Fortune's Soldier

Power, ambition, corruption – the British East India Company rises

An old empire at war with itself

1744, Scotland. Young Nicholas Ballantyne’s life is turned upside down when his uncle, caught up in events far beyond his control, announces that, for his own safety, Nicholas is to set sail for India immediately to join the East India Company.

A new power rising

After decades of struggle, the Company is ready to expand. Nicholas and his new friend and colleague, the mercurial Robert Clive, rise quickly within the Company’s ranks, masterminding plans to counter French designs in India.

A battle for survival

But the fight for India will only be resolved in battle. On the fields of Plassey, the two armies draw up for the climactic encounter. For Robert and Nicholas, commanding the Company’s forces, this will be their making, or their end…

Brilliantly crafted, and bringing to life the momentous events that shook India in the mid-eighteenth century, Fortune’s Soldier is an epic tale of a fascinating era by a master storyteller.