Showing results by author "Malcolm Archibald" in All Categories

Against the turbulent backdrop of the 1930s, Douglas Tulloch navigates the treacherous terrains of India's Northwest Frontier and the early tremors of World War II in France. Thrust in the middle of tribal rebellions, covert missions and old-school rivalries, Tulloch grapples with the true essence of leadership. The repercussions of his decisions will follow him from the alleys of Brussels to the shores of Dunkirk.

South Africa, 1877. Andrew Baird is a man trying to escape his past. The son of the famous “Fighting Jack Windrush” of the Royal Malverns, Andrew hopes to forge his own path away from the shadow of his father. Amidst the turbulence of the Zulu-British War of 1879, Andrew finds love with Elaine Maxwell. But after Elaine dies tragically and her sister is kidnapped, Andrew must confront the Zulus in bloody battles, driven by the hope of rescuing the woman and proving his worth beyond his father's legacy.

After surviving the Battle of Culloden in 1746, young Hughie MacKim swears a blood oath to avenge the murder of his brother. Trained as an infantryman in Fraser's Highlanders, Hugh joins the Army himself and follows the trail across the horror of war in North America, through to the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in September 1759. But how can he trace the men in the anonymous ranks of the British Army?

Murders, riots, strikes, and runaway horses. Midlothian in the 18th and 19th centuries was an interesting place to live. This book introduces the listener to the hard lives of the colliers, the birth of the rural police force, and the impact the army had on life in the county south of Scotland’s capital city. Highwaymen and grave robbers, footpads and murderers, illicit distillers and murderous poachers - all lived or worked in Midlothian at a time when Scotland was changing from a rural to an industrial nation.

Kent, England, 1762. Bloody smuggling wars are raging on England's southern coast. It's a time of daring men and bold women, and deadly skirmishes between rival gangs and the law. John Smith, a man both hanged and drowned, returns to his home village, swearing vengeance on the landowner who killed his father. There is no quarter asked or expected when Smith begins to carve out his place among the Free Traders of Kent. What he doesn't know is that the Preventative Service has sent Ambrose Grant - their most effective man - to hunt him down.

Returning to the Dundee of 1860 after years in the army, Robert Douglas finds employment with George Gilbride, a whaling-ship owner known as the Wizard. Drugged by sinister gangster John Wylie, Douglas wakens on board the steam-whaler Redgauntlet bound for the Artic, and discovers that his companions believe the ship is haunted and do not expect to return. After an initial clash, Douglas befriends the ship's mate, "Bully Houston", and together thay begin to unravel a year-old mystery.

The successful smuggler John Smith has become a highwayman to safeguard his inland trade. Riding the roads as the Yellowhammer, he makes both friends and enemies as he robs the rich and powerful.

When Sergeant George Watters is assigned to a scuttling case, he thinks he can solve it in a few days. Instead, he discovers a connection to a string of burglaries of high-value shops and hotels across Dundee. Things take a turn for the worse when one of Watters' informants tells him that someone from the police force is involved in the burglaries. Soon, George realizes that the mystery runs deeper than he expected.

It is the year 1915, and the British and Ottoman Empires clash in a deadly struggle in the Middle East. Tasked with keeping the Ottomans out of Suez Canal, Major Andrew Selkirk discovers that his real assignment is to retrieve a Bengali spy working for those who vow to see British rule out of India. After landing on the west coast of Palestine, Selkirk discovers the Ottomans have taken the spy captive. Even more troubling are the plans by Ottomans and Germans to draw Afghanistan and Persia into the war against Great Britain.

Caribbean, 1762. With the French in Canada defeated, the focus of Sergeant Hugh MacKim’s war shifts to the West Indies. Still with Kennedy’s Rangers, a French privateer captures his ship off the Bahamas, and the French captain murders the crew. From that point on, MacKim and the Rangers fight their way through the campaign, with battles on Martinico and Cuba only the backdrop to their personal war with Captain Rene Roberval of Douce Vengeance.

Canada, 1759. After the capture of Quebec in the Seven Years War, Corporal Hugh MacKim and other 78th Highlanders attempt to desert the British army. But when Hugh's group is caught in an ambush, his loved one, Tayanita, is mortally wounded by a tall, tattooed Canadian. MacKim swears vengeance. Suffering from nightmares, he returns to the army, transfers to the Rangers and decides to fight in a series of skirmishes through the winter.

From hunting pickpockets in London omnibuses and ghosts in Hesse Square, Sergeant Watters and Detective Silver are led into the notorious Wild Geese public house, and a tangled mystery that involves the murder of a guardsman and the vivacious wife of an Austrian diplomat. With the help of the Irish woman Rowena, Watters trawls through the back streets of London, encounters female prize-fighters and suave cracksmen, and finds himself in the savage world of espionage. But can he unravel the mysterious words: "There is a storm from the east and the west"?

Dundee, Scotland, 1862. After the mill of businessman Matthew Beaumont burns to the ground, Detective Sergeant George Watters is sent to investigate. Soon, George discovers that this is not the first property that has been targeted. When a man is found dead in the hold of a trade ship, George discovers a shocking connection between Beaumont and foreign powers threatening the very country.

Years after leaving the 113th Foot, Jack Windrush is sent to the Northwest Frontier of India to investigate reports of gun-running among the Pashtun tribes. When he discovers that the reports are not only true, but run deeper than initially believed, he is assigned to stop the rogue group and prevent an uprising. Soon, old friends turn into mortal enemies and loyalty becomes a scarce commodity. As the Islamic revolt against the British rises across the Frontier, can Jack and his unit stop the rebel uprising?

In the seventh book in the Windrush series, Jack is sent to infiltrate the Fenian Brotherhood, who are threatening to cause mutiny in the British Army. The journey will take him from deepest England to Ireland and across the Atlantic to the United States and Canada. Jack discovers that another nation is using the Fenian cause for its own ends, and gets involved in battles and intrigue. But what's most worrying of all is the involvement of Helen, Jack's old flame. What is she doing with the Fenians?

Burmese War, 1852. Unable to join the famous Royal Malverns, Jack Windrush is commissioned into the despised 113th foot. Determined to rise in the ranks and make a name for himself, he is sent with the 113th to join the British expedition. But when they get involved in the attack of Rangoon, Jack realizes that war on the fringes of the empire is not as honorable and glorious as he expected. After a chance meeting with a renegade British soldier, Jack witnesses the true terrors of war, and begins to question the whole framework in which he has grown up.

In the ninth book in the Jack Windrush series of military novels, Jack and the 113th Foot join the British invasion of Afghanistan in 1878, trying to counter an alleged Russian threat. Training the young battalion for the trials he know will come, Jack's unit is assigned to Afghanistan, to a war created by Russian interference and British politicians. Between bloody battles, treacherous spies, and friends who may be on either side, Jack must guide his men through a morass of dangers. But can he succeed and return home safely, or will he never see his wife Mary again?

It's 1854, and the 113th Regiment of Foot is commissioned to Sevastopol during the Crimean War. As the great storm of November 1854 rages, Jack and his friend Ben - a naval officer - are rescuing survivors from a wrecked ship. Jack finds out that one of the survivors is Helen Maxwell, his former sweetheart.

Shipwrecked on the African coast, Major Jack Windrush and his wife Mary find themselves embroiled in a war, as the Ashantis attack the British colony of the Gold Coast. While Jack leads a company of the West India Regiment, Mary tries to help the refugees in Cape Coast Castle. Soon, they both find themselves deeply involved in the war, and will need to make sacrifices they could have never anticipated.

Malta, 1854. Jack and his disreputable 113th Foot have to resort to ungentlemanly actions to get themselves posted to Crimea. A lieutenant in British Army's worst regiment, Jack hankers for recognition to regain his true station in life. Facing the formidable Russian army led by the savage Major Kutozov, Jack learns that life in the front line is tough, with only the wayward Helen to alleviate the horrors of war.