Book Review: “German Fighter Aircraft of World War II: 1939-45”

(See all my Book Reviews) – Author Thomas Newdick published the book “German Fighter Aircraft of World War II: 1939-45” in 2020 (August). Mr. Newdick has published more than a dozen books on military aircraft.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this book as ‘G’. This book details the various fighter aircraft used by the Luftwaffe during WWII. This is an in-depth explanation of the history and evolution of the various planes.

I thought that the 3.5 hours I spent reading this 128-page history were interesting. I had no idea that the Germans were constantly refining and improving their aircraft. I wonder now if the Allies approached their planes the same way. I like the chosen cover art. I give this book a 3.8 (rounded up to a 4) out of 5.

You can access more of my book reviews on my Blog ( https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/).

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

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If you are interested in the WWII era of history, you may find these three pages of interest. 

• The “World War II Sources” page is a constantly growing collection of more than 430 links to museums, memorials, websites, Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, and other sources with information on the World War II-era in history.
• The “World War II Timeline” page expands almost daily and shows events leading up to WWII, as well as during the war. Events are broken down into the Pacific and European Theaters by date.
• The About WWII page is a collection of links to posts that I have made over the years that are relevant to WWII.

Book Review: “A Madness of Sunshine”

(See all my Book Reviews) – Author Nalini Singh (https://nalinisingh.com) published the novel “A Madness of Sunshine” in 2019. Ms. Singh has published nearly 60 novels.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence. The story is set in Golden Cove on the rugged West Coast of New Zealand. The primary characters are Will and Anahera. Will is the local cop banished to Golden Cove. Anahera the young widow returned to Golden Cove after the recent death of her husband.

Golden Cove attracts tourists during the summer. Tourist season has passed when Anahera returns. She has only arrived when a beautiful and talented local girl, Miriam, disappears. As Will begins to investigate the skeletal remains of another woman are discovered. Speculation is that it is one of the three women who disappeared in the area years before.

Many think Miriama has run off, but those who know her think there has been foul play. Will has so many possible suspects and they are mostly his new friends and neighbors. The more he digs the more secrets he uncovers. Before long Will and Anahera develop an unexpected relationship. The investigation proceeds, but not without danger to them both.

I enjoyed the 9 hours I spent reading this 352-page mystery novel. I like this novel for its unusual setting. This isn’t the most exciting mystery, but it was enjoyable and engaging. I am not a fan of the selected cover art. I give this novel a 4 out of 5.

You can access more of my book reviews on my Blog ( https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/).

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Book Review: “Archangel One”

(See all my Book Reviews) – Author Evan Currie (http://evancurrie.ca) published the novel “Archangel One” in 2019. Mr. Currie has published more than 30 novels. This is the first of a new “Archangel One” series.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘PG’. The story is set in the far future. While Commander Stephen Michaels is the primary character, there are many others who are key to the story. 

Humans have achieved an uneasy truce with the Empire. There is no doubt that the war with the Empire will resume, it is just a question of when. 

Michaels is leading the Archangel Squadron. The Archangels, now reformed with new ships and tactics, are given a new mission.  To gather intelligence on the Empire they take on the role of pirates. That gives them both the chance to inflict damage on the Empire and to make new allies. 

I enjoyed the 6+ hours I spent reading this 268-page Science Fiction Space-Opera. While this is a separate series, it continues the events in Currie’s “Odysseus One” series. While this novel reads well on its own, I do recommend reading the six novels in the “Odysseus One” series first. Many of the characters are also in those novels. This is the 5th novel of Mr. Currie’s I have read. I have to say that they all have been enjoyable. I do like the selected cover art. I give this novel a 4 out of 5.

You can access more of my book reviews on my Blog ( https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/).

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Book Review: “Battle of Britain, 1940: The Finest Hour’s Human Cost”

(See all my Book Reviews) – Author Dilip Sarkar published the book “Battle of Britain, 1940: The Finest Hour’s Human Cost” in 2020. This is Mr. Sarkar’s second publication.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘PG’. This book tells the story of the Battle of Britain. This intense air war lasted from July 10 until October 31, 1940.

Each chapter of the book tells the story of a different airman. These are not the stories of the well-known aces. Most are pilots with the RAF, but some ground crew and Luftwaffe pilots are also included. All the people focussed on in the book died during the Battle of Britain.

The famous ‘Few’ who defended Britain comprised nearly 3,000 crewmen. Of that number, more than 540 lost their lives. They contributed an incredible effort in the defense of Britain. Without their determined effort, Britain would very likely have fallen to Nazi Germany.

I enjoyed the 12.5 hours I spent reading this 296-page history. I have read other accounts of the Battle of Britain. This book gives a more personal account of those eventful 16 weeks. Mr. Sarkar has done a superb job of telling their stories. I like the selected cover art. I give this novel a 4.4 (rounded down to a 4) out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

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If you are interested in the WWII era of history, you may find these three pages of interest. 

• The “World War II Sources” page is a constantly growing collection of more than 430 links to museums, memorials, websites, Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, and other sources with information on the World War II-era in history.
• The “World War II Timeline” page expands almost daily and shows events leading up to WWII, as well as during the war. Events are broken down into the Pacific and European Theaters by date.
• The About WWII page is a collection of links to posts that I have made over the years that are relevant to WWII.

Instrumental Music on YouTube: Gustav Holst- The Planets, Full Suite

(See my other Music related posts) – I came across this 49:14 video a few weeks ago. It was uploaded to YouTube in April of 2014 by Gwen Ronkartz. The video includes:

1. 0:00 Mars
2. 7:27 Venus
3. 14:52 Mercury
4. 18:39 Jupiter
5. 26:11 Saturn
6. 35:26 Uranus
7. 41:12 Neptune

The music is performed by a variety of artists. Check the YouTube site for a complete list. It is all instrumental with some calm enough for easy listening, but most is a little energetic for that category.

Book Review: “Fight To Survive”

(See all my Book Reviews) – Author Alan McDermott (http://alanmcdermottbooks.co.uk) published the novel “Fight to Survive” in 2019. He has published a dozen novels. This is the third of his “Eva Driscoll” thrillers.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence. This novel continues the story of the ESO and former CIA agent Eva Driscoll.

Driscoll had thought she had escaped the ESO. She still wants to destroy them, but they pressure her into working for them. The ESO needs someone smuggled out of North Korea. As risky as this mission is she has little choice but to accept it.

What she finds in North Korea is something that she feels compelled to destroy – a prison that is selling organs. She compiles the ESO to back her so that she can free the prisoners in North Korea. Driscoll pulls most of her old team back together to strike inside of North Korea.

They not only want to free the captives, but they also need to find a way to free themselves from ESO surveillance. Driscoll knows she can’t trust the ESO. Will she and her team be able to pull off the rescue and escape the ESO?

I enjoyed the 5+ hours I spent reading this 262-page thriller. I thought that this was a good thriller. I have read all three of the ‘Eva Driscoll’ books (“Run and Hide” and “Seek and Destroy” were the other two). I have also read a couple of McDermott’s other novels (“Gray Salvation” and “Trojan”). I judge them all to be well written and enjoyable. The cover art is a little plain, but not bad. I give this novel a 4 out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Instrumental Music on YouTube: When the Battle is O’er by Royal Scots Dragoon Guards

(See my other Music related posts) – I came across this 02:24 video on VE Day 2020. The video was uploaded to YouTube in December 2015 by glenzboyz. I do like the occasional bagpipe piece.

Book Review: “The Girl in the Water”

(See all my Book Reviews) – Author AJ Grayson published the novel “The Girl in the Water” in 2019. This is his second novel.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence, Mature Language, and Mature Situations. The story is set in rural America. The primary character is young and married Amber. She works in a book shop in Santa Rosa, CA, and lives in nearby Windsor.

When she reads of a woman’s body is found the mystery begins to torment her. She has been dealing with terrible headaches. These seem to be getting worse. Her husband David is not being supportive of her.

The more she investigates the worse she feels. She also begins to have doubts about her husband. Is he lying to her? She discovers things about him and herself that would have been best staying hidden.

The 7.5+ hours I spent reading this 307-page mystery novel were interesting. I thought it had possibilities, but for me, the plot was very slow and dull. It did have an interesting twist to it. The story was full of Amber’s mental anguish and told a dark story. I did not reach the end of this novel nearly soon enough. I do not think much of the cover art. I give this novel a 3.3 (rounded down to a 3) out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Book Review: “Fighting Through to Hitler’s Germany”

(See all my Book Reviews) – Author & historian Mark Forsdike (https://www.markforsdike.com/) published the book “Fighting Through to Hitler’s Germany” in 2020. This is Mr. Forsdike’s first book.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence. The story begins with D-Day in June 1944.

The book follows the British 1st Battalion, The Suffolk Regiment. Part of the book goes back to when the unit escaped France at Dunkirk, but the book mostly focuses on D-Day and afterwards. The book follows the 1st as it makes its way through France, Holland, and into Germany. By that time it is part of the 3rd (British) Infantry Division.

The British generals called upon this unit time after time to ‘get the job done’. As a result, the 1st suffered heavy casualties. Of the 850 who landed with the Battalion on D-Day, just 178 were still serving on VE-Day. More than 200 had died and 640 were wounded in 11 months of combat.

I enjoyed the 9+ hours I spent reading this 304-page history book. While the book was on a British unit, it reminded me a lot of Band of Brothers. Many officers are mentioned only to find that they were later killed in action. There was also a great deal about the movement of the 1st Battalion. I found it interesting to follow them on a map of Europe while I read. I like the chosen cover art. I give this book a 5 out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

 

Further Reading / Listening

1. History Extra Podcast 5/29/14 D-Day

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If you are interested in the WWII era of history, you may find these three pages of interest. 

• The “World War II Sources” page is a constantly growing collection of more than 410 links to museums, memorials, websites, Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, and other sources with information on the World War II-era in history.
• The “World War II Timeline” page expands almost daily and shows events leading up to WWII, as well as during the war. Events are broken down into the Pacific and European Theaters by date.
• The About WWII page is a collection of links to posts that I have made over the years that are relevant to WWII.

Book Review: “A Murder on Jane Street”

(See all my Book Reviews) – Author Cathy Cash Spellman (https://www.cathycashspellman.com) published the novel “A Murder on Jane Street” in 2019. Ms. Spellman has published nine books.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Language. The story is set in contemporary New York, USA.

Mrs. Wallenberg, an elderly woman is tortured and murdered. Fitzhugh Donovan is a retired New York City Police Chief. He is also the elderly woman’s neighbor. It is he who finds the body. He had visited with the woman hours beforehand. He feels responsible for her death especially after she had shown him a threatening letter.

Donovan discovers that Mrs. Wallenberg had a very interesting past. Soon he has family and some close friends involved in the investigation. The woman’s first husband had been a business leader in Nazi Germany. She had run away from him and found a new life.

The Nazis though were still hunting her. The remnants of WWII Nazi leadership had escaped in 1945 and are now behind a Fourth Reich. An unseen cabal that is rising to world power.

Donovan is driven to solve the murder, but he is also compelled to find a way to protect his family. The Nazis are not happy at his involvement and make that clear to all involved.

I enjoyed the 10+ hours I spent reading this 410-page mystery novel. This plot ventures into several genres – mystery, WWII, conspiracy theories, and the occult. I liked the Donovan family and friends’ characters. This appears to be the first in a series and I look forward to reading the next installment. The selected cover art is OK, but a little plain. I give this novel a 4 out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).