The Scarlet Thief: Battle of the Alma, 1854 cover art

The Scarlet Thief: Battle of the Alma, 1854

Jack Lark, Book 1

 Preview

Audible Standard 30-day free trial

Try Standard free
Select 1 audiobook a month from our entire collection.
Listen to your selected audiobooks as long as you're a member.
Get unlimited access to bingeable podcasts.
Standard auto renews for £5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Scarlet Thief: Battle of the Alma, 1854

By: Paul Fraser Collard
Narrated by: Dudley Hinton
Try Standard free

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £12.92

Buy Now for £12.92

About this listen

1854: The banks of the Alma River, Crimean Peninsular. The Redcoats stagger to a bloody halt. The men of the King's Royal Fusiliers are in terrible trouble, ducking and twisting as the storm of shot, shell, and bullet tear through their ranks.

Officer Jack Lark has to act immediately and decisively. His life and the success of the campaign depend on it. But does he have the mettle, the officer qualities that are the life blood of the British Army? From a poor background Lark has risen through the ranks by stealth and guile and now he faces the ultimate test....

©2013 Paul Fraser Collard (P)2013 Headline Digital Action & Adventure Fiction Historical Fiction

Critic reviews

"This is a brilliant debut and I look forward to reading more of Jack Lark!" (Bernard Cornwell)
All stars
Most relevant
If you liked Sharpe then you will like this. Set in thr Crimea with vivid descriptions, strong characters and a gripping story line it's a great read. Only moan is that the sergeant figure from the past surfaces just as it does in Sharpe which, in my view, detracts.

Rattling good story, shame about the sergeant

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
What a brilliant book. I shouted out load on the train this morning 'get up Jack' 😊 to the dismay of my fellow travellers. Can't wait to download the next installment.

Absorbing and brilliant

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

What did you like most about The Scarlet Thief?

As its mid-19th century British army, and shows things have not improved much since the days of Waterloo

What did you like best about this story?

How the incompetence of the Army commanders shone through. Along with the Hero is not some uber warrior death machine....

Which character – as performed by Dudley Hinton – was your favourite?

Slater, as he got the evilness of the character bang on

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The death of Tommy Smith.

Any additional comments?

Unfairly the hero in this good series could be compared the a certain other hero of a slightly earlier period. Yes I am talking about a certain Richard (You bloody bastards) Sharpe. Jack Lark is different, more moral in some ways. Ok he stole his commission (big plot point ops). But certainly no less a hero. In fact could be said in more than one way he is better. As debut novel its a cracker, rips along at pace and the final battle scenes are fanstaic in the way the horror of 19th century warfare is conveyed, along with how bad the british officers behaved to each other much less the men under them.
Jack lark I shall be hearing more of your exploits without doubt. I have the books just the audio books make work less of a dragg...

Its Not Sharpe, Its different

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I was pleasantly surprised with this book. A great hero, exciting battle scenes and an interesting premise. I took a chance on it because it was recommended on Twitter, I'm really glad that I did, I've already downloaded the next three books in the series. A great narration by Dudley Hinton too. I'm looking forward to following Jack Lark around the empire....

Sharpe with a touch of Flashman!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I really enjoyed this fast paced story which grabbed my attention from the first chapter. There is plenty of action and a well developed lead character who is flawed but likeable.

I finished this in just a couple of days and will definitely be reading/listening to the next books. I'm l
ooking forward to seeing this series develop.

Sharpe meets the Talented Mr Ripley

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews