<P><B>The new Richard Sharpe bursts onto the historical adventure scene in a striking, action-packed debut of Redcoat battle and bloodshed</B></P> <p>1854: The banks of the Alma River, Crimean Peninsular. The Redcoats stagger to a bloody halt. The men of the King's Royal Fusiliers are in terrible trouble, ducking and twisting as the storm of shot, shell, and bullet tear through their ranks. Officer Jack Lark has to act immediately and decisively. His life and the success of the campaign depend on it. But does he have the mettle? From a poor background Lark has risen through the army's ranks by stealth and guile and now he faces the ultimate test. <I>The Scarlet Thief</I> introduces readers to a formidable and compelling hero—brutally courageous, roguish, ambitious—in a historical novel as robust as it is thrillingly authentic by an author who brings history and battle vividly alive.