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Guns of Navarone #2
Force 10 from Navarone
The thrilling sequel to Alistair MacLean's masterpiece of World War II adventure, The Guns of Navarone. Now reissued in a new cover style. The guns of Navarone have been silenced, but the heroic survivors have no time to rest on their laurels. Almost before the last echoes of the famous guns have died away, Keith Mallory, Andrea and Dusty Miller are parachuting into war-torn Yugoslavia to rescue a division of Partisans ...and to fulfil a secret mission, so deadly that it must be hidden from their own allies.
248 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1968
97 people are currently reading
1,237 people want to read
About the author
Alistair MacLean
301Ìýbooks1,160ÌýfollowersAlistair Stuart MacLean (Scottish Gaelic: Alasdair MacGill-Eain), the son of a Scots Minister, was brought up in the Scottish Highlands. In 1941, at the age of eighteen, he joined the Royal Navy; two and a half years spent aboard a cruiser were to give him the background for HMS Ulysses, his first novel, the outstanding documentary novel on the war at sea. After the war he gained an English Honours degree at Glasgow University, and became a schoolmaster. In 1983, he was awarded a D. Litt. from the same university.
Maclean is the author of twenty-nine world bestsellers and recognised as an outstanding writer in his own genre. Many of his titles have been adapted for film - The Guns of the Navarone, The Satan Bug, Force Ten from Navarone, Where Eagles Dare and Bear Island are among the most famous.
Maclean is the author of twenty-nine world bestsellers and recognised as an outstanding writer in his own genre. Many of his titles have been adapted for film - The Guns of the Navarone, The Satan Bug, Force Ten from Navarone, Where Eagles Dare and Bear Island are among the most famous.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 151 reviews
October 25, 2023
I’m not entirely sure how I came to own this first edition hardback. The inscription is dedicated to my dad, from his parents, Christmas 1968.
I began reading this over twenty years ago. At school, we were tasked with writing a short story. I was so inspired by the little I had read, that my twelve-year-old-self took to writing his own World War II masterpiece. The room was silent when I felt the teacher hovering over my shoulder, followed by her announcement: “Remember people. There is to be no violence in your stories.�
Cue the sound of scrunching paper and the end of my story. I never wrote another word of anything for many years, and never picked up this book again. Until now.
We join Mallory and Miller straight after events in � a favourite book and film of mine. I’ll always imagine the actors playing these characters: Gregory Peck as Mallory, Anthony Quinn as Andrea, and David Niven as Miller. Perhaps just as well, because Force 10 from Navarone is a sequel to the film rather than book. It's also the only sequel MacLean wrote in his career.
The heroes of Navarone have no time to rest, and are given a new impossible mission. They are to be parachuted into war-torn Yugoslavia, where they are tasked with aiding the desperate Yugoslav Partisans.
I love these characters, especially Miller who brings the humour. It’s welcome relief in what otherwise appears a suicidal adventure. Perhaps I see myself in him.
“Miller took one brief glance at this terrifying prospect, stepped hurriedly back from the edge of the cliff and looked at Mallory in a silently dismayed incredulity.�
Also returning from the first book, though briefly, are Jensen and Maria. MacLean makes the fascinating choice to include two characters named Maria. One of them is new, who along with her blind singing brother, Petar, are the most interesting of these newcomers. MacLean blew my mind with a twist involving those two. Other new characters include commandos Reynolds, Groves, and Saunders. They came across as expendable cliche props, though Reynolds best described how I felt about the plot.
“The expression on his face clearly indicated that he had given up all attempts to understand what was going on.�
There are many twists and turns and double-crosses. It features other MacLean trademarks like impossible odds, escapes, and plenty of action, but the plot is too bogged down in complexity. It’s fine to keep the reader guessing, but at least give them something. I was stumbling around in the dark too often, which was frustrating, because the climax was gripping.
Not as good as its predecessor and unnecessarily confusing, Force 10 from Navarone still features great main characters, and was entertaining enough to keep me engaged.
“For now is all the time there may be.�
Note to Mrs Eley, Year 6:
So, I finally finished this, Mrs Eley. I’m also writing again. There's less scrunching of paper these days.
Note to Dad:
You can have your book back now.
I began reading this over twenty years ago. At school, we were tasked with writing a short story. I was so inspired by the little I had read, that my twelve-year-old-self took to writing his own World War II masterpiece. The room was silent when I felt the teacher hovering over my shoulder, followed by her announcement: “Remember people. There is to be no violence in your stories.�
Cue the sound of scrunching paper and the end of my story. I never wrote another word of anything for many years, and never picked up this book again. Until now.
We join Mallory and Miller straight after events in � a favourite book and film of mine. I’ll always imagine the actors playing these characters: Gregory Peck as Mallory, Anthony Quinn as Andrea, and David Niven as Miller. Perhaps just as well, because Force 10 from Navarone is a sequel to the film rather than book. It's also the only sequel MacLean wrote in his career.
The heroes of Navarone have no time to rest, and are given a new impossible mission. They are to be parachuted into war-torn Yugoslavia, where they are tasked with aiding the desperate Yugoslav Partisans.
I love these characters, especially Miller who brings the humour. It’s welcome relief in what otherwise appears a suicidal adventure. Perhaps I see myself in him.
“Miller took one brief glance at this terrifying prospect, stepped hurriedly back from the edge of the cliff and looked at Mallory in a silently dismayed incredulity.�
Also returning from the first book, though briefly, are Jensen and Maria. MacLean makes the fascinating choice to include two characters named Maria. One of them is new, who along with her blind singing brother, Petar, are the most interesting of these newcomers. MacLean blew my mind with a twist involving those two. Other new characters include commandos Reynolds, Groves, and Saunders. They came across as expendable cliche props, though Reynolds best described how I felt about the plot.
“The expression on his face clearly indicated that he had given up all attempts to understand what was going on.�
There are many twists and turns and double-crosses. It features other MacLean trademarks like impossible odds, escapes, and plenty of action, but the plot is too bogged down in complexity. It’s fine to keep the reader guessing, but at least give them something. I was stumbling around in the dark too often, which was frustrating, because the climax was gripping.
Not as good as its predecessor and unnecessarily confusing, Force 10 from Navarone still features great main characters, and was entertaining enough to keep me engaged.
“For now is all the time there may be.�
Note to Mrs Eley, Year 6:
So, I finally finished this, Mrs Eley. I’m also writing again. There's less scrunching of paper these days.
Note to Dad:
You can have your book back now.
May 27, 2023
A direct sequel to The Guns of Navarone, but where the original had a clear and simple mission, this one is convoluted. Keeping the exact details of their mission secret from the enemy is one thing, but keeping it secret from the reader meant I was quite often a bit lost as to what was actually going on. Fun to be had revisiting the characters though, and a few thrills along the way.
Want to read
October 23, 2020Watched the movie,which is the sequel to The Guns of Navarone. While the latter had Gregory Peck,Anthony Quinn and David Niven,this one has Harrison Ford,Bond girl Barbara Bach and Richard Keil (who played "Jaws" in James Bond films).
Harrison Ford is rather wooden,not his best performance.His character is not in the book and it seems the book and the movie differ a great deal.
The Guns of Navarone was a much better movie.This one is rather forgettable.
Harrison Ford is rather wooden,not his best performance.His character is not in the book and it seems the book and the movie differ a great deal.
The Guns of Navarone was a much better movie.This one is rather forgettable.
December 9, 2018
I grew up reading Alistair MacLean, and think it's a shame he isn't more well known today - believe all his books are currently out of print, and there are none in the Northern Virginia library system.
That said, he hasn't aged as well as some of his contemporaries, (but then neither has Ian Fleming). He had a few really great books - mostly his war and Cold War books (HMS Ulysses, Guns of Navarone, Ice Station Zebra, Where Eagles Dare) - and a bunch of real stinkers in his later career. But overall, both his plotting and writing style look a little convoluted by today's standards (I can still remember my Dad being totally confused by the movie version of Where Eagles Dare - "wait; so is Richard Burton bad now or still good?"), and this is clearly evident in this book as well. In addition, his characters engage in too much clever banter, he really can't write women, and he exhibits an omniscient POV that flits back and forth between what all the characters are thinking, and which is considered "bad writing" today.
Also, as MacLean's only sequel (that I know of), this story doesn't stack up against his classic Guns of Navarone. It's interestingly set in Bosnia, and so should ring particularly relevant today. But he never really gives us a feel for the setting - it could be any European forest with a bunch of generic guerillas taking on the Germans.
One final note: as with Guns, I've always assumed (but never seen any supporting story) that he intentionally named his mountain-climbing, New Zealand hero Mallory in honor of George Mallory, the famous climber who died trying to climb Mt. Everest, (later conquered by fellow kiwi Edmund Hillary).
So...good MacLean, but not great MacLean -- and so for anyone looking to explore this largely-forgotten author, I'd look elsewhere (including Netflix!).
That said, he hasn't aged as well as some of his contemporaries, (but then neither has Ian Fleming). He had a few really great books - mostly his war and Cold War books (HMS Ulysses, Guns of Navarone, Ice Station Zebra, Where Eagles Dare) - and a bunch of real stinkers in his later career. But overall, both his plotting and writing style look a little convoluted by today's standards (I can still remember my Dad being totally confused by the movie version of Where Eagles Dare - "wait; so is Richard Burton bad now or still good?"), and this is clearly evident in this book as well. In addition, his characters engage in too much clever banter, he really can't write women, and he exhibits an omniscient POV that flits back and forth between what all the characters are thinking, and which is considered "bad writing" today.
Also, as MacLean's only sequel (that I know of), this story doesn't stack up against his classic Guns of Navarone. It's interestingly set in Bosnia, and so should ring particularly relevant today. But he never really gives us a feel for the setting - it could be any European forest with a bunch of generic guerillas taking on the Germans.
One final note: as with Guns, I've always assumed (but never seen any supporting story) that he intentionally named his mountain-climbing, New Zealand hero Mallory in honor of George Mallory, the famous climber who died trying to climb Mt. Everest, (later conquered by fellow kiwi Edmund Hillary).
So...good MacLean, but not great MacLean -- and so for anyone looking to explore this largely-forgotten author, I'd look elsewhere (including Netflix!).
July 4, 2012
The movie was great... too bad it was nothing like the book, which was even better. The book starts with Mallory, Miller, and Andrea being picked up at an airfield in Greece. The movie has only Mallory and Miller being pulled out of the sea by the Royal Navy. The movie adds two Americans (Harrison Ford and Carl Weathers), which were not in the book. The movie also omits one of the most crucial characters in the book... Sgt. Reynolds. The rivalry/bickering between Miller and Reynolds in the book add so much to the plot, but the movie omitted it. Alistair MacLean actually wrote some of the screenplays for the movies made about his books. Unfortunately this is not one of them. Although there are gaping differences between the book and the movie, they are both great and I would recommend either to anyone. If I had to pick, as usual I think between the two� I’d pick the book.
June 11, 2018
As far as I know, this is the only Alistair MacLean novel that is a sequel, a follow-on to . But, strangely, it’s a sequel to the movie version of that novel rather than the novel itself and consequently a little bit confusing given the changes to the characters.
This book picks up immediately after the events of the first (movie version). And I do mean “immediately�. Perhaps 10 minutes have passed and the survivors of that first mission, (Captain Keith Mallory and Corporal Dusty Miller) now on the rescue boat, are told to turn back to shore in order to take on a new mission. They recruit their Greek comrade Andrea Stavros for the mission, code named “Force 10�. This time around, together with threeredshirts British Royal Marine Commandos, they parachute into Nazi-occupied Yugoslavia. Their mission: to aid the Yugoslav Partisans in their battle against the Nazi German occupiers. Of course this is an Alistair MacLean novel so there is a hidden mission, hidden even from the British Commandos.
Aside from the slight confusion of this being a sequel to the movie version of a prior novel, it is actually a pretty decent read. There is more confusion however, due to multiple layers of deception. The main characters act as double agents…and then triple agents and sometimes the characters themselves are unsure of who to trust. It does, however, all make sense…as long as you can follow it all.
Bottom line: not quite as good as Guns of Navarone but still worth reading, especially for MacLean fans.
This book picks up immediately after the events of the first (movie version). And I do mean “immediately�. Perhaps 10 minutes have passed and the survivors of that first mission, (Captain Keith Mallory and Corporal Dusty Miller) now on the rescue boat, are told to turn back to shore in order to take on a new mission. They recruit their Greek comrade Andrea Stavros for the mission, code named “Force 10�. This time around, together with three
Aside from the slight confusion of this being a sequel to the movie version of a prior novel, it is actually a pretty decent read. There is more confusion however, due to multiple layers of deception. The main characters act as double agents…and then triple agents and sometimes the characters themselves are unsure of who to trust. It does, however, all make sense…as long as you can follow it all.
Bottom line: not quite as good as Guns of Navarone but still worth reading, especially for MacLean fans.
Read
October 21, 2023I read this decades ago! I had forgotten about it until I just saw it in another feed. Needless to say I can't give it a specific rating because the only thing I remember about it is that I liked it. At that time I picked it up since I watched the movie because Harrison Ford was in it.
November 3, 2020
A good story with lots of tense moments, brimming with action. I was enticed into reading the book after having seen the movie and as it often turns out the book was much better than the movie (not to say that the movie is not a good one).
A recommended read to all fans of action stories, especially war stories.
A recommended read to all fans of action stories, especially war stories.
January 18, 2016
I'm a huge Harrison Ford fan so it's a wonder that I've never actually watched Force 10 From Navarone all the way through. I picked up the book a couple years ago, just getting around to reading it, because I'm one of 'those' people. You know, the ones who read the book because of the movie and vice versa as was the case with this book.
I must say that having not read (or even watched) Guns From Navarone didn't deter me in the least. After reading Force 10, I'm definitely going to hunt for Guns and maybe even other Allistair MacLean books. I normally don't get that itch where I simply can't put a book down and so read it in a short amount of time. This one, however, I did. Why?
The story was interesting and held me captive throughout. Yes, there are those unbelievable moments, even the author says so in his storytelling, yet it still manages to feel okay. It was the characters though that I enjoyed the most. I see a little of myself in Miller who is sarcastic. Then there's Andrea who provides some comic relief in the form of quips about his new bride. From beginning to end, I was intrigued by these characters and the ever unfolding plot.
I must say that having not read (or even watched) Guns From Navarone didn't deter me in the least. After reading Force 10, I'm definitely going to hunt for Guns and maybe even other Allistair MacLean books. I normally don't get that itch where I simply can't put a book down and so read it in a short amount of time. This one, however, I did. Why?
The story was interesting and held me captive throughout. Yes, there are those unbelievable moments, even the author says so in his storytelling, yet it still manages to feel okay. It was the characters though that I enjoyed the most. I see a little of myself in Miller who is sarcastic. Then there's Andrea who provides some comic relief in the form of quips about his new bride. From beginning to end, I was intrigued by these characters and the ever unfolding plot.
July 26, 2016
Took me a while to really get into this book, but wow,a cracking read which follows on from The Guns of Navarone. Same characters, and MacLean's descriptive passages kept me on edge. Brilliant.
December 30, 2019
Another fine book by Alistair MacLean. Although fairly fast-paced (it takes place over about four days) its detailed enough to fill a book.
The team that just blew up the (literally, they are just being pulled on to the ship) exhausted and battered from their efforts are sent on yet another mission. This time, they are tasked with diverting German forces from the front to Yugoslavia by saving partisans trapped in a valley.
The book is pretty standard MacLean with the strong British genius in charge of a very capable band of commandos, twists and turns, plots and cleverness, and tension all the way through. You never really know what is going on or who is who until about two thirds of the way through the book and there are still surprises all the way to the end.
The team that just blew up the (literally, they are just being pulled on to the ship) exhausted and battered from their efforts are sent on yet another mission. This time, they are tasked with diverting German forces from the front to Yugoslavia by saving partisans trapped in a valley.
The book is pretty standard MacLean with the strong British genius in charge of a very capable band of commandos, twists and turns, plots and cleverness, and tension all the way through. You never really know what is going on or who is who until about two thirds of the way through the book and there are still surprises all the way to the end.
January 28, 2015
After a successful mission of Navarone, both Mallory and Miller, who were the main characters of the book , go to Island of Kheros to pick up Andrea , an another important , hulk-like character of the book, who was there to get married with Maria. But it didn’t lasted long and form there their Journey began where they flew towards the Termoli Airfield located in Italy to meet the Captain Jensen, who then briefed them about the mission and sent them to the Neretva to help the Partisans lead by Gen. Vulkalovic who where somewhere trapped in the so called “Zenica Cage� along with the three Marine Sergeants: Reynolds, Groves and Saunders. Six of them then fly from the Termoli Base to the Neretva reveal the secret behind why the Allied agents parachuted before were getting disappeared trapped there. At first six of them meet the group of Partisans led by Dorshny, after which they meet the German Army Captain Neufeld, who then told that those people under Dorshny aren’t Partisans , they were Cetniks. Now here these six men are accompanied with two more persons Petar and Maria : of which Petar claimed to be blind and Maria claimed to be her sister , but their actual identities are revealed till the end (Petar turns out to be the head of British Espionage in Balkans and Maria was ferocious Cetnik fighter) . Along with the escorts those six cover some of the distance in asphyxiated truck and later Mallory meets the General Bronzik ,the place where the Saunders die. Mallory, Miller and Andrea were quite sure that killer was Dorshny : which at later point of time comes out to be true. But Reynolds consider that Mallory is betraying them, which turns out to be nothing more than absurdity.
Now after taking the information they go back to Neufeld and Dorshny where they capture both of them and make them move to the remote black-house where they find the four disappeared Army agents ,none of them was hurt. And then lock them inside the black-house, but as part of plan he keeps the keys for the following Sergeant Bear who was following them, which released them and then they followed the Mallory and the team. And again they go to the same black-house and again captures all of them , destroy their radio and close them inside but again making some arrangement for them so that they can follow them, as it was the part of the plan. General Zimmerman who was the German captain was clandestinely hidden in the woods of south of Neretva. Neufeld used to tell him by the radio about the plans of Mallory which in fact Mallory wanted Neufeld to send this information as it was all planned . Later comes the action packed climax. Lots of brutal killing happens. All the six persons go down to the Neretva Gorge after travelling through the old- locomotive and others means Dorshny and the team followed them. They tried to keep the Dorshny and the team to clung to the bridge where as at the same time Mallory and the Miller climbed through the ladder to the top of dam wall where they clamped the amatol cylinders on the walls of the dam. As Zimmerman was not having any idea about what is happening he kept almost all his soldiers concealed near and to the bridge in the south, which later due to the was totally vanished as the dam wall was being bombarded and all the waters from above 80 meters high fell down at the Neretva Gorge. So, that’s how Mallory and team finished the mission being camouflaged in the beginning playing the part of deserters which later in the book Mallory tell everybody that Neufeld and Dorshny already were aware of their true identities.
Personalities:-
Mallory:- A protagonist, laconic person with the best presence of mind which appears to be quite calm and serene in the starting but turns out to be the best decision maker and one of the best Mountain Climber.
Miller:- Witty, sarcastic all the time. The presence of mind ( if sarcasm is concerned) Is the best.
Some of the following quotes make it quite clear the level of his sarcasm:-
Just after the Andrea got married to Maria , and suddenly they ran in the altercation which made Maria to leave Andrea and�
Andrea said moodily “She’s gone home to her mother. �
Miller glanced at his watch .’One minute and twenty-five seconds,� he said admiringly. � A world record.�
Well there are just innumerable examples of his sarcasm and wittiness.
Andrea ( Captain Stavros):- Well it projects the image of Rambo. A hulk-like personality he bears. A berserk , which is always accompanied with acrid smelling cigarette.
Well , in this book , Andrea made a quote when he was totally exasperated and knowing that Capt. Jensen won’t allow them to rest and as they wanted rest, so he said the brilliant line :
“Luck deserts tired man.�
Reynolds, Groves and Saunders die at the end which gives the emotional touch to the dambusting, action packed storyline.
On the other hand, hats off to Alaster Mcclaen's verbosity and the way to express the tableau.
Now after taking the information they go back to Neufeld and Dorshny where they capture both of them and make them move to the remote black-house where they find the four disappeared Army agents ,none of them was hurt. And then lock them inside the black-house, but as part of plan he keeps the keys for the following Sergeant Bear who was following them, which released them and then they followed the Mallory and the team. And again they go to the same black-house and again captures all of them , destroy their radio and close them inside but again making some arrangement for them so that they can follow them, as it was the part of the plan. General Zimmerman who was the German captain was clandestinely hidden in the woods of south of Neretva. Neufeld used to tell him by the radio about the plans of Mallory which in fact Mallory wanted Neufeld to send this information as it was all planned . Later comes the action packed climax. Lots of brutal killing happens. All the six persons go down to the Neretva Gorge after travelling through the old- locomotive and others means Dorshny and the team followed them. They tried to keep the Dorshny and the team to clung to the bridge where as at the same time Mallory and the Miller climbed through the ladder to the top of dam wall where they clamped the amatol cylinders on the walls of the dam. As Zimmerman was not having any idea about what is happening he kept almost all his soldiers concealed near and to the bridge in the south, which later due to the was totally vanished as the dam wall was being bombarded and all the waters from above 80 meters high fell down at the Neretva Gorge. So, that’s how Mallory and team finished the mission being camouflaged in the beginning playing the part of deserters which later in the book Mallory tell everybody that Neufeld and Dorshny already were aware of their true identities.
Personalities:-
Mallory:- A protagonist, laconic person with the best presence of mind which appears to be quite calm and serene in the starting but turns out to be the best decision maker and one of the best Mountain Climber.
Miller:- Witty, sarcastic all the time. The presence of mind ( if sarcasm is concerned) Is the best.
Some of the following quotes make it quite clear the level of his sarcasm:-
Just after the Andrea got married to Maria , and suddenly they ran in the altercation which made Maria to leave Andrea and�
Andrea said moodily “She’s gone home to her mother. �
Miller glanced at his watch .’One minute and twenty-five seconds,� he said admiringly. � A world record.�
Well there are just innumerable examples of his sarcasm and wittiness.
Andrea ( Captain Stavros):- Well it projects the image of Rambo. A hulk-like personality he bears. A berserk , which is always accompanied with acrid smelling cigarette.
Well , in this book , Andrea made a quote when he was totally exasperated and knowing that Capt. Jensen won’t allow them to rest and as they wanted rest, so he said the brilliant line :
“Luck deserts tired man.�
Reynolds, Groves and Saunders die at the end which gives the emotional touch to the dambusting, action packed storyline.
On the other hand, hats off to Alaster Mcclaen's verbosity and the way to express the tableau.
May 19, 2012
By Alistair Maclean. #2 of the Navarone series. Grade: B+
The Guns of Navarone have been silenced. But the heroic survivors are form still. They are ready for action again � and are heading for even more excitement and danger. Their mission: to free an entire partisan army trapped in the rugged mountains of Yugoslavia. It begins with a parachute drop behind enemy lines and a deliberate walk into a German camp. Six men against the might of two armoured divisions. They couldn’t fight them. So they had to join them. And then somehow destroy them!
The story begins where The Guns of Navarone had left. Keith Mallory and his team, after successfully completing the seemingly impossible task of silencing the guns of Navarone, are given a hero’s welcome. But there is no respite to these heroes. As soon as they return, another task is waiting for them. A task, which crosses all limits of danger and borders on impossibility and insanity. The partisans of Yugoslavian army, fighting as allies to the British, have been trapped by the German army in the mountains and are facing an imminent threat of execution which would be a major setback to the British.
Mallory and his team, along with three new, young recruits, are asked to make a parachute drop into Yugoslavia where they walk into the German army camp as “informers� and manipulate them in order to make sure that the Germans change the spot of their attack, and that Mallory and his team are able to reach the trapped partisan army beforehand and ensure their survival. Thus the team embarks on another mission for the history books, unaware of the fact that they underestimated the enemy and that the enemy is on to them and is planning something entirely different and devious. How Captain Keith Mallory and his team plan to carry out this operation and meanwhile deal with the enemy counter-plotting in their desperate and frantic attempt to somehow stay alive, is what the plot encompasses.
This novel is typical Alistair Maclean style. The storyline in a warfront setting, the enviable pace at which the story progresses, the larger-than-life, seemingly-impossible-yet-has-to-be-done type task structure has Alistair Maclean written all over it. The basic thing which has to be kept in mind is that this is a sequel to “The Guns of Navarone� which is a certified classic. To keep up with the name is a burden which “Force 10 from Navarone� has fairly lived up to. The war sequences are par excellence and the detailing when it comes to warfront and espionage is really commendable. The characters of the novel already had a foundation which makes it even more effective to develop upon, especially the main characters of Mallory, Andrea, Millers and Reynolds.
The one thing which can be found in plenty in the novel is the twists. There are so many twists in the novel that it sometimes goes over-the-top. It becomes difficult to explain how the protagonists are able to so easily manipulate the enemy to their advantage and that too on so many occasions. The lack of clarity in explaining the immediate scenario can sometimes confuse the reader. There is a certain shortage of explosive content and wit in the storyline which can make it a little dull at times.
Overall, the novel is a good read and comes in handy when you have too much time on your hands to kill.
Originally reviewed at:
The Guns of Navarone have been silenced. But the heroic survivors are form still. They are ready for action again � and are heading for even more excitement and danger. Their mission: to free an entire partisan army trapped in the rugged mountains of Yugoslavia. It begins with a parachute drop behind enemy lines and a deliberate walk into a German camp. Six men against the might of two armoured divisions. They couldn’t fight them. So they had to join them. And then somehow destroy them!
The story begins where The Guns of Navarone had left. Keith Mallory and his team, after successfully completing the seemingly impossible task of silencing the guns of Navarone, are given a hero’s welcome. But there is no respite to these heroes. As soon as they return, another task is waiting for them. A task, which crosses all limits of danger and borders on impossibility and insanity. The partisans of Yugoslavian army, fighting as allies to the British, have been trapped by the German army in the mountains and are facing an imminent threat of execution which would be a major setback to the British.
Mallory and his team, along with three new, young recruits, are asked to make a parachute drop into Yugoslavia where they walk into the German army camp as “informers� and manipulate them in order to make sure that the Germans change the spot of their attack, and that Mallory and his team are able to reach the trapped partisan army beforehand and ensure their survival. Thus the team embarks on another mission for the history books, unaware of the fact that they underestimated the enemy and that the enemy is on to them and is planning something entirely different and devious. How Captain Keith Mallory and his team plan to carry out this operation and meanwhile deal with the enemy counter-plotting in their desperate and frantic attempt to somehow stay alive, is what the plot encompasses.
This novel is typical Alistair Maclean style. The storyline in a warfront setting, the enviable pace at which the story progresses, the larger-than-life, seemingly-impossible-yet-has-to-be-done type task structure has Alistair Maclean written all over it. The basic thing which has to be kept in mind is that this is a sequel to “The Guns of Navarone� which is a certified classic. To keep up with the name is a burden which “Force 10 from Navarone� has fairly lived up to. The war sequences are par excellence and the detailing when it comes to warfront and espionage is really commendable. The characters of the novel already had a foundation which makes it even more effective to develop upon, especially the main characters of Mallory, Andrea, Millers and Reynolds.
The one thing which can be found in plenty in the novel is the twists. There are so many twists in the novel that it sometimes goes over-the-top. It becomes difficult to explain how the protagonists are able to so easily manipulate the enemy to their advantage and that too on so many occasions. The lack of clarity in explaining the immediate scenario can sometimes confuse the reader. There is a certain shortage of explosive content and wit in the storyline which can make it a little dull at times.
Overall, the novel is a good read and comes in handy when you have too much time on your hands to kill.
Originally reviewed at:
September 27, 2018
Great story, but a bit awkward in its attempt to shoehorn the plot into a sequel to The Guns of Navarone.
August 14, 2021
Good book, Liked the story This book has commandos, Germans, Partisans, And Spies whats not to like, danger, Intrigue, explosives and lots of action.
June 14, 2011
I finally managed to read “Force 10 from Navarone� by Alistair Maclean even though I had bought it long time back. This is a sequel to his other famous book “The Guns of Navarone�. The same characters Mallory, Miller and Andrea from earlier book are chosen to go on another mission just after they destroy Guns of Navarone. This time they are asked to get deep into Yugoslavia in a secret mission to help Yugoslav Partisans against Germans and Chetniks.
This mission is described in multiple layers and the true nature of the mission is not clear till the end of the book. This book is about double, triple and multiple crosses. Enemy playing friend and enemy at the same time and Friends playing enemy with each other. It gets confusing at times but true to his style, author has handled the story very well and I remained glued to the book till the end.
As is true with most of the books, the timelines of the mission are within one or two days and time moves really slow and characters in the story move really fast. They are shown almost as superhumans who are able to achieve something great even with lack of sleep and rest.
I had a very different effect on me with this book. We get so much worried by the stress that we feel in our lives and specifically during at our workplace but truly speaking what we have to go through is really nothing. At worst, we may get angry remarks from our bosses or customer, we may get less salary or in a really worst case get expelled from our jobs. But when people like Mallory go on their work, the best thing that can happen to them is probably death and worst would be falling into hands of enemy and getting tortured. No doubt that our life is difficult but when compared to our war heroes, we actually live on bed of roses.
May 5, 2021
Comandorul Vincent Ryan din Marina Regală, ofiţer de stat-major şi comandantul lui HMS Sirdar, cel mai recent distrugător de clasa S, se sprijini mai bine în coate de balustrada punţii de comandă, scoase binoclul de noapte şi scrută gânditor întinderea calmă şi argintie a Mării Egee, luminată doar de razele palide ale lunii.
Mai întâi privi spre nord, drept peste valul de etravă imens, alb fosforescent, cu contururi clare, ridicat de pintenul tăios ca o lamă al distrugătorului: la patru mile depărtare, nu mai mult, profilată pe cerul indigo cu stele diamantine, se afla masa întunecată a unei insule înconjurate de coaste stâncoase - insula Kheros, de luni de zile avanpostul îndepărtat a două mii de soldaţi britanici blocaţi aici, care se aşteptaseră să moară în acea noapte, şi care acum nu vor mai muri.
Ryan îşi roti binoclul la 180° şi dădu din cap satisfăcut. Asta era ce-i plăcea să vadă. Cele patru distrugătoare aflate spre sud erau atât de perfect aliniate provă-pupă, încât corpul navei cap de linie le întuneca complet pe cele trei din spatele său. Ryan îşi întoarse binoclul spre est.E ciudat, îşi spuse el fără nici o legătură cu ceea ce vedea, cât de neînsemnate, chiar dezamăgitoare, pot fi urmările unui dezastru natural, sau chiar ale unuia creat de mâna omului. Dacă n-ar fi fost acea slabă licărire roşietică şi şuviţa de fum ce se ridica deasupra coastei, dând peisajului o vagă aură dantescă ameninţătoare, plină de prevestiri funeste, peretele abrupt din fundul portului ar fi arătat la fel cum fusese probabil şi pe vremea lui Homer.
Mai întâi privi spre nord, drept peste valul de etravă imens, alb fosforescent, cu contururi clare, ridicat de pintenul tăios ca o lamă al distrugătorului: la patru mile depărtare, nu mai mult, profilată pe cerul indigo cu stele diamantine, se afla masa întunecată a unei insule înconjurate de coaste stâncoase - insula Kheros, de luni de zile avanpostul îndepărtat a două mii de soldaţi britanici blocaţi aici, care se aşteptaseră să moară în acea noapte, şi care acum nu vor mai muri.
Ryan îşi roti binoclul la 180° şi dădu din cap satisfăcut. Asta era ce-i plăcea să vadă. Cele patru distrugătoare aflate spre sud erau atât de perfect aliniate provă-pupă, încât corpul navei cap de linie le întuneca complet pe cele trei din spatele său. Ryan îşi întoarse binoclul spre est.E ciudat, îşi spuse el fără nici o legătură cu ceea ce vedea, cât de neînsemnate, chiar dezamăgitoare, pot fi urmările unui dezastru natural, sau chiar ale unuia creat de mâna omului. Dacă n-ar fi fost acea slabă licărire roşietică şi şuviţa de fum ce se ridica deasupra coastei, dând peisajului o vagă aură dantescă ameninţătoare, plină de prevestiri funeste, peretele abrupt din fundul portului ar fi arătat la fel cum fusese probabil şi pe vremea lui Homer.
January 8, 2019
The follow up to The Guns of Navarone follows up directly where the first novel left off. In fact, between the two novels they cover a period of just 7 days. Once again Mallory, Miller and Stavros are off on a deadly commando mission. This time the true nature of the mission is left fairly obscure until the final third. As a result I spent much of the middle section of the novel wondering where this was all going. However, when that final third kicks off, the thrills are non-stop as the novel runs towards its climax. I've seen the film version adaptations of both Navarone novels, and while the movie of 'Force 10' pales in comparison to the movie of 'Guns', the novel of 'Force 10' is a more-than-capable follow up to the first novel, despite suffering a little from the law of diminishing returns. The ending sets up another 'Navarone' adventure, but Maclean never did return to this series, which to be fair is possibly not a bad thing.
December 13, 2011
Having done deeds of derring-do on Navarone and exposed the enemy's informer, the team of crack mountaineer, explosives expert, silent killer and radio expert are looking forward to a well earned rest. But no, there is a crisis in the Balkans that only they can resolve and with the minimum of briefing they are dropped into the thick of it again.
I loved The Guns of Navarone (the book, not the film) and found it at exactly the right age. There were still heroes who were human, not super, and the GoN fulfilled the quota of good guys vanquishing bad guys (ethnicity not important). However, F10FN follows the law of sequels; you have to make them work bloody hard to remain convincing. Unfortunately, already knowing what the team are capable of doing, the fact that they do it is pretty mundane which detracts from the plausibility.
I loved The Guns of Navarone (the book, not the film) and found it at exactly the right age. There were still heroes who were human, not super, and the GoN fulfilled the quota of good guys vanquishing bad guys (ethnicity not important). However, F10FN follows the law of sequels; you have to make them work bloody hard to remain convincing. Unfortunately, already knowing what the team are capable of doing, the fact that they do it is pretty mundane which detracts from the plausibility.
March 12, 2014
This is a terrific followup to the classic "The Guns Of Navarone". Our intrepid trio are barely off the island of Navarone before being whisked off to a new challenge. They are parachuted into war-torn Yugoslavia to save a group of partisans and complete a mission that is so secret, they cannot even tell their allies. Like the first story, the characters are really well developed and the story moves at a breathless pace to its very satisfying conclusion.
This has also been turned into a film, unfortunately no where near as good as the original. Gregory Peck is replaced by Robert Shaw, David Niven by Edward Fox and the movie completely eliminates the character of Andreas played by Anthony Quinn in the original film despite the fact that the character is in the book. Added to the cast is Harrison Ford in one of his first post-Star Wars films. Ultimately it was just a so-so film.
This has also been turned into a film, unfortunately no where near as good as the original. Gregory Peck is replaced by Robert Shaw, David Niven by Edward Fox and the movie completely eliminates the character of Andreas played by Anthony Quinn in the original film despite the fact that the character is in the book. Added to the cast is Harrison Ford in one of his first post-Star Wars films. Ultimately it was just a so-so film.
March 5, 2016
Liked this book, perhaps a little less than Guns of Navarone. That was a pretty straightforward story, this is so twisted that it seems like Alistair MacLean is trying to confuse you on purpose. This book was a lot more like the movie Where Eagles Dare (which I shall have to look for in book form to see how that is). Lots of twists and turns and secrets kept from the reader, and not a few of these put in perhaps just for the sake of being a twist and not really propelling the story any.
One other commentor said the banter between the main characters got a little much in this book, and I can see what they mean. It was acceptable, but perhaps a little on the excessive side. Also, I can't remember Andrea having such a compulsion to smoke in the last book ... where did that come from?
Anyway ... a not so bad way to pass a couple of cloudy cold March afternoons.
One other commentor said the banter between the main characters got a little much in this book, and I can see what they mean. It was acceptable, but perhaps a little on the excessive side. Also, I can't remember Andrea having such a compulsion to smoke in the last book ... where did that come from?
Anyway ... a not so bad way to pass a couple of cloudy cold March afternoons.
October 23, 2018
‘The Guns of Navarone� (1957) was a massive bestseller adapted (with little fidelity) into an inexplicably popular film (1961). After the film cleaned up at the box office and then went back for more, MacLean prepared a screen treatment for a sequel. It sat in development hell until 1978. In 1968, with no glimmer of the film on the horizon, MacLean published it as a novel. But he stuck with the original pitch, so it serves - weirdly - as a direct sequel to the film of ‘The Guns of Navarone� and therefore creates some continuity problems as a literary sequel. Ironically, when ‘Force 10 from Navarone� finally got the big screen treatment (it was a relative flip) the script went and changed half of the action of the novel anyway. All of that notwithstanding, this remains solid mid-tier MacLean with plenty of incident, a big set-piece finale and moments of white-knuckle tension.
February 25, 2011
It has been over ten years since I read MacLean's masterpiece, "The Guns of Navarone", but this novel picks up instantly after the events in that novel. Now, while I reflect upon it, "Guns" was one of my favorite war novels of all time. "Force 10" did not have the same intensity, and was at times hard to follow. The author intentionally keeps us in the dark about what the infamous Captain Mallory and his crew have to do, but he does it so often with so many twists, that I got bogged down early on in the novel. Once Mallory's mission became clear, the action picked up, and the shooting began in earnest. If you could cut out the first 100 pages this novel would have been two things: a) a better read, and b) a short story as the whole thing was only 223 pages in length to begin with.
March 15, 2017
A sequel to MacLean's earlier novel The Guns of Navarone, this book sees Mallory, Andrea and Miller forming a new commando team consisting of Royal Marines Reynolds, Groves and Sanders, and heading to war-torn Yugoslavia to help the partisan forces of General Vukalovic overcome the superior German armored forces, and also to rescue some British officers being held prisoner by the Germans. Along the way, the group meets a blind musician named Petar and his sister Maria, and find themselves up against German officer Captain Neufeld and his bloodthirsty, brutish ally, the Cetnik leader Captain Droshny. There's a lot of good action in this. There's a great knife fight between Andrea and Droshny, and the climax at the dam is probably MacLean's best action scene.
February 10, 2017
This book picks up right where Guns of Navarone leaves off, I mean they are not even off the boat and Jensen has another assignment for them. Front and center we still have Mallory, Andrea and Miller, plus additional characters, some good, some bad, MacLean uses them all to take us on a breathtaking journey into the rugged Yugoslavian mountains. One scene in the book is priceless,
Maria: "leave me," she said. "Please leave me."
"Out of the question,"Andrea said firmly. "Maria would never forgive me."
"Maria?"
"Not you."Andrea lifted her on to his back and wound her arms around his neck. "My wife. I think I'm going to be terrified of her."
I was sorry when the book ended, I wanted to go on another adventure with them.
Maria: "leave me," she said. "Please leave me."
"Out of the question,"Andrea said firmly. "Maria would never forgive me."
"Maria?"
"Not you."Andrea lifted her on to his back and wound her arms around his neck. "My wife. I think I'm going to be terrified of her."
I was sorry when the book ended, I wanted to go on another adventure with them.
July 20, 2016
This book is a far cry from the movie of the same name, and that is no disrespect. Where the movie is an effortless, entertaining and character-driven war story, the book is an intelligent and suspenseful spy-novel. It is written thoughtfully and importantly, and has quite a few twists and turns in store for you, so stay on your toes for this one. With great attention to detail and a laundry list of events and characters to keep track of, this is a great read for "active readers", although people looking for something light and entertaining may find it frustrating. I thoroughly enjoyed it though, so you should too.
June 13, 2015
Found this book extremely confusing the first time I read it because, silly me, I thought it was a sequel to "The Guns of Navarone" ... it's actually a sequel to the movie version of "Guns" and has characters from the film that never appeared in (or, in one bizarre case, had their gender changed!) the original novel. Even after eventually seeing the movie and then re-reading this book I still found this a very poor follow-up ... I really should get rid of my copy as bookcase space is too precious to be wasted on bad books.
April 10, 2018
Finished Force Ten after finishing The Guns of....
I have also seen both movies and as in most cases of book vs movie i do prefer the books. I also think the movies really missed by not staying as close to the books as they could have.
Force ten in particular.
Force 10 was an enjoyable read and it was nice to have the characters grow more. The story hs the main characters going to Yugoslavia to help with the partisans fight against the Germans.
The 'plot twist' that Maclean is know for is not as 'twisty' as some of his others, but he does not disappoint.
I have also seen both movies and as in most cases of book vs movie i do prefer the books. I also think the movies really missed by not staying as close to the books as they could have.
Force ten in particular.
Force 10 was an enjoyable read and it was nice to have the characters grow more. The story hs the main characters going to Yugoslavia to help with the partisans fight against the Germans.
The 'plot twist' that Maclean is know for is not as 'twisty' as some of his others, but he does not disappoint.
June 25, 2018
Doesn't resemble the 1970's film version all that much. I found the plot overly complex. I just couldn't believe they could be that lucky or that smart (or their intelligence was flawless.) And, the whole plot timing was just too close. I enjoyed it, but the author just went too far, I think. Not sure if our friends jumped the shark or not, but it is a question. I guess I've read too much history to take this seriously. Funny though, I keep going back to revisit these classics from my childhood, and he did get quite a few books on to the big screen, so hats off to the author.
October 2, 2007
Ok, this book is based partly on the movie and NOT on the preceeding book. However, that didn't stop me from enjoying it anyway.
I was living in Greece when I found Guns of Navarone and then Force 10, so I really enjoyed the description of the countryside, the islands and the people.
A good read, and yes, if you get the chance, you should see the movie. It was actually a fairly decent job on the movie, unlike most, so I can give it a couple of thumbs up.
I was living in Greece when I found Guns of Navarone and then Force 10, so I really enjoyed the description of the countryside, the islands and the people.
A good read, and yes, if you get the chance, you should see the movie. It was actually a fairly decent job on the movie, unlike most, so I can give it a couple of thumbs up.
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