Book Review – Hitler’s Armed SS

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Military historian Anthony Tucker-Jones http://atuckerjones.com is the author of more than 50 books. Hitler’s Armed SS: The Waffen-SS at War, 1939–1945 was recently published in August of 2022.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of delivering a fair and honest review. I categorize this book/novel as ‘G.

The book traces the origins and development of the armed or Waffen SS. It began as an elite personal protection unit for Hitler, and grew into Himmler’s 38-division strong army. The SS was not comprised of the regular Wehrmacht soldiers. Members of the Waffen SS were fanatic Nazis. They were not trained in combat as thoroughly as the regular Wehrmacht troops, nor were they as disciplined.

Units fought on all the fronts on which the Germans were engaged. Many were deployed on the Eastern Front, where they committed numerous atrocities. Several SS units also took part in battles in the West. What they lacked in tactical ability was made up for by their fanatic adherence to the Nazi cause.

I enjoyed the 10 hours I spent reading this 354-page WWII history. This is the fourth book by Tucker-Jones that I have read. The others have been Radio Operator on the Eastern Front: An Illustrated Memoir, 1940–1949, Churchill, Master and Commander: Winston Churchill at War 1895–1945, and Life and Death on the Eastern Front: Rare Colour Photographs From World War II. They all have been interesting. The book is full of details about the Waffen SS units. I like the chosen cover art. I give this book a rating of 3.4 (rounded down to 3) 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 have an interest in the WWII era of history, you may find these three pages of interest. 

• The “World War II Resources” page is a constantly growing collection of more than 590 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. Included are links to many fiction and non-fiction books on WWII that I have read and reviewed. There are also links to WWII oriented podcasts.

A Book to add to your WWII History Shelf – Nineteen Weeks: America, Britain, and the Fateful Summer of 1940

I subscribe to several different ebook sales notification services. One of those is MyNextRead.

In the email I received from them today and they noted that the 647 page ebook edition of The Bomber War: Arthur Harris and the Allied Bomber Offensive 1939–1945 by Robin Neillands is currently available from Amazon for FREE. The book was published in 2014. I have downloaded the book, but not read it yet.

If you are a student of WWII history you should act now to add this book to your bookshelf. These sales often last only a few days, so better to act soon.

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

• The “World War II Resources” page is a constantly growing collection of more than 590 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. Included are links to many fiction and non-fiction books on WWII that I have read and reviewed. There are also links to WWII oriented podcasts.

Book Review – Alias Emma

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Ava Glass is the author of Alias Emma which was published in 2022. This is her first publication.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of delivering a fair and honest review. Due to scenes of violence and mature language, I categorize this novel as R.

Emma Makepeace has just completed her training as a British secret agent, but that name is only her working alias. Her first assignment seems easy enough. She simply has to escort the son of a Russian dissident across London. And she has 12 hours to do it.

But that is before the Russians hack into London’s extensive CCTV surveillance system. Buses, subways, cars, and trains, the normal means of transportation, are all being watched. Nor can they use a cell phone or a credit card without signaling their location. Emma and her charge must find their way across London without disclosing themselves to the Russian assassins pursuing them.

I enjoyed the 7+ hours I spent reading this 273-page thriller. The novel has action, intrigue, and romance woven into the plot. While I understand the chosen cover artwork, a London city map, I do not think it is very engaging. I give this novel a rating of 4.5 (rounded up to a 5) out of 5.

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

Book Review – Ten Seconds to Dead

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – L.A. Clayton https://www.authorlaclayton.com is the author of four novels. Ten Seconds to Dead was published in 2020 and is the first book of her Ten Second series.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of delivering a fair and honest review. Due to scenes of violence and mature situations, I categorize this novel as R. The primary character is Katherine ‘Kate’ Edison.

Edison has just finished law school and passed the bar on her first try. Her father would have been proud of her, but he is gone. He died in front of her. Now she is ready to follow in his footsteps. He was a CIA man.

Since her father’s death, she has been preparing to be a CIA agent. She secures an interview, and it is going well. As she leaves, she is covertly contacted by the AGI, the Alternate Government Initiative. AGI is an ultra-secret US government agency. They want her as an agent, just like her father was before her.

Edison accepts the AGI offer and undergoes rigorous training. Even before she has finished her training, she is catapulted into the field. She faces danger in both the training and missions. She begins to sense that something is wrong. She soon begins to fear that she has been deceived. That she is not really working for a government agency. Can she discover the truth and survive?

I enjoyed the 10+ hours I spent reading this 389-page thriller and mystery. The story is filled with action, suspense, and intrigue. I like the chosen cover art, and I give this novel a rating of 5 out of 5.

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

Book Review of Cyborg Assassin 1

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Rayner Ye https://www.rayneryeauthor.com is the author of around 15 novels. Cyborg Assassin 1 was published in 2021 and is the first book in her Military Space Opera series.

I received an ARC of this book from the author with the expectation of delivering a fair and honest review. Due to scenes of violence, I categorize this novel as R. The primary characters are the young teens Oshun Musa and Frankie, but they are not the only characters.

After Oshun is orphaned, she must attend a military school. Other orphans are there too, learning to be soldiers. Oshun becomes a Space Marine. When the Interstellar Military agrees to join the Space Marines, the illegal child soldiers like Oshun are sent home.

Frankie had been living in a slum until he was taken in by a terrorist. Frankie knows what the terrorists are doing is wrong, but he feels obligated toward him.

Both Oshun and Frankie are faced with breaking their loyalties.

I enjoyed the 4.5 hours I spent reading this 229-page young adult science fiction novel. This novel has a lot of action but is a little rough around the edges. It feels more like a detailed outline than a fully fleshed-out novel. I do like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 3.4 (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).

A Book to add to your WWII History Shelf – Nineteen Weeks: America, Britain, and the Fateful Summer of 1940

I subscribe to several different ebook sales notification services. One of those is MyNextRead.

In the email I received from them a couple of days ago and they noted that the 438 page ebook edition of Nineteen Weeks: America, Britain, and the Fateful Summer of 1940 by Norman Moss is currently available from Amazon for FREE. The book was published in 2015. I have downloaded the book, but not read it yet.

If you are a student of WWII history you should act now to add this book to your bookshelf. These sales often last only a few days, so better to act soon.

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

• The “World War II Resources” page is a constantly growing collection of more than 590 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. Included are links to many fiction and non-fiction books on WWII that I have read and reviewed. There are also links to WWII oriented podcasts.

Book Review – Reading Hitler’s Mind

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Norman Ridley is the author of five books. Reading Hitler’s Mind: The Intelligence Failure that led to WW2 was published in 2022.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of delivering a fair and honest review. categorize this book as G.

The book covers the period from the 1930s forward. Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was preparing to deal with Hitler. The British leadership and military were stuck in their older thinking. There was also a concern as to the economic impact of beginning rearmament. What intelligence they had on the growth of Germany was often not believed.

Germany had been very successful in hiding its military growth. The UK also had significant financial ties to Germany. The British leaders were unwilling to confront Germany over events that were not directly affecting the UK. Many simply did not want to hear about things that challenged their point of view.

I enjoyed the 8.5 hours I spent reading this 179-page WWII history. This book was a challenge to read. The writing is very dry with many long rambling sentences. I do like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 3.5 (rounded up 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 have an interest in the WWII era of history, you may find these three pages of interest. 

• The “World War II Resources” page is a constantly growing collection of more than 590 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. Included are links to many fiction and non-fiction books on WWII that I have read and reviewed. There are also links to WWII oriented podcasts.

Book Review – Three Miles Down

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Harry Turtledove https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Turtledove is the author of more than 100 novels. Three Miles Down was published in 2022.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of delivering a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as G.

The novel is set in the early 1970s. The primary character is Jerry Stieglitz, a marine biology graduate student at UCLA and part-time science fiction author. He is approached by the CIA to take part in a secret mission. A Soviet submarine had been lost and then discovered by the US. He is told that he will be part of a marine biology cover story for a ship attempting to recover the sub. He jumps at the chance for a well-paying summer stipend and the opportunity to gather research data.

He finds out that the real mission is the retrieval of what appears to be an alien spacecraft. A specially built ocean research ship travels to the North Pacific to find the spacecraft. The crew struggles to retrieve the vessel and find themselves faced with a first-contact situation.

Their ship is surveilled on and off by a Russian vessel, causing tensions to rise. Stieglitz is not always comfortable with the secrecy around the project or the longer-term goals of the CIA.

I enjoyed the 10+ hours I spent reading this 279-page alternate history novel. I have been a fan of books by Mr. Turtledove for many years. Among his recent novels that I have read are The House of Daniel, Bombs Away, Fallout, and Through Darkest Europe. This story is a bit slow but very engaging. I hope to see a sequel in the near future. The chosen covert is very eye-catching. I give this novel a rating of 4.5 (rounded to 5) out of 5.

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