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Books > Fiction > Genre fiction > War fiction > Second World War fiction
From the Phoney War of 1939 to the Battle of Britain in 1940, the
pilots of Hornet Squadron learn their lessons the hard way.
Hi-jinks are all very well on the ground, but once in a Hurricane's
cockpit, the best killers keep their wits close. Newly promoted
Commanding Officer Fanny Barton has a job on to whip the Hornets
into shape before they face the Luftwaffe's seasoned pilots. And
sometimes Fighter Command, with its obsolete tactics and stiff
doctrines, is the real menace. As with all Robinson's novels, the
raw dialogue, rich black humour and brilliantly rendered,
adrenalin-packed dogfights bring the Battle of Britain, and the
brave few who fought it, to life.
'A dazzling novel of great compassion' Laura Moriarty 'An
extraordinary read, the kind of book that makes you sob and smile'
Tatiana de Rosnay 'Blum plumbs the depths of loss and love in this
exquisite page-turner' People In 1960s Manhattan, patrons flock to
Masha's to savor its brisket Wellington and impeccable service, and
to admire its dashing owner and head chef, Peter Rashkin. With his
movie-star good looks and tragic past, Peter, a survivor of
Auschwitz, is the most eligible bachelor in town. But he has
resigned himself to a solitary life. Running Masha's consumes him,
as does the terrible guilt of having survived the horrors of a Nazi
death camp while his wife, Masha - the restaurant's namesake - and
two young daughters perished. Then exquisitely beautiful June
Bouquet, an up-and-coming model, appears at the restaurant,
piercing Peter's guard. Though she is twenty years his junior, the
two begin a passionate, whirlwind courtship. When June unexpectedly
becomes pregnant, Peter proposes, believing that beginning a new
family with the woman he loves will allow him to let go of the
atrocities of the past, even though he cannot forget all that he
has lost. But over the next twenty years, the indelible sadness of
those memories will overshadow Peter, his new wife, June, and their
daughter, Elsbeth, transforming them in heartbreaking and
unexpected ways. The Lost Family is a charming, funny, and
elegantly bittersweet study of the repercussions of loss and love
that spans a generation, from the 1960s to the 1980s. It is a vivid
portrait of marriage, family, and the haunting grief of World War
II.
Set on an island in the South Pacific during the final days of
World War II, when the tide has turned against Japan and the war
has unmistakably become one of attrition, "The Breaking Jewel"
offers a rare depiction of the Pacific War from the Japanese side
and captures the essence of Japan's doomed imperial aims. The novel
opens as a small force of Japanese soldiers prepares to defend a
tiny and ultimately insignificant island from a full-scale assault
by American forces. Its story centers on squad leader Nakamura, who
resists the Americans to the end, as he and his comrades grapple
with the idea of "gyokusai" (translated as "the breaking jewel" or
the "pulverization of the gem"), the patriotic act of mass suicide
in defense of the homeland.
Well known for his antiestablishment and antiwar sentiments,
Makuto Oda gradually and subtly develops a powerful critique of the
war and the racialist imperial aims that proved Japan's
undoing.
1967. In a quiet village in the wild lands of the Scottish borders,
disgraced academic Cordelia Hemlock is trying to put her life back
together. Grieving the loss of her son, she seeks out the company
of the dead, taking comfort amid the ancient headstones and crypts
of the local churchyard. When lightning strikes a tumbledown tomb,
she glimpses a corpse that doesn't belong among the crumbling
bones. But when the storm passes and the body vanishes, the
authorities refuse to believe the claims of a hysterical
'outsider'. Teaming up with a reluctant witness, local woman
Felicity Goose, Cordelia's enquiries all lead back to a former POW
camp that was set up in the village during the Second World War.
But not all Gilsland's residents welcome the two young women's
interference. There are those who believe the village's secrets
should remain buried . whatever the cost.
WWII. As Malta falls under siege, two fighter pilots are tested to
the limit. By turns brutal, funny, tragic and heroic Band of Eagles
is a spellbinding read, perfect for fans of Ken Follet and Robert
Radcliffe. 'A gripping fusion of thrills and historical
plausibility . . . a fine balance of freshness and authenticity'
Telegraph Summer 1941. The tiny island of Malta has become the most
bombed place on earth. The Germans and Italians want to destroy it.
For the fighter pilots of the RAF, initially equipped with ageing
Hurricanes and outnumbered in the air, defeat seems almost certain.
Flight commanders Englishman Kit Curtis and American Ossie Wolf
have survived the Fall of France and the Battle of Britain but
Curtis remains idealistic and eager to prove himself. Wolf, by
contrast, is ruthless and thrives in the chaos of imminent
invasion. But as each man is pushed to dangerous boundaries, they
come to share a fresh understanding. What readers are saying about
Band of Eagles: 'Beautiful writing. Superbly crafted work' 'A real
treat. I strongly recommend this book to anyone with a love of
compelling war stories and good story telling' 'Movingly told and
backed up by impeccable research'
Young Paul Goetz loves aeroplanes and so joins the Luftwaffe as
soon as he can. Like so many, he's taken in, swept along in the
unquestioning tide of excitement, keen to be airborne as a fighter
pilot. His first posting sees him sent to Leningrad in December
1941. His squadron shoot down huge numbers of enemy aeroplanes and
victory seems certain, but the war drags on for a second winter,
becoming increasingly difficult. Comrades are lost or reported
'Vermisst' - missing - and he learns of terrible German activities
across the east. Then, Paul's nightmare becomes reality, when his
engine fails behind enemy lines, and he is captured... Vermisst:
Missing in Russia is a rarity; an English-language novel written
from a German viewpoint. Rich in historical details and packed with
exciting aerial combat scenes, it is a gripping war story of
extreme conditions, and survival in the harshest captivity.
Having escaped from a Nazi concentration camp in Germany in 1937,
and later a camp in Rouen, the nameless twenty-seven-year-old
German narrator of Anna Seghers's multilayered masterpiece,
Transit, ends up in the dusty seaport of Marseilles. Along the way
he is asked to deliver a letter to a man named Weidel in Paris and
discovers Weidel has committed suicide, leaving behind a suitcase
with letters and the manuscript of a novel inside. As he makes his
way to Marseilles to find Weidel's wife, the narrator assumes the
identity of a refugee named Seidler, though the authorities think
he is really Weidel. There in the giant waiting room of Marseilles,
the narrator converses with the refugees, listening to their
stories over pizza and wine, while also gradually piecing together
the story of Weidel, whose manuscript has shattered the narrator's
"deathly boredom," bringing him to a deeper awareness of the
transitory world the refugees inhabit as they wait and wait for
their transit papers, some leaving, only to disappear into
internment camps. Several years before Waiting for Godot, Seghers
wrote this existential, political, literary thriller that explores
the significance of literature and the agonies of boredom and
waiting with extraordinary compassion and insight.
A brand-new comic collection spinning out of the world-wide smash
video game series! Karl Fairburne, legendary sniper for the Special
Operations Executive, must parachute into occupied France on a
mission to destroy a secret weapon, but instead of a silent mission
of sabotage he finds the local resistance compromised and the SS
waiting to play a deadly game of cat and mouse in the terrified
streets of an ancient town.
'Shadow Man is a harrowing and horrific game of consequences' Val
McDermid THE BRILLIANTLY COMPELLING SECOND NOVEL IN THE DI LUKAS
MAHLER SERIES A missing child. A seventy-year-old murder. And a
killer who's still on the loose. Ten year-old Erin is missing;
taken in broad daylight during a friend's birthday party. With no
witnesses and no leads, DI Lukas Mahler races against time to find
her. But is it already too late for Erin - and will her abductor
stop at one stolen child? And the discovery of human remains on a
construction site near Inverness confronts Mahler's team with a
cold case from the 1940s. Was Aeneas Grant's murder linked to a
nearby POW camp, or is there an even darker story to be uncovered?
With his team stretched to the limit, Mahler's hunt for Erin's
abductor takes him from Inverness to the Lake District. And
decades-old family secrets link both casesin a shocking final
twist. WHAT READERS ARE SAYING ABOUT MARGARET KIRK'S DEBUT NOVEL
SHADOW MAN: 'Gripping' 'Kept me on my toes right to the end'
'Another great detective is born' 'Shadow Man has a taut plot,
maintains suspense cleverly and is crisply written' 'The city of
Inverness is almost a character in its own right' 'A top-notch
crime thriller, full of intricate twists with a disturbing insight
into the mind of a cold blooded killer' 'Dark and atmospheric, I
just couldn't put it down'
Whatever the indifference or brutality of the world, love still
thrives. September 1942: Following the collapse of the Allied
resistance in Burma, the full might of the Imperial Japanese
Airforce has been unleashed on the cities of Chengdu and Chongqing,
in an attempt to force the Chinese government to sue for peace. The
brave actions of a squadron of Chinese pilots in their battered
planes offer a glimmer of hope in these darkest of hours. May 2019:
29 year-old Torin Cameron from London meets 26 year-old Lu Chen Xi
(Sunny) at a business conference in Chengdu. Reluctant at first,
she becomes his guide on a journey of discovery, that takes them
deep into the Sichuan countryside and opens Torin's eyes to China's
heroic role in the second world war-and a family secret that has
remained concealed for seventy-five years. Unravelling the threads
between wartime China and Europe and modern-day Chengdu and London,
Degrees of Separation explores the yin and yang of tangled human
experience, the twists of fate and tendrils of connection that wind
through generations and across cultures. An uplifting and
inspirational story of love and reconciliation.
Dramatic, emotional and romantic, if you love Lorna Cook, Tracy
Rees and Jenny Ashcroft, you'll love this gripping and heartrending
novel from Cathy Mansell, author of A Place to Belong. 'Glorious -
a cross between Maeve Binchy and Catherine Cookson' 5* early reader
review 'A superb saga' PETERBOROUGH TELEGRAPH 'A heart-warming
story full of characters you'll come to love' ROSIE GOODWIN
'Page-turning and compelling... Most highly recommended' MARGARET
KAINE 'Rarely have I read a book where every character springs from
the pages so authentically' JEAN CHAPMAN 'A warm-hearted, engaging
story' MARGARET JAMES, WRITING MAGAZINE In 1950s Dublin, life is
hard and jobs are like gold dust. Nineteen-year-old Nell Flynn is
training to be a nurse and planning to marry her boyfriend, Liam
Connor, when her mother dies, leaving her younger sisters
destitute. To save them from the workhouse, Nell returns to the
family home - a mere two rooms at the top of a condemned tenement.
Nell finds work at a biscuit factory and, at first, they scrape
through each week. But then eight-year-old Roisin, delicate from
birth, is admitted to hospital with rheumatic fever and
fifteen-year-old Kate, rebellious, headstrong and resentful of Nell
taking her mother's place, runs away. When Liam finds work in
London, Nell stays to struggle on alone - her unwavering devotion
to her sisters stronger even than her love for him. She's
determined that one day the Dublin girls will be reunited and only
then will she be free to follow her heart. Look for more gripping,
heartwrenching page-turners from Cathy Mansell - don't miss A Place
to Belong, out now.
'Haunting and enchanting by turns. This book will stay with me for
a long time. Utterly magnificent' Jenni Keer Can the truth about
her family's past unlock her future? Normandy, 1937.
Sixteen-year-old Elise embarks on a whirlwind romance with a young
American man, which transports her from the drudgery of her
everyday life caring for her mother. But neither she nor William is
prepared for the war that will threaten to tear them apart...
Boston, 2009. Lucy has been left reeling by the death of her
beloved grandfather. They had always planned to visit France
together after her college graduation; now, still aching from his
loss, Lucy decides to take the trip alone. As Lucy traces the steps
of her grandfather through the French countryside where he once
served as a GI, a powerful story of love, loss and destiny emerges
- but can the truth about her family's past unlock her future? Or
are some scars too deep to heal? Readers love The Time Between Us:
'Poignant, haunting story took my breath away. A simply stunning
debut' Clare Marchant 'Emotional story of love and loss,
beautifully woven' Liz Fenwick 'Left me breathless. My emotions
were crushed and revived and tangled... I cried and felt heartbreak
for the characters. Time stood still and supper cooled while I
finished living it... Unmissable... I cannot stop thinking about
it' Goodreads reviewer, 'Emotional rollercoaster of love and
loss... An excellent read which kept my interest right through to
the last page' Jo Lambert 'Fabulous, emotional... This is a
beautifully written story of war, love and loss... Pulled me in
from the first page and I loved the story of Elise' NetGalley
Reviewer, 'Emotional and heart-breaking... If you like WWII books
then you will love this one' NetGalley reviewer, 'Fantastic...
Hooked me and kept me invested... McCarron was able to capture the
sights, smells, sounds, touch and tastes to the extent that I felt
I was in the soldier's boots. It was phenomenal!... I was
emotionally wrung out by the end of the book... This is the best
book out there... Spectacular... Magnificently written, five-star
historical fiction must be on your radar' NetGalley Reviewer, 'Very
beautiful read. I highly recommend this one. I really like the
writer's style and look forward to her future books'
@IslaRoseReads, 'Heart-breaking dual timeline story of love, loss
and the reality of life' NetGalley Reviewer 'Historical fiction is
one of my favourite genres and this one did not disappoint... I
recommend this book if you like to read historical fiction'
NetGalley Reviewer 'Poignant and emotionally complex. Loved it'
NetGalley Reviewer
An Amazon Charts and Washington Post bestseller. A novel of love,
courage, and danger unfolds as World War II's brightest
heroines-the best of friends-take on the front lines. 1944: Fiona
Denning has her entire future planned out. She'll work in city
hall, marry her fiance when he returns from the war, and settle
down in the Boston suburbs. But when her fiance is reported missing
after being shot down in Germany, Fiona's long-held plans are
shattered. Determined to learn her fiance's fate, Fiona leaves
Boston to volunteer overseas as a Red Cross Clubmobile girl,
recruiting her two best friends to come along. There's the
outspoken Viviana, who is more than happy to quit her secretarial
job for a taste of adventure. Then there's Dottie, a shy music
teacher whose melodious talents are sure to bring heart and hope to
the boys on the front lines. Chosen for their inner strength and
outer charm, the trio isn't prepared for the daunting challenges of
war. But through it all come new friendships and romances,
unforeseen dangers, and unexpected dreams. As the three friends
begin to understand the real reasons they all came to the front,
their courage and camaraderie will see them through some of the
best and worst times of their lives.
From the winner of the Richard and Judy Search for a Bestseller
competition comes another tantalising Golden Age wartime mystery.
**DON'T MISS THE LASTEST JOSEPHINE FOX MYSTERY, A CONFLICT OF
INTERESTS. OUT NOW!** PRAISE FOR THE JOSEPHINE FOX SERIES:
'Terrific ... captures brilliantly the atmosphere of wartime
Britain' ANN CLEEVES 'Feisty, determined and brave - I loved
Josephine Fox' JUDY FINNIGAN 'A complete delight ... sings with
authenticity' CAZ FREAR DECEMBER 1942. As the war rages on, the
accidental death of a young man is almost unremarkable. Except this
young man was patrolling the grounds of Hursley Park House, where
teams are designing crucial modifications to the Spitfire - and he
was found clutching part of a blueprint. JANUARY 1943. Josephine
Fox is given a code name and a mission as she is seconded to
Hursley: uncover the network responsible for information leaks to
the enemy. And when the dead man's father visits Bram Nash
convinced that his son was innocent of espionage and the victim of
murder, her friend is also drawn into the investigation. But as Jo
and Bram circle closer to the truth, danger is closing in around
them... *INCLUDES AN EXCLUSIVE LOOK AT THE NEXT JOSEPHINE FOX
MYSTERY, A CONFLICT OF INTERESTS*
Don't miss the new uplifting historical saga series from Molly
Green, set at famous Bletchley Park: Summer Secrets at Bletchley
Park - available to pre-order now! War rages, but the women and
children of Liverpool's Dr Barnardo's Home cannot give up hope. A
poignant, heart-warming saga to read this winter... LIVERPOOL, 1943
Yorkshire is the place Lana has always called home, but it's now
filled with painful memories of her fiance, Dickie, who was killed
at sea. When she accepts the challenging position of headmistress
at a school in Liverpool, she hopes a new beginning will help to
mend her broken heart. A BATTLE TO FIGHT Not everyone at Bingham
School is happy about her arrival but Lana throws herself into the
role, teaching children from the local village and the nearby Dr
Barnardo's orphanage. She thrives in her work, but soon finds
herself falling for a man who she would once have considered the
enemy - and is torn between what she knows is right, and taking a
risk that might see her lose everything. THE STRENGTH TO HOPE There
are children that desperately need her help, and Lana must fight
for everyone's happiness, as well as her own. But one young girl in
particular shows her that there is a way through the darkness -
because even when all seems lost, there is always a glimmer of hope
to be found... Praise for Molly Green: 'Molly Green creates
realistic characters and situations that keep you turning the
pages' Katie Fforde 'A moving, gripping story set during WW2' Kitty
Neale 'Meticulously researched... An engrossing story, with a
strong, likeable female protagonist facing issues we still face
today' Historical Novel Society Magazine
Like Aladdin, but with post-traumatic stress, Charlie Echo is a
story about wishes - the last wishes of a dying soldier in Normandy
in 1944. Verbal wills of this sort are valid if there are two
witnesses and the first men on the scene are radio operator Charlie
Goodman and his assistant, Sid Saunders. Unfortunately, in the
confusion of events that follow, Charlie fails to ascertain the
full identity of the dying officer and is invalided back to Blighty
plagued by trauma and remorse. Once he has been demobbed also, it
falls to Saunders to break the impasse by getting his comrade to
repair a radio telephone, just like the one they were using in
France. What he doesn't anticipate is that working on the set will
prompt Charlie to not only hear the mystery soldier's voice again,
but to see him too. If not quite the genie in the lamp, it seems
like there's a ghost in the machine and one that's been transported
to his workshop in Leeds. Dismayed to discover that his wishes have
not been carried out, the ghost goads Charlie into journeying
through post-war Britain in order to fulfil his battlefield
promise. Jolting between humour and pathos, it's a journey that
transforms reclusive repair man into unlikely pantomime hero and
propels Saunders off in pursuit to play his allotted role in the
"show".
Curzio Malaparte was a disaffected supporter of Mussolini with a
taste for danger and high living. Sent by an Italian paper during
World War II to cover the fighting on the Eastern Front, Malaparte
secretly wrote this terrifying report from the abyss, which became
an international bestseller when it was published after the war.
Telling of the siege of Leningrad, of glittering dinner parties
with Nazi leaders, and of trains disgorging bodies in
war-devastated Romania, Malaparte paints a picture of humanity at
its most depraved.
"Kaputt" is an insider's dispatch from the world of the enemy that
is as hypnotically fascinating as it is disturbing.
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Unplanned
(Paperback)
John Cammidge
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R382
R161
Discovery Miles 1 610
Save R221 (58%)
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Ships in 9 - 17 working days
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LINE OF FIRE brings to life a desperate mission of World War II that captures the drama and courage of the men who fought it. Two Marines, reporting on Japanese air activity, are trapped on a small Coastwatcher island. A special rescue team is assembled to save them--under enemy gunsight. It is am exciting and powerful story of real heroism that only W.E.B. Griffin could tell...
CLOSE COMBAT is W.E.B. Griffin's epic novel of World War II--a powerful, dramatic tribute to the brave men and women who lived it...The captain who led his squadron in to the fiercest air battles of the Pacific. The correspondent who learned more about combat than he bargained for. The Marine who embarked on a top secret mission from which there was no certain return...
As seen in the New York Times Book Review. A December 2019 Indie
Next Pick! Set against the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials of 1963,
Annette Hess's international bestseller is a harrowing yet
ultimately uplifting coming-of-age story about a young female
translator--caught between societal and familial expectations and
her unique ability to speak truth to power--as she fights to expose
the dark truths of her nation's past. If everything your family
told you was a lie, how far would you go to uncover the truth? For
twenty-four-year-old Eva Bruhns, World War II is a foggy childhood
memory. At the war's end, Frankfurt was a smoldering ruin, severely
damaged by the Allied bombings. But that was two decades ago. Now
it is 1963, and the city's streets, once cratered are smooth and
paved. Shiny new stores replace scorched rubble. Eager for her
wealthy suitor, Jurgen Schoormann, to propose, Eva dreams of
starting a new life away from her parents and sister. But Eva's
plans are turned upside down when a fiery investigator, David
Miller, hires her as a translator for a war crimes trial. As she
becomes more deeply involved in the Frankfurt Trials, Eva begins to
question her family's silence on the war and her future. Why do her
parents refuse to talk about what happened? What are they hiding?
Does she really love Jurgen and will she be happy as a housewife?
Though it means going against the wishes of her family and her
lover, Eva, propelled by her own conscience, joins a team of fiery
prosecutors determined to bring the Nazis to justice--a decision
that will help change the present and the past of her nation.
Translated from the German by Elisabeth Lauffer
'A haunting and thrilling read' Kate Hamer, author of The Girl in
the Red Coat 'Original and unsettling - and just a little bit
heartbreaking' Rachel Rhys, author of Dangerous Crossing In a
sleepy English village in 1944, Annabel and her son Daniel live in
the shadow of war. With her husband away, an increasingly isolated
Annabel begins to lose her grip on reality. When mother and son
befriend Hans, a German PoW consigned to a nearby farm, their lives
are suddenly filled with thrilling secrets. To Annabel, Hans is an
awakening from the darkness that has engulfed her since Daniel's
birth. To her son, a solitary boy caught up in the magical world of
fairy tales, he is perhaps a prince in disguise. But Hans has plans
of his own and will soon set them into motion with devastating
consequences.
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