{"product_id":"9780062290083","title":"The Fishing Fleet : Husband-Hunting in the Raj","description":"\u003cstrong\u003eThe Fishing Fleet\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor(s): Anne de Courcy\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eBy the late nineteenth century, Britain's colonial reign seemed to know no limit—and India was the sparkling jewel in the Imperial crown. Many of Her Majesty's best and brightest young men departed for the Raj to make their careers, and their fortunes, as bureaucrats, soldiers, and businessmen. But in their wake they left behind countless young ladies who, suddenly bereft of eligible bachelors, found themselves facing an uncertain future. With nothing to lose and everything to gain, some of these women decided to follow suit and abandon their native Britain for India's exotic glamour and—with men outnumbering women by roughly four to one in the Raj—the best chance they had at finding a husband.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDrawing on a wealth of firsthand sources, including unpublished memoirs, letters, photographs, and diaries, Anne de Courcy brings the incredible world of \"the Fishing Fleet,\" as these women were known, to life. In these sparkling pages, she describes the glittering whirlwind of dances, parties, tennis tournaments, tiger shoots, and palatial banquets that awaited in the Raj, all geared toward the prospect of romance. Most of the girls were away from home for the first time, and they plunged headlong into the heady dazzle of expatriate social life; marriages were frequent. However, after the honeymoon many women were confronted with a reality that was far from the fairy tale they'd been chasing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRich with drama and color, \u003cem\u003eThe Fishing Fleet\u003c\/em\u003e is a sumptuous, utterly compelling real-life saga of adventure, romance, and heartbreak in the heyday of the British Empire.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReview(s):\u003cbr\u003e“The contrasts are irresistibly melodramatic, the characters colorful yet tantalizingly repressed. …. It is enough to make you wonder why Julian Fellowes hasn’t sent a few more members of the \u003cem\u003eDownton Abbey\u003c\/em\u003e cast on the heels of Miss O’Brien, seeking their fortunes in Delhi and beyond...”\u003cbr\u003e“Vividly sketches the lives lived in this strange limbo…richly entertaining.”\u003cbr\u003e“Making liberal use of letters and journals, \u003cem\u003eThe Fishing Fleet\u003c\/em\u003e paints a fascinating picture of these women and their history…a glimpse of a unique era.”\u003cbr\u003eA “lively history…. Colorful.”\u003cbr\u003e“Journalist De Courcy provides a fascinating account—not quite gossipy but loaded with juicy anecdotes—of adventurous women sailing for the subcontinent in the 19th and early 20th centuries to fulfill their destinies as wives.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eISBN:  9780062290083\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ","brand":"Harper Perennial","offers":[{"title":"Paperback \/ softback","offer_id":41074787680462,"sku":"9780062290083","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0600\/7029\/7806\/products\/9780062290083.jpg?v=1648695989","url":"https:\/\/pickwickbookshop.com\/products\/9780062290083","provider":"Pickwick Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}