Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade

Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade (2007) Diana Gabaldon

This novel falls between the novellas Lord John and the Succubus and Lord John and the Haunted Soldier. Which makes for slightly complicated reading if you want to read in order, since the two novellas are in the same book.

There are two story arcs here: Lord John’s mother is getting remarried, which brings a new brother into the family: Percy Wrainwright, who Lord John had met at the infamous Lavender House. He’s General Stanley’s stepson, and General Stanley has been looking to buy him a commission. Of course Melton’s regiment is one under consideration.

Commissions were normally purchased, and many officers had never seen a soldier nor held a weapon prior to taking up their office.

That’s a somewhat important thing to remember about the British military at that time. As is this:

(R)aising, equipping, and maintaining a regiment is an expensive business.

Yes, not only could nobility purchase their places in the military, but there were private regiments.

From a modern perspective, it’s a fascinating concept.

The second story arc is delving into the death of Lord John (and Hal)’s father. It seems that his mother’s remarriage has brought the matter up once again, both with John and Hal, and also with someone who seems to have knowledge of the matter.

(W)hat was galling him was not that Hal had never mentioned the wager, but the fact that his brother had never told him openly that he believed their father had not been a traitor.

Of the two, I preferred the mystery of Lord John’s father.

One of the things I particularly like about these stories are the glimpses into a world that is, in so many ways, foreign to me. The military is one example, but there are many other things, such as Lord John and Melton coming upon a body lying in the snow outside White’s.

“Let me look; perhaps–” Hal stopped to touch the man, but was prevented by a shout from the doorway.

“Don’t touch him! Not yet!” An excited young man issued from the club and seized Hal’s arm. “We haven’t put it in the book yet!”

“What, the betting book?” Hal demanded.

“Yes–Rogers says he’s dead, and I say he’s not. Two guineas on it! Will you join the wager with me Melton?”

That is a hell of a thing.

But, there are also lots of bits that highly amused me.

“Sir Richard is a most accomplished diplomat,” she replied with complacence. “He has a great facility for not knowing thigs that it is expedient not to know.”
…
Sir Richard Joffery was indeed a good diplomat–but no little degree of hi success was the result of his wife’s social connections and her ability to ferret out things that it was expedient to know.

There was an interesting bit about dogs, and how dachshunds were bred to fight badgers. I was aware of this, having grown up with dachshunds, although the last one my father had failed on many levels–he was afraid of enclosed spaces. Quite an embarrassment to his ancestors I’m sure.

I’ll note one thing that struck me particularly, in that this idea actually came up in conversation yesterday.

“While there is anyone alive with a claim upon my protection, my life is not my own.”

Yeah. I belong to that camp.

So here was another story I again enjoyed re-reading.
Rating: 8/10

Published by Bantam Dell

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