Sharpe's Company
Starts with Sharpe at Ciudad Rodrigo, which the English need to get through to Badajoz.In between, he loses his captaincy of the South Essex regiment to a someone who bought the title, making him bitter about the situation.
Added to the mix, his old enemy Sergeant Hakeswill is also attached to the company.
The characters are all well written, Cornwell is in his element here (this is book 13 in the Sharpe series, and they've had time to mature in his imagination).
It never comes across as lower vs upper class. Some of the higher-ups are written quite sympathetically, although there are also some written to show the injustice of buying a commission.
Haskeswill is a nasty piece of work, constantly working against Sharpe and trying to get rid of him.
The history is well researched and there are plenty of moments of suspense.
