson of the infamous and notorious Harry Flashman, Roly's dreams recall his early school days at Rugby and in Switzerland, time with the 11th Hussars in Germany and an Infantry Battalion in Belfast, and life as a military helicopter pilot in various flashpoints around the world. 'Flashman Rides Again' begins and ends with the tough circumstances faced by soldiers of the Rhodesian armed forces during UDI and the fight to retain their hands on the reins of governance against the inevitability of Mugabe rule. Exhaustive patrolling of the vast areas of the Zimbabwe bush provide a stark contrast to the intensity of Roly's successful ambush of the enemy within two weeks of his arrival there. Following a close shave with death, Roly then becomes involved in a sanctions-busting operation, so important for the nation's survival. Roly's dreams provide a very realistic picture of life as a soldier in Belfast during the Troubles, recalling intensive operations in the Ardoyne with his odious batman, Private Brakspear, by his side. Then, in danger of becoming a scapegoat for a senior officer's incompetence and, pending a Court Martial, Roly goes to work in the City where, unbeknownst to him, his aptitude for the British Secret Services is tested. With the threat of prosecution lifted, Roly is able to indulge a passion to enjoy life as a military helicopter pilot. All the while, his young-at-heart interaction with the other residents and the staff provide a contemporary and constant strand to the book including the re-emergence of the evil Brakspear. Little did Roly know how much he is hated by his former batman in the 11th Hussars, the evil Brakspear, the role he continues to play into Roly's life and Brakspear's final dénouement? An epilogue gives the reader an introduction to the next chapters of Roly's hectic world covering US Embassy hostages in Iran, bent politicians in Italy, a mad chase with the Mafia through San Francisco and political ambitions in the UK. Will Roly Flashman become an MP and achieve even higher office?!