THE GREAT GAME – RUSSIA AND THE BRITISH RAJ

The Great Game

Roller-skating in the Hindu Kush

This talk will examine colonial life in India in the first half of the twentieth century, the nature of the ‘Great Game’ , and why the British were so anxious to protect their Jewel in the Crown from Russia – then Russian revolutionaries.

Information on the author’s book set in this period

THE EMPRESS EMERALD

J.G Harlond

Stolen: a child, an identity, and a priceless jewel

India, 1900, a child is abducted on a train from Goa to Bombay. He is Leo Kazan, son of a Russian diplomat and a Goanese heiress. Four years later, Leo is left in a British orphanage. When he is still only twelve, Leo, a talented linguist becomes the protégé of a British Political Officer and from then on he is used by the Raj as a spy.  But Leo has his own secrets: he is a magpie who cannot resist anything shiny and valuable.

After Leo steals the Empress Emerald he is sent to London where he meets and falls for innocent Davina Dymond, but then he is sent into danger in Soviet Russia and Davina is packed off to an austere household in Jerez, Spain, to avoid a scandal.

As the drums of war reverberate around the world for the second time in their lives, Leo discovers his true identity and Davina, trapped in war-torn Andalusia, turns to jewel theft to survive. Both must unshackle themselves from the ways of the old world and those who seek to manipulate them before they can truly be themselves – and find each other again.

“An epic and enthralling novel of love and separation, betrayal and treachery . . . very cinematic, it is a rich tapestry of colour and characters.” Karen Maitland – best-selling author of The Falcons of Fire and Ice.

Biography of the author

Jane G. Harlond Arredondo grew up in the English West Country. Author of ‘Local Resistance’, ‘The Empress Emerald’ and ‘The Chosen Man’ (all published by Penmore Press), Jane writes thoroughly-researched, page-turning historical crime fiction that weaves fictional characters into real events. She is particularly interested in aspects of power; international intrigue and domestic politics are significant elements in her stories.

‘Dark Night, Black Horse’, a short novella, is a true story about a young boy who rescues his father’s favourite black stallion during the Spanish Civil War. This is now available in Spanish as ‘Noche Oscuro, Caballo Negro’.

Jane is a member of the prestigious British Historical Writers’ Association, the Historical Novel Society, and the British Society of Authors. Apart from fiction, Jane also writes school text books for Oxford University Press under her married name. She has a large family now settled in diverse parts of Spain and Europe. After travelling widely, she and her husband, a retired Spanish naval officer, are now settled in Coín.

Website: www.jgharlond.com
Blog ‘Reading & Writing’
Find Jane on Twitter: JG Harlond @JaneGHarlond