Shala

- Blurb -

A British colony in South East Asia approaches independence facing internal security problems. British soldiers are deployed to the hitherto peaceful town of Shala to protect Tony Hockin, an expatriate plantation owner, from a threat by Communist terrorists. Shala is the home of Chila Baru, the prospective first prime minister who is supported by the British. His Oxford-educated son, Shi, is the rumoured leader of the communist terrorists threatening Hockin. In Shala, the attitudes and prejudices of British imperialism are extant. The novel concentrates on the interacting relationships of the army, colonial police and the British expats as well as relationships with the locals, mostly Malay and Chinese. The male expats from Tony Hockin to the district officer are products of English public schools. Most feel a sense of duty towards the locals. . . to improve their lives but the reality is that they do not understand the locals. The Liverpool-born Chinese police staff sergeant, Tony Ho, straddles both communities but is feared and suspected by both sides. Within a male environment, three females, Fong Siu Wai, Eileen Kanna and Jennie Croxham, are central to the narrative. . . Interwoven into the story is the history of Colonel Gordon Buchanan-Henderson, the son of a minor, Scottish laird. He had fought against the Japanese in Burma, in the Korean War, the Malayan Emergency and now in Shala on the final operation of his military career. GBH or Grievous to his few friends is a tough and resolute commander.