VIVA JACQUELINA!

While her beloved Jaimy Fletcher recuperates in Burma from his recent madness, irrepressible Jacky Faber leaves the high seas and goes to war once more.

Dispatched to Portugal by British Intelligence to aid (and spy on) General Arthur Wellesley in his campaign against the French, Jacky finds her loyalties and background questioned. As Wellesley points out, Jacky has both accumulated an unbelievable number of military medals and consorted with the enemy, specifically Napoleon but also thieves, rogues, rebels and pirates. Jacky is not modest, but she seems to stumble into fame rather than seek it out, making her an admirable instead of an insufferably arrogant protagonist. As usual, her plans go awry, and Jacky strikes out alone for Madrid, where she finds lodging with Goya, the painter, and experiences a slew of stereotypical Spanish activities. Plot matters less than personal development; action is intermittent and the ending abrupt, but Jacky adds to her impressive repertoire of skills and amorous encounters. Jacky seems amused by her sexual allure—which indeed strains credulity—and toes the line of impropriety but technically remains faithful to Jaimy. Meyer makes many references to previous books and seems to be biding time until the next novel; this installment is entertaining but not exceptional.

Teenage rogue trades Spanish Main for the Spanish plains in a solid adventure tale.