Second to None: A Military Romance, Volume 2 (of 3)

In Short

A young British cavalryman, injured during a failed raid on the Breton coast, finds himself stranded behind enemy lines. Sheltered in a French chateau, he falls into a hidden romance with an aristocratic woman, only to be torn away by private vengeance, recapture, and the shifting tides of the Seven Years' War. As he returns to the ranks as a private trooper, family rivalries, unasked-for promotions, and the brutal reality of military captivity test his sense of honor. Rich in period detail, the novel endures for its clear-eyed depiction of eighteenth-century soldiering and class divides.

The Story

The campaign in Brittany opens with British forces reconnoitering the formidable coastal defenses of St. Malo. During a confused skirmish, Sir Basil Gauntlet, a young Scot serving in the ranks of the Scots Greys, loses his horse and receives a severe head injury. Concealing himself inside an empty forage wagon, he passes out from exhaustion and blood loss, waking to find he has been unwittingly hauled deep into French territory to the grounds of Chateau Bourgneuf.

Found by Angelique, a quick-witted French maid, Basil is nursed through a fourteen-day fever in secret. To avoid detection by the strict, elderly Countess de Bourgneuf, Angelique disguises Basil as a female servant. Living within the household, Basil falls deeply in love with the countess's niece, Jacqueline de Broglie. Their secret is soon compromised by the looming presence of Theophile Hautois, an escaped galley-slave and former French soldier who harbors a grudge against the family.

When the countess eventually discovers Basil’s true identity, she forbids the love affair on account of their stark differences in rank, nationality, and religion, though she reluctantly protects him out of sympathy for his Scottish heritage. Before Basil can leave safely, Hautois abducts Jacqueline. Basil joins forces with Chevalier de Boisguiller—a French officer who is both Jacqueline’s cousin and his rival—to track the outlaw through the dense Forest of St. Aubin du Cormier. Basil corners Hautois in a remote cabin, rescues Jacqueline, and escapes back to the British lines just as General Bligh launches the sack of Cherbourg.

Rejoining his regiment, Basil rejects an anonymous purchase of an officer's commission, unwilling to accept charity, until he learns the War Office has gazetted him as a Cornet regardless. While guarding French prisoners aboard a prison ship, he discovers his former companion Boisguiller confined in wretched conditions and secures him better treatment. Before embarking for the campaign in Germany, Basil reconciles with his wealthy English cousin, Aurora, who admits to orchestrating his commission through political connections. Moving on to Westphalia, Basil serves under the Duke of Brunswick, confronting the French armies led by Jacqueline’s relative, the Duke de Broglie.

How It Unfolds

Concealed in straw Wounded and stripped of his weapons following a sudden clash, Basil climbs into an unattended forage wain to hide from roving French patrols, falling into a heavy stupor while the cart is driven away.

A maid's protection Waking in the gardens of Chateau Bourgneuf, Basil is tended to by Angelique, a resourceful servant who hides him for two weeks and eventually dresses him as a soubrette to evade the house's strict mistress.

Unmasked in the garden The Countess de Bourgneuf discovers Basil's real gender and identity, forbidding his growing romance with her niece Jacqueline because of the social and religious gulf separating them.

The forest lair When the outlaw Hautois abducts Jacqueline, Basil partners with his French rival, Boisguiller, tracking the criminal to an isolated hut in the Forest of St. Aubin du Cormier to save her.

Return to the ranks Reaching the British forces during the destruction of Cherbourg, Basil returns to duty, refusing an unknown donor's gift of a commission until he discovers he has already been gazetted as a Cornet.

Reunion in the hold Assigned to secure French prisoners on a hulked vessel, Basil recognizes a captive Boisguiller among the destitute men and uses his position to intervene on his former ally's behalf.

To the German plains After making peace with his cousin Aurora in England, Basil embarks with his regiment for Westphalia, where the British army prepares for a long, brutal winter campaign against the French.

The People

• Sir Basil Gauntlet: A proud Scottish trooper in the Scots Greys who seeks to restore his family's standing through military service. He wants to act with uncompromising honor, which initially leads him to reject promotions he has not earned, but his deep devotion to Jacqueline pushes him into perilous risks behind enemy lines.
• Jacqueline de Broglie: A high-born French aristocrat living under her aunt's supervision. She seeks emotional independence from her family's strict social expectations, falling for the wounded foreign soldier hidden in her home before being violently abducted by a bitter ex-convict.
• Chevalier de Boisguiller: A French cavalry officer and Jacqueline's cousin. He desires military glory and the protection of his family's honour; though arrogant and initially a rival to Basil, his pragmatism and courage make him an effective ally during the search in the forest.
• Angelique: A pragmatic and cheeky French abigail. She wants to safeguard her mistress and navigate household crises, using her quick wits and adaptability to engineer Basil's disguise and keep him hidden from authority.
• Aurora Gauntlet: Basil’s wealthy English cousin. She desires to mend the long-standing rift between their branches of the family, using her political influence to advance Basil's military career despite his stubborn pride.

In Its Own Voice

"The city was crowded with fugitives from the adjacent country, from which they had retired by order of the noblesse, magistrates, and echevins, to whom the Duke of Marlborough sent a notice, that if the peasantry did not return peaceably to their houses, he 'would set fire to them without delay.'" A stark reminder of the harsh military realities facing local populations during the coastal invasion.

"'Pardieu! my saucy one, I shall teach you that I have not dragged a chain in the casemates of St. Malo, and at the aqueducts of Dol, for nothing.'" The former galley-slave Hautois confronts Basil in the chateau grounds before realizing his mistake.

"'Fire--kill me!' exclaimed the chevalier, proudly and fiercely; 'I have no desire to live after the degradation to which you have subjected me--I, an officer of the Queen's Hussars, and a chevalier of the order.'" The Chevalier de Boisguiller expresses his bitter humiliation upon being discovered among common prisoners on a British hulk.

What It's Really About

The novel investigates the friction between personal honor and national allegiance. Through Basil's journey, the text questions whether noble conduct can transcend the artificial divides of wartime enmity, contrasting formal chivalry with the squalid violence of military campaigns. It highlights the arbitrariness of social class, showing how uniforms, disguises, and political patronage shape a man's fate far more than his individual merit. Underneath its romantic plot, the story presents war not as a grand adventure, but as a disruptive machine that reduces soldiers and civilians alike to pawns, squandering wealth and lives for distant Hanoverian interests.

Why Read It Today

This middle volume of James Grant's trilogy offers an authentic, granular view of eighteenth-century warfare written by an author with a deep grasp of military history. Readers drawn to classic historical fiction will appreciate its vivid tactical details, from the logistical strain of coastal raids to the grim reality of prison ships. The narrative moves at a brisk pace, balancing light comedy—such as Basil’s precarious stint disguised as a French maid—with genuine suspense and abrupt violence.

Modern readers should be prepared for the heavy presence of period conventions, including lengthy historical digressions, romanticized notions of lineage, and casual regional stereotypes typical of Victorian popular fiction. The language carries a formal, old-fashioned cadence that takes a few chapters to settle into. Yet the novel remains engaging because it avoids uncritical patriotism. Grant gives equal weight to the humanity of both sides, making the encounters between French and British officers feel genuinely earned. It leaves you with a memorable sense of how fragile personal lives become when swept up in global conflicts.