The Mutiny
Published on 1. January 2007
Book
Hardback
464 pages
978-0-316-73113-3 (ISBN)
Description
For its British population, the India that swelters in the late spring of 1857 is a place of amateur theatricals, horseracing and flirtations under the aegis of the omnipotent East India company. But a brutal awakening lies in store for the complacent British: one May night, after thirty years of abuse, the East India Company's native soldiers rise up against their British officers. Thus begins the most savage episode in our imperial history. Caught up in the violence is pretty Sophie Hardcastle, a young wife and mother newly arrived from England. As she searches for her infant son, missing in the chaos, Sophie finds herself bearing witness to atrocities on both sides. Moving, sombre and thrilling, Rathbone's tale is told on a grand scale, ranging from the Cannings in Government House to the heroism of the humblest soldiers and peasants. It is as exhilarating as any Victorian adventure story, and yet, with its unflinching examination of religious fantacism and the horrors of war, THE MUTINY also carries a powerful message for the modern world.
Reviews / Votes
** 'Harrowing but magnetic ... With his customary rigour, Rathbone marshals extensive research to create the framework of his epic drama. Against this background he weaves the threads of smaller stories, intimate and personal accounts of individual tragedies ... Larger even than the conflict itself is India, elegantly and luminously brought to life in the consistently scintillating prose of this novel of real accomplishment' THE TIMES ** 'Rathbone sets himself an ambitious challenge in THE MUTINY but he succeeds brilliantly in re-creating the chaos, the savagery and the clash of cultures in India in 1857. The stories of his own characters ... are all woven seamlessly into the wider narrative of a world turned upside down. THE MUTINY is fiction that movingly reanimates the history upon which it draws' SUNDAY TIMES ** 'Although the story of the mutiny has been told many times, it is fascinating to revisit it in such intelligent company ... ambitious, sweeping ... The British, with their quaint slang, and casual, unthinking racism, are very convincingly drawn. Rathbone also elicits great sympathy for the Indian mutineers, with their complex, often contradictory, motives' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH ** 'Enjoyable and exciting to read ... Rathbone reveals himself to be a novelist of skill, compassion and imagination' TLS ** 'The fierce drama, complexity and enigma of the Indian Mutiny make it the most compelling of historical settings' WATERSTONES BOOKS QUARTERLY ** 'One of the best historical novelists around' HERALDMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 153 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-316-73113-3 (9780316731133)
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Schweitzer Classification
Person
Julian Rathbone is the author of many books, including the bestselling THE LAST ENGLISH KING, KINGS OF ALBION and the Booker shortlisted JOSEPH, as well as the hugely acclaimed A VERY ENGLISH AGENT.