Sharpe is finally back in England. Sadly he is apparently done with the military; reduced to the lowly rank of quartermaster, he has no real hopes anymore, and wanders the streets of London destitute and bored. But then, as this is not much action for Richard Sharpe, serendipity strikes and a deal falls into his lap. He is to deliver a bribe to Copenhagen, and no one is to know. However, when he performs the seemingly simple job, serendipity strikes with a fiercer hand, as Copenhagen is attacked by the French, for Napoleon is planning an invasion and Britain doesn’t want it to happen. Sharpe is thrown into the tick of it and, naturally, the fate of the world and the future rests on his shoulders once more.

Originally published on April 15th 2002.

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