Bas's bookshelf: all en-US Tue, 21 Jan 2025 22:38:37 -0800 60 Bas's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[War Games: The Psychology of Combat]]> 39461417 285 Leo Murray 1785903640 Bas 5 4.16 War Games: The Psychology of Combat
author: Leo Murray
name: Bas
average rating: 4.16
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/21
date added: 2025/01/21
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<![CDATA[Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II]]> 18994697 SELECTED BY THE ECONOMIST AS ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR

Remarkable as it may seem today, there once was a time when the president of the United States could pick up the phone and ask the president of General Motors to resign his position and take the reins of a great national enterprise. And the CEO would oblige, no questions asked, because it was his patriotic duty.

In Freedom’s Forge, bestselling author Arthur Herman takes us back to that time, revealing how two extraordinary American businessmen—automobile magnate William Knudsen and shipbuilder Henry J. Kaiser—helped corral, cajole, and inspire business leaders across the country to mobilize the “arsenal of democracy� that propelled the Allies to victory in World War II.

“Knudsen? I want to see you in Washington. I want you to work on some production matters.� With those words, President Franklin D. Roosevelt enlisted “Big Bill� Knudsen, a Danish immigrant who had risen through the ranks of the auto industry to become president of General Motors, to drop his plans for market domination and join the U.S. Army. Commissioned a lieutenant general, Knudsen assembled a crack team of industrial innovators, persuading them one by one to leave their lucrative private sector positions and join him in Washington, D.C. Dubbed the “dollar-a-year men,� these dedicated patriots quickly took charge of America’s moribund war production effort.

Henry J. Kaiser was a maverick California industrialist famed for his innovative business techniques and his can-do management style. He, too, joined the cause. His Liberty ships became World War II icons—and the Kaiser name became so admired that FDR briefly considered making him his vice president in 1944. Together, Knudsen and Kaiser created a wartime production behemoth. Drafting top talent from companies like Chrysler, Republic Steel, Boeing, Lockheed, GE, and Frigidaire, they turned auto plants into aircraft factories and civilian assembly lines into fountains of munitions, giving Americans fighting in Europe and Asia the tools they needed to defeat the Axis. In four short years they transformed America’s army from a hollow shell into a truly global force, laying the foundations for a new industrial America—and for the country’s rise as an economic as well as military superpower.

Featuring behind-the-scenes portraits of FDR, George Marshall, Henry Stimson, Harry Hopkins, Jimmy Doolittle, and Curtis LeMay, as well as scores of largely forgotten heroes and heroines of the wartime industrial effort, Freedom’s Forge is the American story writ large. It vividly re-creates American industry’s finest hour, when the nation’s business elites put aside their pursuit of profits and set about saving the world.

Praise for Freedom’s Forge

“A rambunctious book that is itself alive with the animal spirits of the marketplace.”�The Wall Street Journal

“A rarely told industrial saga, rich with particulars of the growing pains and eventual triumphs of American industry . . . Arthur Herman has set out to right an injustice: the loss, down history’s memory hole, of the epic achievements of American business in helping the United States and its allies win World War II.”�The New York Times Book Review

“Magnificent . . .]]>
433 Arthur Herman Bas 5 4.51 2012 Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II
author: Arthur Herman
name: Bas
average rating: 4.51
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/05
date added: 2025/01/05
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Razor Girl (Andrew Yancy) 31285388 Key West is a small place, but there are criminal secrets buried everywhere . . .

When jumped-up reality TV star Buck Nance aggravates the crowd in a Key West bar, he incites a riot and vanishes in the melee. His hapless agent Lane Coolman should have been by Buck's side, but has been accidentally taken hostage by two petty criminals who now think they can turn a quick profit by ransoming an LA talent agent.

As the search for Buck continues, the mystery draws in a broad cast of characters from across the island including Andrew Yancy, the disgraced cop who now works restaurants on roach patrol; a delusional fan of Buck's show; the local sheriff who's desperate for re-election; a shady lawyer and his gold-digging fiancée; the gay mayor and his restauranteur partner; a Mafioso hotelier; and a redheaded con artist named Merry who, using a razor blade and a high-speed car, has developed a signature way of luring in her victims.

Outrageously funny, fast-paced and uniquely addictive, Razor Girl will keep you utterly gripped until the final page.

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402 Carl Hiaasen 1405530693 Bas 5 4.20 2016 Razor Girl (Andrew Yancy)
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Bas
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2024/12/03
date added: 2024/12/03
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Bad Monkey (Andrew Yancy, 1) 19007726
Andrew's search for the truth takes him to the Bahamas, where a local man, with the help of a very bad monkey (who allegedly worked on the Pirates of the Caribbean movies) is doing everything in his power to prevent a developer from building a new tourist resort on the island, with deadly consequences . . .

Outrageous, hilarious and addictive, this is the unique Carl Hiaasen at his absolute best. Bad Monkey will have you on the edge of your seat and laughing out loud.]]>
337 Carl Hiaasen Bas 5 3.98 2013 Bad Monkey (Andrew Yancy, 1)
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Bas
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2013
rating: 5
read at: 2024/11/22
date added: 2024/11/22
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Lucky You 73655200 From the New York Times bestselling author of Squeeze Me, a novel starring three lottery winners, two heavily armed psychopaths, and a big-city investigative journalist set deep in Florida Bay.

Grange, Florida, is, famous for its miracles-the weeping fiberglass Madonna, the Road-Stain Jesus, the stigmata man. And now it has JoLayne Lucks, unlikely winner of the state lottery. Unfortunately, JoLayne's winning ticket isn't the only one. The other belongs to Bodean Gazzer and his raunchy sidekick, Chub, who want the whole $28 million jackpot to start their own underground militia.

The pursuit takes them to a buzzard-infested island deep in Florida Bay, where they finally catch up with the fledgling militia-and their baffled hostage, a Hooters waitress. The climax explodes with the hilarious mayhem that is Carl Hiaasen's hallmark. Lucky You is his funniest, most deliriously gripping novel yet.]]>
448 Carl Hiaasen 1408729164 Bas 5 4.49 1997 Lucky You
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Bas
average rating: 4.49
book published: 1997
rating: 5
read at: 2024/11/16
date added: 2024/11/16
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<![CDATA[Code Blue (Charlie Cooper Thrillers #5)]]> 216370719 A kidnapped agent. A race against time. A deadly conspiracy that could shatter global security.

Former MI6 officer Charlie Cooper is thrust into a high-stakes mission when a fellow operative, codenamed NORTH STAR, vanishes in Macao. The trail leads to a shadowy team of Russian mercenaries with a chilling to expose Group Fifteen, the clandestine organisation that operates beyond the reach of conventional intelligence agencies.

Cooper races to New York, believing the Russians will unveil their shocking plan at the upcoming UN General Assembly. Operating undercover as a lowly IT technician, he infiltrates the Russian delegation and forms a dangerous alliance with Irina, a disillusioned diplomat trapped in a brutal relationship with a ruthless intelligence officer.

As the clock ticks down, Irina's loyalty is tested, Cooper's cover is threatened, and NORTH STAR's true allegiance remains a mystery.

Will Cooper expose the Russian plot and escape with his life? Or will the Group's secrets be revealed to the world?]]>
137 Mark Dawson Bas 5 4.35 Code Blue (Charlie Cooper Thrillers #5)
author: Mark Dawson
name: Bas
average rating: 4.35
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rating: 5
read at: 2024/11/03
date added: 2024/11/03
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<![CDATA[Dead of Winter (Charlie Cooper Thrillers #4)]]> 212430271
But then Cooper meets a young man who has fallen under the spell of the group's charismatic leader... will he be able to ignore his conscience and follow his orders, or will he complicate matters by trying to get the young man to safety first?]]>
135 Mark Dawson Bas 4 4.36 Dead of Winter (Charlie Cooper Thrillers #4)
author: Mark Dawson
name: Bas
average rating: 4.36
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2024/11/02
date added: 2024/11/02
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When We Were Gods 219963054
Alexandria, 51 BC: When Cleopatra VII assumes the throne of Egypt, the Roman empire rules the Mediterranean with an iron fist. But Cleopatra has an audacious plan to change the course of history. Allied first with Caesar and then with his protégé Marc Antony, she dares to challenge the might of Rome.

What follows is a bloody game of thrones, in the palaces and on the battlefields of Greece, Syria and Egypt.]]>
407 Colin Falconer 064581444X Bas 0 currently-reading 4.25 1999 When We Were Gods
author: Colin Falconer
name: Bas
average rating: 4.25
book published: 1999
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/10/27
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<![CDATA[Skin Tight (Mick Stranahan #1)]]> 9675213 After dispatching a pistol-packing intruder from his home with the help of a stuffed Marlin head, Mick Stranahan can't deny that someone is out to get him. His now-deceased intruder carries no I.D., and as a former Florida state investigator, Stranahan knows there are plenty of potential culprits. His long list of enemies includes an off point hit man, a personal injury lawyer of billboard fame, a notoriously irritating TV journalist, and a fumbling plastic surgeon.
Now, if he wants to keep fishing into his golden years, Stranahan has no choice but to come out of retirement to close this one last case...
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417 Carl Hiaasen 1101436638 Bas 5 4.18 1989 Skin Tight (Mick Stranahan #1)
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Bas
average rating: 4.18
book published: 1989
rating: 5
read at: 2024/10/26
date added: 2024/10/26
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<![CDATA[The Fighting Captain: The Story of Frederic Walker RN CB DSO & The Battle of the Atlantic (Pen & Sword Military Classics)]]> 22874319 No one did more to regain control of the North Atlantic than Captain Walker. His relentless battle with the U-boat Wolf packs, amounting almost to a personal duel with Admiral Donitz, is an epic saga which has long deserved a larger page in the story of our nation's history, though he did achieve the rare distinction of winning the DSO and three bars.

Alan Burn, who served under Walker, brilliantly recaptures the feeling of those dramatic days - the sheer bloody hell of the Atlantic weather, the ever-present menace of the lurking U-boats, but above all the quite remarkable and indomitable spirit which Walker managed to inspire in all who served in the ships under his command.

Not only the citizens of Liverpool, where Walker is still revered as a local hero, but all who hold freedom dear will appreciate this well-merited tribute to a largely unsung hero who did as much as any man to preserve that freedom.

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358 Alan Burn 1473809622 Bas 5 4.50 1993 The Fighting Captain: The Story of Frederic Walker RN CB DSO & The Battle of the Atlantic (Pen & Sword Military Classics)
author: Alan Burn
name: Bas
average rating: 4.50
book published: 1993
rating: 5
read at: 2024/10/20
date added: 2024/10/20
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Flush 53927139 272 Carl Hiaasen Bas 5 4.35 2005 Flush
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Bas
average rating: 4.35
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2024/10/20
date added: 2024/10/20
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Tourist Season 51161286
The first sign of trouble is a Shriner's fez washed up on a Miami beach. The next is a suitcase containing the almost-legless body of the local chamber of commerce president found floating in a canal...

The locals are desperate to keep the murders under wraps and the tourist money flowing. But it will take a reporter-turned–private eye to make sense of a caper that mixes football players, politicians, and one very hungry crocodile in this classic mystery that GQ called “one of the top ten destination reads of all time.”]]>
388 Carl Hiaasen Bas 5 4.13 1986 Tourist Season
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Bas
average rating: 4.13
book published: 1986
rating: 5
read at: 2024/10/12
date added: 2024/10/12
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<![CDATA[When Heroes Flew (When Heroes Flew #1)]]> 51883947
Dispatched to Benghazi, Libya, on mysterious orders, he finds nearly 200 other B-24 bombers being assembled...and a top secret assignment that will catapult them all into seemingly impenetrable Nazi defenses.

Their mission: a daring low-level attack on Hitler’s extensive oil refineries.

But when his co-pilot falls ill, Albert is forced to secretly find help from an unlikely source—a female pilot who ferried a bomber from America.

Together, the two launch on the most daring bombing raid of WWII...and into the pages of history.

WHEN HEROES FLEW is a novel of extraordinary bravery, based on the true story of one of the most historic air raids ever flown. With perspectives from American and German pilots alike, this gripping thriller will keep you turning pages until the fateful ending.]]>
315 H.W. "Buzz" Bernard Bas 0 currently-reading 4.52 2020 When Heroes Flew (When Heroes Flew #1)
author: H.W. "Buzz" Bernard
name: Bas
average rating: 4.52
book published: 2020
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/10/08
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<![CDATA[The Admirals: Nimitz, Halsey, Leahy, and King--The Five-Star Admirals Who Won the War at Sea]]> 19816924 How history's only five-star admirals triumphed in World War II and made the United States the world's dominant sea power.

Only four men in American history have been promoted to the five-star rank of Admiral of the Fleet: William Leahy, Ernest King, Chester Nimitz, and William Halsey. These four men were the best and the brightest the navy produced, and together they led the U.S. navy to victory in World War II, establishing the United States as the world's greatest fleet.

In THE ADMIRALS, award-winning historian Walter R. Borneman tells their story in full detail for the first time. Drawing upon journals, ship logs, and other primary sources, he brings an incredible historical moment to life, showing us how the four admirals revolutionized naval warfare forever with submarines and aircraft carriers, and how these men-who were both friends and rivals-worked together to ensure that the Axis fleets lay destroyed on the ocean floor at the end of World War II.]]>
522 Walter R. Borneman Bas 0 currently-reading 4.48 2011 The Admirals: Nimitz, Halsey, Leahy, and King--The Five-Star Admirals Who Won the War at Sea
author: Walter R. Borneman
name: Bas
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/10/02
shelves: currently-reading
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Wrecker 62366720 329 Carl Hiaasen 0593376307 Bas 4 4.30 2023 Wrecker
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Bas
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2024/09/28
date added: 2024/09/28
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Hoot 49212365 Hilarious, touching and thought-provoking, Hoot is a modern classic, now celebrating its fifteenth anniversary. Winner of the Newbery Honor award and a New York Times bestseller, Carl Hiaasen's first novel celebrates the natural world with his trademark wit and warmth.

Roy Eberhardt never wanted to move to Florida. In his opinion, Disney World is an armpit.

Roy’s family moves around a lot so he’s used to the new-kid drill � he's also used to bullies like Dana Matherson. And anyway, it’s because of Dana that Roy gets to see the mysterious running boy who runs away from the school bus and who has no books, no backpack and, most bizarrely, no shoes.

Sensing a mystery, Roy starts to trail the mystery runner � a chase that will introduce him to many weird Floridian potty-trained alligators, cute burrowing owls, a fake-fart champion, a shoeless eco-warrior, a sinister pancake PR man, new friends and some snakes with sparkly tails. As the plot thickens, Roy and his friends realise it's up to them to save the endangered owls from the evil Mother Paula's pancake company who are planning to build a new restaurant on their home . . .]]>
220 Carl Hiaasen 1529035813 Bas 5 4.33 2002 Hoot
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Bas
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2002
rating: 5
read at: 2024/09/19
date added: 2024/09/19
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Chomp 19050063 306 Carl Hiaasen 1444006193 Bas 5 4.08 2012 Chomp
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Bas
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2024/09/15
date added: 2024/09/15
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Converso 216252558 From the dungeons of the Inquisition to the last days of the Reconquista and the fall of Granada, this is a sweeping tale of loyalty, betrayal and courage set in medieval Spain.

Seville 1490: Diego Vasquez is one of the city's most famous painters. His murals and triptychs grace every church and cathedral. But he is also a converso, and so despite his reputation he lives every day in fear.

Raul Beltran is a knight in the service of the king. A man of action. He has everything, except the woman he loves. He’ll do anything to get her.

While the Inquisition hunts for heretics and the Spanish king sets out to capture Granada, Diego and Raul are thrown into their own life and death struggle. Should a man defy his family, his church and even his own ambition for the sake of his soul?
‘Beautifully rendered and highly recommended� Great Historicals.
'Spectacular historical fiction blazing with romance, intrigue and dramatic action.' Booklist.

Previously published as A Great Love of Small Proportion. This revised edition is different from the original and contains additional scenes.

Experience the Epic Adventure Series

Thrilling journeys through vividly imagined worlds, heart pounding action and unforgettable characters.
Multi-bestselling stand-alone tales that can be read in any order.
25,000+ five-star reviews.

Part thriller. Part history. All adventure.]]>
327 Colin Falconer 0645814431 Bas 5 4.37 2016 Converso
author: Colin Falconer
name: Bas
average rating: 4.37
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2024/08/04
date added: 2024/09/11
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Feathered Serpent 213047096
Yucatan, 1519: Consumed with ambition, Hernan Cortes sails from Cuba to explore the coast of the lands to the west. He takes prisoner a young Mayan princess, Malinali, whose father has been murdered by the Mexica on the orders of their emperor, Montezuma. She hungers for revenge.

Their journey to the heart of ancient Mexico and the eventual conquest of the Aztec nation is one of the most astonishing and tragic stories in history. Cortes has his conquest and Malinali has her revenge � but neither of them could foresee the cost for the country � or for themselves.

Feathered Serpent stayed on the Mexican bestseller lists for four months. It has also been published as Aztec.]]>
Colin Falconer Bas 4 4.11 1996 Feathered Serpent
author: Colin Falconer
name: Bas
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1996
rating: 4
read at: 2024/09/04
date added: 2024/09/04
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Colossus 54574977 a novel of Alexander the Great (EPIC HISTORICAL FICTION)

A sweeping tale of courage, honor, and betrayal in the army of Alexander the Great

Babylon, 323 BC. Alexander the Great has survived every effort to kill him. Restless, ruthless, he wonders which world to conquer next. He has a powerful new weapon—the war elephants he brought back from India. He also has a conquest in mind—the fabulous empire of Carthage. As Alexander plots, a war elephant named Colossus violently lashes out against the soldiers who are tormenting him, and only one trainer has the courage to calm the massive beast. When Alexander notices the young man’s bravery, Gajendra begins a meteoric climb through the ranks of the Macedonian army, protected by the fierce but devoted Colossus.As captain of the elephants, Gajendra is deeply loyal to Alexander, the great General who plucked him from obscurity. But as he sees how luxury and power have corrupted his champion, he faces a terrible choice: Just as Gajendra glimpses the ultimate prize, he realizes that in order to become the heir to Alexander's throne and gain all he’s dreamed of, he must betray everything he loves...Colossus is an epic tale of immense evil, pitiless gods and burning cities, of dwarves, priestesses and kings, and of the profound friendship between animal and master. It is the story of two men—one with boundless ambition, and one who reaches for undreamed-of power, all set against the warp of history as Alexander's army approaches the gates of Rome.]]>
Colin Falconer Bas 4 4.34 2014 Colossus
author: Colin Falconer
name: Bas
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2014
rating: 4
read at: 2024/08/19
date added: 2024/08/19
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<![CDATA[Sleeping with the Enemy (Fury #2)]]> 211951046
Sarah Landauer and Rishou Hass’an are divided by the barbed wire of the kibbutz and by their religion yet still fall in love. But as tensions rise in the country, the two are torn apart.

A decade later, Sarah works for the Haganah, the outlawed Jewish intelligence service; Rishou is in Jerusalem, trying to stay out of a war he does not believe in. But as the whole country descends into chaos, they find each other again, and cannot stay apart.

Then the British leave for good, and the Jews and Arabs prepare for the final battle of Jerusalem. Sarah and Rishou meet in secret, keeping their affair hidden even form those that they love. But finally, they must face their final agonizing destiny, forced to choose between their love for each other and their loyalty and duty to their own people.

What is the right choice?]]>
318 Colin Falconer Bas 5 4.35 2017 Sleeping with the Enemy (Fury #2)
author: Colin Falconer
name: Bas
average rating: 4.35
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2024/08/12
date added: 2024/08/12
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Fury: Book 1: Live For Me 60913575
Bavaria 1933 and Netanel Rosenberg’s family has lived in Germany for centuries. Their factory keeps a whole town employed.

But when the Nazis take power, Netanel finds himself an outcast and an enemy in his own land.

His battle for survival takes him from Europe to the Holy Land, where everything is sacred - except life.

The Jews want a homeland. The Palestinian Arabs want to keep theirs. They both lay claim by right and by God.

From the horrors of Auschwitz to the ancient alleyways of Jerusalem; from the holocaust to the battle for Palestine, this is a gripping story about the dark side of man.

Book 1 - Live for Me is a companion book to Book 2 - Sleeping with the Enemy, which tells the simultaneous story of three Arab brothers living in Palestine.]]>
Colin Falconer Bas 5 4.35 1991 Fury: Book 1: Live For Me
author: Colin Falconer
name: Bas
average rating: 4.35
book published: 1991
rating: 5
read at: 2024/08/11
date added: 2024/08/11
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East India 211951032
The Utrecht leaves Holland on an eight-month voyage to Batavia, on the other side of the world. The ship is overcrowded, and navigation around the Horn is down to the skipper’s dead reckoning � guesswork.

Below decks, Michiel van Texel is a sergeant on the company’s coin, on his way to fight the Mataram and escape his demons.

When the ship founders on the jagged reefs of the Houtman Rocks, and those around him begin to reveal their true natures, surviving the wreck is the least of his worries.

A chilling tale of power, religion, obsession and redemption, and what can happen when civilized men give way to temptation.

East India is loosely based on one of the great sea adventures of history.

This is a new and revised 2022 edition.]]>
350 Colin Falconer Bas 4 4.20 2000 East India
author: Colin Falconer
name: Bas
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2000
rating: 4
read at: 2024/08/09
date added: 2024/08/09
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AIR COMBAT AT 20 FEET 18948544 But wait! Your pilot must attack again the next day. So order the book and translate the words into real life drama!"]]> 676 Garrett Middlebrook 1449067476 Bas 5 Middlebrook (Middie as he was called by his friends) is a gifted writer who has the ability not only to describe what happened in vivid colors and graphic language so you feel you are sitting next to him at the controls of one of the B-25D's of the 405 Bomb Squadron, he is a far better writer than that.
Had that been his only, but very best accomplishment in writing the history of him flying fearfully dangerous missions in New Guinea in 1942 and 1943, it would be one of the best books on wartime aviation.
What makes Middie's writing so much more outstanding, is that way he lets you get inside his head, his tactical decisions making in combat, his crew management in the way he leads his crew in battle and the most fascinating for me were his doubts, fully outspoken, his moral reflections on killing, war and how young guys like himself, both Japanese and American, get to fighting each other so violently, so full of hatred. He describes his doubts on strafing native columns, working for the Japs (just having been rescued by those same Papuas after a crash), his feeling of emptiness when killing Japanese soldiers and questioning himself how this can happen. His transformation from green novice pilot to seasoned veteran of 50+ missions can be found in the book, with all the doubts and questions involved. These philosophical reflections make this book unique in its kinds and very special to read.
"Man is the only animal that knows it must die. Moreover, he can watch himself in the process day by day. God executes each of us a little bit more every day".
Mr Middlebrook, thanks for your wise words on war.]]>
4.57 2004 AIR COMBAT AT 20 FEET
author: Garrett Middlebrook
name: Bas
average rating: 4.57
book published: 2004
rating: 5
read at: 2014/03/07
date added: 2024/08/06
shelves:
review:
There is only one thing bad about Garrett Middlebrooks book and that is the picture on the cover. It makes the book look amateurish and that is the last thing this book is!
Middlebrook (Middie as he was called by his friends) is a gifted writer who has the ability not only to describe what happened in vivid colors and graphic language so you feel you are sitting next to him at the controls of one of the B-25D's of the 405 Bomb Squadron, he is a far better writer than that.
Had that been his only, but very best accomplishment in writing the history of him flying fearfully dangerous missions in New Guinea in 1942 and 1943, it would be one of the best books on wartime aviation.
What makes Middie's writing so much more outstanding, is that way he lets you get inside his head, his tactical decisions making in combat, his crew management in the way he leads his crew in battle and the most fascinating for me were his doubts, fully outspoken, his moral reflections on killing, war and how young guys like himself, both Japanese and American, get to fighting each other so violently, so full of hatred. He describes his doubts on strafing native columns, working for the Japs (just having been rescued by those same Papuas after a crash), his feeling of emptiness when killing Japanese soldiers and questioning himself how this can happen. His transformation from green novice pilot to seasoned veteran of 50+ missions can be found in the book, with all the doubts and questions involved. These philosophical reflections make this book unique in its kinds and very special to read.
"Man is the only animal that knows it must die. Moreover, he can watch himself in the process day by day. God executes each of us a little bit more every day".
Mr Middlebrook, thanks for your wise words on war.
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<![CDATA[Ends of the Earth: A historical adventure thriller of the Roman Empire based on real events (Epic Adventure)]]> 213049119 From the bestselling author of Silk Road comes a brand-new, sweeping action epic about the lost legion of Carrhae. Set against a sprawling canvas of Parthia, the Han dynasty, the Seven Seas of ancient Arab traders, and Rome in the last days of the Republic, this is historical adventure on a breathtaking scale.Roman Empire, 53 In the wake of catastrophic defeat at the battle of Carrhae, Roman tribune, Valerius, is taken prisoner at the far reaches of the Parthian Empire. It is the ends of the earth, and he vows to somehow find a way home.In Rome, Pompey and Caesar battle for absolute power in the last days of the Republic, and senators plot to take sides, as the city convulses into riot and civil war. No one is safe.Valerius soon realises that if he ever does find his way back, his problems will be far from over. Dark secrets will not stay buried. Politics and intrigue bend to no man. And standing between him and his wife is the man who abandoned him to die on the battlefield.'Blazing with adventure, epic in scope, and utterly compulsive.' Waterstone’s UK.Colin Falconer’s series of stand-alone novels draws inspiration from many periods of history. Bargain with Kublai Khan in ancient Cathay, battle Aztec warriors in a jungle temple, or enter the mountain strongholds of the legendary Cathars. Glimpse Julius Caesar in the sweat and press of the Roman Forum, ride a war elephant in the army of Alexander the Great, or follow Suleiman the Magnificent into the forbidden palace of his harem.The series has over 8000 five-star reviews and has been translated into 25 languages. ]]> 409 Colin Falconer 0645814741 Bas 5 4.48 2023 Ends of the Earth: A historical adventure thriller of the Roman Empire based on real events (Epic Adventure)
author: Colin Falconer
name: Bas
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2024/07/30
date added: 2024/07/30
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Stigmata 57982419 IS SHE A WITCH � OR SENT BY GOD?

"Loved, loved, loved this novel. Riveting!"
- Historical Novel Review

1206: When Fabricia Berenger is struck by lightning in the main square of Toulouse, her troubles are only just beginning. Soon she develops mysterious wounds on her hands and feet - and the other villagers say she can perform miracles. To keep her safe, her family flee into the mountains of the Languedoc and hide her in a Convent. But still the crowds follow her there in search of healing.

Even Philip of Vercy comes from far away in France. He has lost his beloved wife, now his four-year-old son is dying. He sets off to find Fabricia and bring her back to help his boy.

But he reaches Toulouse just as the Pope orders a crusade against the Cathars in the south. Soon Philip is not the only one looking for Fabricia; the Inquisition are searching for her as well. As the Languedoc convulses into flame and revolt, Philip is drawn into a vortex of passion, vengeance and mystery. One more step, and he knows he can never, ever, go back.

“The story moves along at a cracking pace, the narrative fraught with action and tension at every turn. Stigmata is a powerful tale of religious heresy, crusades, loss and love.� - Historical Novel Society
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338 Colin Falconer Bas 5 4.25 2004 Stigmata
author: Colin Falconer
name: Bas
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2004
rating: 5
read at: 2024/07/28
date added: 2024/07/28
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<![CDATA[Heartstone (Matthew Shardlake, #5)]]> 11122428 The #1 international bestselling author brings us his fifth Shardlake novel.

Summer, 1545. England is at war, and Matthew Shardlake is about to encounter the most politically dangerous case of his career. While a massive French fleet prepares to attack, every able-bodied man is being pressed into military service. Meanwhile, an old servant of Queen Catherine Parr asks Shardlake to investigate claims of "monstrous wrongs" committed against a young ward of the court. Shardlake's inquiries take him and his loyal assistant, Jack Barak, to Hoyland Priory and Portsmouth, where the English fleet is gathering. There they uncover a startling link between the ward and a woman incarcerated in Bedlam. With a fantastic backdrop of wartime intrigue and a dramatic finale onboard one of Henry VIII's great warships, Heartstone is certain to catapult this internationally bestselling series to greater prominence.

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751 C.J. Sansom 1035012294 Bas 5 4.55 2010 Heartstone (Matthew Shardlake, #5)
author: C.J. Sansom
name: Bas
average rating: 4.55
book published: 2010
rating: 5
read at: 2024/06/21
date added: 2024/06/21
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<![CDATA[Revelation (Matthew Shardlake, #4)]]> 9410538 Revelation, Sansom's newest book in the series, the year is 1543 and King Henry VIII is wooing Lady Catherine Parr, a woman sympathetic to reform, whom he wants for his sixth wife- much to the dismay of Archbishop Cranmer and the embattled Protestant faction at court. Meanwhile, Matthew Shardlake is working to defend a teenage boy, a religious fanatic who is being held in the infamous Bedlam hospital for the insane. When an old friend of Shardlake's is murdered, he vows to bring the killer to justice. His search leads him back to Bedlam but also to Catherine Parr-and the dark prophecies of the Book of Revelation. As Bishop Bonner prepares to purge London of Protestants, Shardlake, with his assistant Jack Barak, uncovers a series of horrific murders that shake them all to the core. Revelation-the strongest novel in the series to date-is sure to delight Sansom's many fans and bring him to a wider audience.]]> 673 C.J. Sansom Bas 5 4.56 2008 Revelation (Matthew Shardlake, #4)
author: C.J. Sansom
name: Bas
average rating: 4.56
book published: 2008
rating: 5
read at: 2024/06/16
date added: 2024/06/16
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<![CDATA[Sovereign (Matthew Shardlake, #3)]]> 8302692 The third novel in the Matthew Shardlake Tudor Mystery series—soon to be an original streaming series!C. J . Sansom has garnered a wider audience and increased critical praise with each new novel published. His first book in the Matthew Shardlake series, Dissolution, was selected by P. D. James in The Wall Street Journal as one of her top five all-time favorite books. Nowin Sovereign, Shardlake faces the most terrifying threat in the age of Tudor imprisonment int he Tower of London.Shardlake and his loyal assistant, Jack Barak, find themselves embroiled in royal intrigue when a plot against King Henry VIII is uncovered in York and a dangerous conspirator they've been charged with transporting to London is connected to the death of a local glazer. Awarded the CWA Diamond Dagger � the highest honor in British crime writing]]> 676 C.J. Sansom 1101221305 Bas 5 4.44 2006 Sovereign (Matthew Shardlake, #3)
author: C.J. Sansom
name: Bas
average rating: 4.44
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2024/06/09
date added: 2024/06/09
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<![CDATA[Dark Fire (Matthew Shardlake, #2)]]> 8622184 608 C.J. Sansom Bas 5 4.49 2004 Dark Fire (Matthew Shardlake, #2)
author: C.J. Sansom
name: Bas
average rating: 4.49
book published: 2004
rating: 5
read at: 2024/06/04
date added: 2024/06/04
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<![CDATA[Dissolution (Matthew Shardlake, #1)]]> 8688182 Dissolution is an utterly compelling first novel and a riveting portrayal of Tudor England. The year is 1537, and the country is divided between those faithful to the Catholic Church and those loyal to the king and the newly established Church of England. When a royal commissioner is brutally murdered in a monastery on the south coast of England, Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII’s feared vicar general, summons fellow reformer Matthew Shardlake to lead the inquiry. Shardlake and his young protégé uncover evidence of sexual misconduct, embezzlement, and treason, and when two other murders are revealed, they must move quickly to prevent the killer from striking again.]]> 481 C.J. Sansom Bas 5 4.23 2003 Dissolution (Matthew Shardlake, #1)
author: C.J. Sansom
name: Bas
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2003
rating: 5
read at: 2024/05/27
date added: 2024/05/27
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A Place Called Freedom 9744677 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Scotland, 1766. Sentenced to a life of misery in the brutal coal mines, twenty-one-year-old Mack McAsh hungers for escape. His only the beautiful, highborn Lizzie Hallim, who is trapped in her own kind of hell. Though separated by politics and position, these two restless young people are bound by their passionate search for a place called freedom.

From the teeming streets of London to the infernal hold of a slave ship to a sprawling Virginia plantation, Ken Follett’s turbulent, unforgettable novel of liberty and revolution brings together a vivid cast of heroes and villains, lovers and rebels, hypocrites and hell-raisers—all propelled by destiny toward an epic struggle that will change their lives forever.]]>
580 Ken Follett 0307775194 Bas 4 4.30 1995 A Place Called Freedom
author: Ken Follett
name: Bas
average rating: 4.30
book published: 1995
rating: 4
read at: 2024/05/17
date added: 2024/05/17
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<![CDATA[The Narrow Seas: Book XI of The Norsemen Saga]]> 172513202 ad hoc defenses and facing off against the powerful army of Æthelwulf, king of Wessex, must find some means to continue their voyage home. But Æthelwulf, too, is trapped, unable to set sail on his pilgrimage to Rome while the powerful fleet of Northmen remains at his doorstep. It’s only when the enigmatic Felix proposes a solution, acceptable to both sides, that the impasse is broken. It is a solution that will take them across the narrow seas that separate England from Frankia, one that will take Thorgrim and Louis de Roumois that much closer to their homes, and into even greater danger on the other side.

As Thorgrim fights for his survival, his son Odd, leader of the nascent rebellion against Halfdan the Black, takes his first tentative steps out of hiding. Odd and his brothers-in-arms, still outlaws and wanted men, must gauge the threat that awaits them as they make their secret way toward their former homes. The truth, however, is soon revealed; Halfdan’s fury has not abated, and he and his men will stop at nothing to run Odd to earth and crush him and his rebellion once and for all.]]>
387 James L. Nelson Bas 5 4.69 The Narrow Seas: Book XI of The Norsemen Saga
author: James L. Nelson
name: Bas
average rating: 4.69
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rating: 5
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date added: 2024/05/13
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Bloodlands (John Milton #23) 146924574 The cold of Siberia meets the chill of betrayal.

In a world where loyalty is fleeting and alliances are temporary, John Milton is on a mission that will bring him face-to-face with enemies old and new. When his friend, Alex Hicks, finds himself pursued by mysterious adversaries, the two men are thrust back into the web of international espionage.

Navigating a perilous path that stretches from the war-torn streets of Ukraine to the icy wastelands of Siberia, Milton will stop at nothing to protect his friends and expose a conspiracy that could topple governments and jeopardize global security. As Russian intelligence crumbles from within and a new, unpredictable threat arises, can Milton outwit his most formidable enemies yet?

From the clandestine corridors of French intelligence to the explosive frontlines of a covert war, Bloodlands will keep you on the edge of your seat, questioning where true loyalty lies. In a daring game of cat and mouse that sees Milton, Hicks, and an ensemble of unforgettable characters crossing paths and double-crossing enemies, the stakes have never been higher.

Don't miss this lightning-paced instalment in the John Milton series—a tale of betrayal, survival, and the relentless pursuit of justice.]]>
472 Mark Dawson Bas 0 currently-reading 4.58 Bloodlands (John Milton #23)
author: Mark Dawson
name: Bas
average rating: 4.58
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<![CDATA[DEFENDING THE DRINIUMOR: Covering Force Operations in New Guinea, 1944 [Illustrated Edition]]]> 35207012 On the night of 10-11 July 1944, several thousand Japanese infantrymen attacked and broke through U.S. Army covering force units defending the Driniumor River about twenty miles east of Aitape, New Guinea. For the next month U.S. Army troops were locked in a battle of attrition with the Japanese, as the Americans fought to restore the breakthrough line and destroy the Japanese attackers. This Leavenworth Paper describes the events leading up to the Japanese breakthrough and the subsequent American counterattacks to restore the original defensive positions.
This Leavenworth Paper provides a day-by-day account of the course of the battle. Naturally not every moment was spent fighting, so commensurate attention is given to tactical planning, logistics, combat support-those oft-times overlooked functions that are only noticeable by their absence. There is sufficient detail for an in-depth analysis of both combatants� doctrine, effectiveness of training, tactics, leadership, and unit cohesion...The combatants created their doctrine and applied it in combat isolated from the "Big Picture." Their concern was more basic, to survive. Training, previous combat experience, and leadership seem to have been the ingredients that most contributed to unit cohesion in the struggle. Those naturally developed unit bonds provided the underpinning for morale factors essential in protracted battle in a harsh natural environment. By the same token, one should not infer that tactics were therefore flawless and leadership bold and imaginative. In most cases, the opposite appears true. The reasons for this apparent contradiction unfold with the developing battle. By approaching these questions from the small unit perspective, one gains a fresh insight into the U.S. Army’s historic jungle warfare campaigns as well as a tactical appreciation of the enormous difficulties both sides experienced in the jungled terrain.]]>
233 Edward J. Drea 1782894578 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.00 1984 DEFENDING THE DRINIUMOR: Covering Force Operations in New Guinea, 1944 [Illustrated Edition]
author: Edward J. Drea
name: Bas
average rating: 4.00
book published: 1984
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/04/08
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<![CDATA[Hitler's U-Boat War: The Hunted 1942-45 (Volume 2)]]> 19183201
Blair has been at work on this history for nine years since the British and American governments began to release official WWII records in the 1980s. Blair himself served in submarines in combat in WWII. He chronicles the U-Boat war with authority fidelity objectivity and extraordinary detail. He also writes vivid and dramatic scenes of naval actions and dispassionate but startling new revelations interpretations and conclusions about all aspects of the Battle of the Atlantic.]]>
900 Clay Blair Jr. 0297866222 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.33 1998 Hitler's U-Boat War: The Hunted 1942-45 (Volume 2)
author: Clay Blair Jr.
name: Bas
average rating: 4.33
book published: 1998
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/02/01
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<![CDATA[American Hero: The Life and Death of Audie Murphy (Americans Fighting to Free Europe)]]> 62790866 A captivating biography of America’s greatest soldier.Perfect for readers of Carlo d’Este, E. B. Sledge and Alex Kershaw.As a teenager Audie Murphy left his home in Texas to join in the fight against the Nazis. By the end of the war, after landing on the beaches of Sicily, he had fought in the bloody battle of Anzio, helped liberate Rome, marched his way across France, repelled German counterattacks in Alsace, before finishing in Germany. He was wounded three times, killed over two hundred enemies, and won every medal for valor that the United States had to offer.Charles Whiting charts Murphy’s journey through World War Two, shedding light on his courageous actions, such as when he held off a company of German soldiers for an hour at the Colmar Pocket before leading a successful counterattack while wounded and out of ammunition.Yet what price did young Audie Murphy pay for becoming America’s most decorated soldier of the Second World War?Rather than simply focusing on Murphy’s achievements in combat, Whiting also explores his life after the war when he struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder, addiction problems and even twenty years after the war slept with the lights on and a loaded Walther pistol beneath his pillow.American Hero draws upon numerous contemporary sources and a wealth of information drawn from interviews with Murphy’s friends and comrades to provide insight into the rise and fall of Audie Murphy.]]> 356 Charles Whiting 180055740X Bas 4 4.28 2000 American Hero: The Life and Death of Audie Murphy (Americans Fighting to Free Europe)
author: Charles Whiting
name: Bas
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2000
rating: 4
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<![CDATA[Descent into Hell: The fall of Singapore - Pudu and Changi - the Thai Burma railway: The Fall of Singapore - Pudu and Changi - the Thai-Burma Railway]]> 23301481
Descent into Hell is a scrupulously researched and groundbreaking account of one of the most traumatic calamities in Australian history - the Malayan Campaign, the fall of Singapore and the subsequent horrors of the Thai-Burma Railway. Unpicking the myths and legends of the war, Peter Brune goes to the heart of the Australian experience. He describes the shambolic planning by the British in Singapore and the failures and incompetence of some of the Australian command. He debunks the claims about Australian deserters in Singapore, and we learn of the black market in Changi and the beatings, torture and murder on the Thai-Burma Railway.

Here too are stories of the war's many heroes and villains: of officers who looked after their men and optimised their chances of survival, and others who looked after themselves at their men's expense; the heroes of battle who became ineffectual and lost in the camps and on the Railway, and the least liked and least respected battlefield officers who came to be great leaders. And then there are countless acts of kindness and decency performed by one POW for another in the most cruel of circumstances.

Impressive, compelling and rich in human spirit, Descent into Hell is an unprecedented chronicle by one of Australia's finest military historians.]]>
816 Peter Brune 1741761883 Bas 4 3.92 2014 Descent into Hell: The fall of Singapore - Pudu and Changi - the Thai Burma railway: The Fall of Singapore - Pudu and Changi - the Thai-Burma Railway
author: Peter Brune
name: Bas
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2014
rating: 4
read at: 2024/01/12
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<![CDATA[Second World War Infantry Tactics: The European Theatre]]> 19304423 496 Stephen Bull 1781598118 Bas 0 currently-reading 3.88 2012 Second World War Infantry Tactics: The European Theatre
author: Stephen Bull
name: Bas
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2012
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[The Complete Fletcher Adventures: Books 1-7 (Fletcher #0)]]> 171797408
Fletcher never wanted to be a sailor. He’s done everything imaginable to escape the Navy - including murder and mutiny.

When he’s unexpectedly seized by the press gang, Fletcher is compelled to join His Majesty’s fleet and battle against the French.

But Fletcher soon discovers that his most formidable adversaries reside much closer to home.

Included in this 7-book set:

Book 1: Fletcher’s Fortune � Originally published under the pen name J.C. Edwards
Cornwall, 1793. Jacob Fletcher, a thriving seaport apprentice, is illegally enlisted by the press gang. Forced aboard one of His Majesty's frigate, Fletcher faces perilous dangers and the wrath of the late Sir Henry's widow - who aims to obstruct his inheritance.

Book 2: Fletcher’s Glorious 1st of June � Originally published under the pen name J.C. Edwards
Having earned an honourable discharge from the Royal Navy, Fletcher embarks on a fresh voyage aboard the merchant ship Bednal Green . But his plans are ruined when his ship is captured by American privateers. Fletcher and his crew escape to the British frigate Phiandra on one of the most infamous days in military The Glorious First of June.

Book 3: Fletcher and the Mutineers
Seeking solace from his cruel stepmother, Fletcher flees to the tropical shores of Jamaica where he might finally make his fortune. But with the island under threat from the evil Vernon Hughes, Fletcher’s dreams of tranquillity are dashed. Across the ocean, Lady Sarah's thirst for revenge remains unquenched.

Book 4: Fletcher and the Great Raid
Under Captain Cuthbert Percival-Clive's command on the Serpant , Fletcher adapts to life at sea. Amidst the turmoil of the French-English war, treachery looms. When the sale of valuable steamboat technology threatens the English army, Fletcher must ask himself how far he’s willing to go for his country.

Book 5: Fletcher and the Samurai
After years on the high seas, Fletcher confronts the British East India Company's ambition to invade Japan and break free from England's rule. Teaming up with a young samurai, Fletcher braces himself for an impending Japanese civil war.

Book 6: Fletcher and the Blue Star
Sent as a roving ambassador to help defeat the French Navy in America, Fletcher discovers the enigmatic Blue Star � a priceless diamond. Determined to uncover the diamond’s origin, Fletcher embarks on a dangerous journey across Africa. But his efforts will bring him face-to-face with fearsome Zulu leaders.

Book 7: Fletcher and the Flying Machine
Despite flourishing years in trade, Jacob Fletcher is beckoned back to the sea as a commodore, entrusted with the defence of Ireland from the French. His pursuit of a prosperous career takes an unexpected turn as he is forced into the Baltic on a rescue mission.]]>
2554 John Drake Bas 4 4.54 The Complete Fletcher Adventures: Books 1-7 (Fletcher #0)
author: John Drake
name: Bas
average rating: 4.54
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rating: 4
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<![CDATA[Checkpoint Charlie: The Cold War, the Berlin Wall and the Most Dangerous Place on Earth]]> 51077953 'Checkpoint Charlie is a fascinating and telling reminder of what was perhaps the most potent symbol of the Cold War . . . Iain MacGregor writes with great fluency and narrative drive' William Boyd, New Statesman

'A rich collection of tales from cold war Berlin captures the city's mad complexities' Observer

'With a gripping narrative and vivid interviews with those on all sides whose lives were directly affected by that grim symbol of the East-West divide that poisoned Europe for almost half a century, [MacGregor] has made an important contribution to the history of our times' Jonathan Dimbleby

'Captures brilliantly and comprehensively both the danger and exhilaration that I and other reporters, soldiers, and people experienced intersecting with the wall - a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the Europe we have inherited' Jon Snow

A powerful, fascinating, and ground-breaking history of Checkpoint Charlie, the legendary and most important military gate on the border of East and West Berlin where the United States and her allies confronted the USSR during the Cold War.

As the thirtieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall approaches in 2019, Iain MacGregor captures the mistrust, oppression, paranoia, and fear that gripped the city throughout this period. Checkpoint Charlie is about the nerve-wracking confrontation between the West and the Soviet Union that contains never-before-heard interviews with the men who built and dismantled the Wall; lovers who crossed it; relatives and friends who lost family trying to escape over it; German, British, French, and Russian soldiers who guarded its checkpoints; CIA, MI6 and Stasi operatives who oversaw secret operations across its borders; politicians whose ambitions shaped it; journalists who recorded its story; and many more whose living memories contributed to the full story of Checkpoint Charlie. A brilliant work of historical journalism, Checkpoint Charlie is an invaluable record of this period.

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352 Iain MacGregor 1472130561 Bas 4 4.26 2019 Checkpoint Charlie: The Cold War, the Berlin Wall and the Most Dangerous Place on Earth
author: Iain MacGregor
name: Bas
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2023/09/16
date added: 2023/09/16
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Polar Star (Arkady Renko, #2) 16042013 Gorky Park, Arkady Renko has made too many enemies and now he toils in obscurity on a huge Russian fishing-factory ship in the middle of the Bering Sea.

But when a young female crew member is picked up dead with the day's catch, Renko is asked to investigate. He becomes obsessed with the case and once again discovers more than he wants to know and certainly more than he bargained for . . . a case as chilling and gripping as his previous adventure.

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402 Martin Cruz Smith Bas 4 4.28 1989 Polar Star (Arkady Renko, #2)
author: Martin Cruz Smith
name: Bas
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1989
rating: 4
read at: 2023/09/06
date added: 2023/09/06
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The Man in the Corduroy Suit 152691564 260 James Wolff 1913394867 Bas 5 4.33 The Man in the Corduroy Suit
author: James Wolff
name: Bas
average rating: 4.33
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rating: 5
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Uppercut (John Milton, #22) 62330389 476 Mark Dawson Bas 5 4.50 Uppercut (John Milton, #22)
author: Mark Dawson
name: Bas
average rating: 4.50
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2023/09/02
date added: 2023/09/02
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Damascus Station 58378886
But the cat-and-mouse chase for the killer soon leads to a trail of high-profile assassinations and the discovery of a dark secret at the heart of the Syrian regime, bringing the pair under the all-seeing eyes of Asad’s spycatcher, Ali Hassan, and his brother Rustum, the head of the feared Republican Guard. Set against the backdrop of a Syria pulsing with fear and rebellion, Damascus Stationis a pulse-pounding thriller that offers a textured portrayal of espionage, love, loyalty, and betrayal in one of the most difficult CIA assignments on the planet.]]>
428 David McCloskey 0393881059 Bas 5 4.37 2021 Damascus Station
author: David McCloskey
name: Bas
average rating: 4.37
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2023/08/28
date added: 2023/08/30
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<![CDATA[The Red Room (Atticus Priest #3)]]> 75441882
Is it blackmail? Suicide? Or murder?

Two more bodies are found and two more videos are sent to the press. Atticus and his former colleague, detective chief inspector Mackenzie Jones, race against time to identify the culprit before he can strike again. With each new discovery, Atticus and Mack are forced to confront their own demons and navigate their own complicated feelings for one another.

As the investigation intensifies and the stakes become higher, Atticus and Mack race to unravel the mystery behind the macabre deaths. The question remains: will they be able to apprehend the perpetrator before it’s too late? Get ready for a heart-stopping, suspenseful novel that will have you on the edge of your seat until the very last page.]]>
484 Mark Dawson Bas 0 4.45 The Red Room (Atticus Priest #3)
author: Mark Dawson
name: Bas
average rating: 4.45
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<![CDATA[The Cape Raider (Jack Pembroke Naval Thrillers #1)]]> 56805744
1940

Scarred � physically and emotionally � by the brutal warfare at Dunkirk, Jack Pembroke decides to leave his home in England to join his father, Admiral Pembroke, in the South African Cape.

A fledgling naval force is preparing to fight the coming onslaught of German raiders, and Jack is soon thrust back into action when he is appointed commander of a minesweeping flotilla.

Unknown to Jack, a Nazi commerce raider has left Germany for the Cape intending to wreak havoc on Allied shipping.

And it’s heading straight for him�

Under Jack’s command are an eclectic bunch of men who are unsure of their foreign captain. But he must unite them into a powerful fighting unit if he has any chance of defeating the dangerous enemy.

Can Jack overcome his demons and lead his men to victory?

Or will his first battle off the South African coast be his last�?]]>
304 Justin Fox 1800552068 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.44 The Cape Raider (Jack Pembroke Naval Thrillers #1)
author: Justin Fox
name: Bas
average rating: 4.44
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<![CDATA[The Raiders and the Cross (Jox McNabb #2)]]> 74950361
Jox may have survived the Battle of Britain, but this war isn't over yet...

Winter, 1940

Enemy raiders are bombing Britain’s cities relentlessly. Casualties are high and morale is at an all-time low.

Jox McNabb and the rest of No.111 Squadron train to become night fighters to take on the raiders inflicting such carnage on Britain’s cities.

But then tragedy strikes and Jox is devastated by the loss of those close to him.

Scarred physically and emotionally, he recovers slowly. Seeking a fresh start, he volunteers to serve in the turbulent skies of besieged Malta.

But this new location quickly becomes just as dangerous as the last.

Can Jox forget the tragedy that haunts him? Will he survive the murderous assault of the Luftwaffe?

And can a desperate Malta withstand the relentless onslaught?

THE RAIDERS AND THE CROSS is the second book in the Jox McNabb Aviation Thrillers action-packed, authentic historical adventures following a young RAF pilot during the Second World War.

THE JOX MCNABB AVIATION THRILLER
BOOK The Lightning and the Few
BOOK The Raiders and the Cross]]>
317 Patrick Larsimont 1800559100 Bas 4 4.41 The Raiders and the Cross (Jox McNabb #2)
author: Patrick Larsimont
name: Bas
average rating: 4.41
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rating: 4
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<![CDATA[A Game of Birds and Wolves: The Secret Game that Revolutionised the War]]> 46127746 It's 1941. Imagine you're Winston Churchill.

The Battle of the Atlantic is a disaster. Supply ships ferrying vital weapons, food and fuel from North America are being torpedoed by the German U-boats.

You are lying to the country about the number of ships sunk. You are lying about the number of men killed. Without the supply ships Britain will starve. The tide of the war is turning in Germany's favour.

This is the story of the game of battleships that won the Second World War. In 1941 Prime Minster Winston Churchill gathered a group of unlikely heroes - a retired naval captain and eight brilliant young women, the youngest only seventeen years-old - to form a secret strategy unit. On the top floor of a ramshackle HQ in Liverpool, the Western Approaches Tactical Unit spent day and night playing war games to crack the U-boat tactics.

A Game of Birds and Wolves takes us from the steamy fug of a U-boat as the German aces coordinate their wolfpack, to the tense atmosphere of operation room as the British team plot battles at sea on the map. The story of Operation Raspberry and its unsung heroines has never been told before. Investigative journalist Simon Parkin brings these hidden figures into the light in this gripping tale of war at sea.

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321 Simon Parkin 152935305X Bas 5 4.28 2019 A Game of Birds and Wolves: The Secret Game that Revolutionised the War
author: Simon Parkin
name: Bas
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at: 2023/08/01
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Stasi Vice (Reim #1) 42301088 For Lieutenant Reim of the Stasi, life in East Berlin is a satisfying blend of days behind a desk and nights in front of a bottle.But when a senior officer has a messy affair, it falls to Reim to do the clearing up. It's a straightforward job. Lean on a few people to get them to shut up. Intimidate neighbours, bribe officials and appeal to the socialist conscience of Party members. But as Reim starts his interrogations, he realises his boss is hiding more than just a lover.Reim begins to investigate his superior—and what he uncovers puts his own life at risk.]]> 205 Max Hertzberg Bas 5 3.57 Stasi Vice (Reim #1)
author: Max Hertzberg
name: Bas
average rating: 3.57
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2023/07/15
date added: 2023/07/15
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<![CDATA[Retribution (Team Reaper Thriller #1)]]> 43834670 EVERYTHING COMES AT A COST�



Author Brent Towns keeps the action coming thick and fast, let’s you up for a breath and then drags you back in for more.After he is betrayed and shoots the two most powerful men in the Irish Mob, John “Reaper� Kane is forced into hiding. He thinks Retribution, Arizona, is the perfect hiding place, but he is wrong. Underneath the old, crusty surface of the dying town, hides the Montoya Cartel, for they use it as a funnel to ship their drugs across the border.

Trying to lay low in a town gripped with lawlessness is impossible for the ex-recon marine, especially after the local sheriff is brutally murdered by the Montoya Cartel’s sicario, leaving an old friend, Deputy Sheriff Cara Billings, the only person standing between them and the town.

Things go from bad to worse when Kane is arrested by Cleaver, the deputy in the cartel’s pocket, for shooting a local gang member.

Enter DEA Agent Luis Ferrero who has expressed to his bosses for a long time the need for a task force to fight the cartels on their own ground. He’s about to get his wish, and to head up his team, he wants the Reaper.

A thrill ride that doesn’t let you go � Retribution is the first novel in the action-packed Reaper Series.]]>
396 Brent Towns 1641195134 Bas 3 4.30 2019 Retribution (Team Reaper Thriller #1)
author: Brent Towns
name: Bas
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at: 2023/07/11
date added: 2023/07/11
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Red Mars (Mars Trilogy, #1) 35720284
For some, Mars will become a passion driving them to daring acts of courage & madness. For others it offers an opportunity to strip the planet of its riches. For the genetic alchemists, it presents a chance to create a biomedical miracle, a breakthrough that could change all we know about life & death.

The colonists orbit giant satellite mirrors to reflect light to the surface. Black dust sprinkled on the polar caps will capture warmth. Massive tunnels, kilometers deep, will be drilled into the mantle to create stupendous vents of hot gases. Against this backdrop of epic upheaval, rivalries, loves & friendships will form & fall to pieces--for there are those who will fight to the death to prevent Mars from ever being changed.

Brilliantly imagined, breathtaking in scope & ingenuity, Red Mars is an epic scientific saga, chronicling the next step in evolution, creating a world in its entirety. It shows a future, with both glory & tarnish, that awes with complexity & inspires with vision.]]>
625 Kim Stanley Robinson Bas 3 3.91 1992 Red Mars (Mars Trilogy, #1)
author: Kim Stanley Robinson
name: Bas
average rating: 3.91
book published: 1992
rating: 3
read at: 2023/07/10
date added: 2023/07/10
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<![CDATA[Three Days In June: The Incredible Minute-by-Minute Oral History of 3 Para's Deadly Falklands War Battle]]> 58248135
Jimmy, I have spent last night having a good read of the book, before I go away today, and really must congratulate you. Particularly strong is the overall picture of the awful nature of the fighting, the teamwork, the comradeship, and the courage in supporting others, the humour- I could go on. Also very strong are the descriptions of casevac and the backup side of the battle.
I wouldn't dream of suggesting that you change a single word.
It is a marvellous tribute to the courage and tenacity of the men of 3 PARA and you should be very proud of what you have achieved for them all.
Of course I will do a Foreword for your book, it would be a privilege

All good wishes
Hew Pike]]>
497 James O'Connell Bas 4 4.45 2013 Three Days In June: The Incredible Minute-by-Minute Oral History of 3 Para's Deadly Falklands War Battle
author: James O'Connell
name: Bas
average rating: 4.45
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at: 2023/06/21
date added: 2023/06/21
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Under the Dome 171839555
Time isn't just running short. It's running out.

On a beautiful autumn day, a small New England town is suddenly and inexplicably sealed off from the rest of the world by an invisible force field. Planes crash into the dome and rain down flaming wreckage. A gardener's hand is severed as it descends. Cars explode on impact. Families are separated and panic mounts.

No one can fathom what the barrier is, where it came from, or when - and if - it will go away.

Now, a few intrepid citizens, led by an Iraq War veteran turned short-order cook, face down a ruthless politician dead set on seizing the reins of power in the town. But their main adversary is the dome itself . . .]]>
1092 Stephen King Bas 0 currently-reading 4.27 2009 Under the Dome
author: Stephen King
name: Bas
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2009
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/06/12
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Lock In (Lock In, #1) 18490567
Not too long from today, a new, highly contagious virus makes its way across the globe. Most who get sick experience nothing worse than flu, fever and headaches. But for the unlucky one percent—and nearly five million souls in the United States alone—the disease causes "Lock In": Victims fully awake and aware, but unable to move or respond to stimulus. The disease affects young, old, rich, poor, people of every color and creed. The world changes to meet the challenge.

A quarter of a century later, in a world shaped by what's now known as "Haden's syndrome," rookie FBI agent Chris Shane is paired with veteran agent Leslie Vann. The two of them are assigned what appears to be a Haden-related murder at the Watergate Hotel, with a suspect who is an "integrator"—someone who can let the locked in borrow their bodies for a time. If the Integrator was carrying a Haden client, then naming the suspect for the murder becomes that much more complicated.

But "complicated" doesn't begin to describe it. As Shane and Vann began to unravel the threads of the murder, it becomes clear that the real mystery—and the real crime—is bigger than anyone could have imagined. The world of the locked in is changing, and with the change comes opportunities that the ambitious will seize at any cost. The investigation that began as a murder case takes Shane and Vann from the halls of corporate power to the virtual spaces of the locked in, and to the very heart of an emerging, surprising new human culture. It's nothing you could have expected.]]>
337 John Scalzi 1466849355 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.10 2014 Lock In (Lock In, #1)
author: John Scalzi
name: Bas
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2014
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/06/03
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Quantum Radio 64415236
But what he's found is far more dangerous than he ever imagined.

Dr. Tyson Klein is a quantum physicist who has dedicated his entire life to his research. At CERN, he analyses data generated by the Large Hadron Collider, the world's biggest and most powerful particle accelerator. Now, Ty believes he's found a pattern in its output. It looks like an organised data stream, being broadcast over what he calls a quantum radio.

Could it be a signal from another universe? A message sent from the future? Or something else entirely?

As Ty peels back the layers of his discovery, he learns that what he's found isn't what he thought it was. The encoded message is far more profound. It may alter our understanding of human existence and the universe.

But Ty is not the only one looking for it. Someone has been following his research for a long time. And they'll do anything to prevent him from unravelling what is being broadcast by the quantum radio...

Because the first one to discover the truth may well control the future.]]>
562 A.G. Riddle Bas 0 currently-reading 4.10 2023 Quantum Radio
author: A.G. Riddle
name: Bas
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2023
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/05/30
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11.22.63 12600745 King's highly acclaimed novel, now with a stunning new cover look. WHAT IF you could go back in time and change the course of history? WHAT IF the watershed moment you could change was the JFK assassination? 11.22.63, the date that Kennedy was shot - unless . . . King takes his protagonist Jake Epping, a high school English teacher from Lisbon Falls, Maine, 2011, on a fascinating journey back to 1958 - from a world of mobile phones and iPods to a new world of Elvis and JFK, of Plymouth Fury cars and Lindy Hopping, of a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald and a beautiful high school librarian named Sadie Dunhill, who becomes the love of Jake's life - a life that transgresses all the normal rules of time. With extraordinary imaginative power, King weaves the social, political and popular culture of his baby-boom American generation into a devastating exercise in escalating suspense.]]> 866 Stephen King Bas 0 4.43 2011 11.22.63
author: Stephen King
name: Bas
average rating: 4.43
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/29
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<![CDATA[The End of All Things (Old Man's War, #6)]]> 24661365 Hugo-award winning author, John Scalzi returns to his best-selling Old Man's War universe with The End of All Things, the direct sequel to 2013's The Human Division.

Humans expanded into space…only to find a universe populated with multiple alien species bent on their destruction. Thus was the Colonial Union formed, to help protect us from a hostile universe. The Colonial Union used the Earth and its excess population for colonists and soldiers. It was a good arrangement...for the Colonial Union. Then the Earth said: no more.

Now the Colonial Union is living on borrowed time--a couple of decades at most, before the ranks of the Colonial Defense Forces are depleted and the struggling human colonies are vulnerable to the alien species who have been waiting for the first sign of weakness, to drive humanity to ruin. And there's another problem: A group, lurking in the darkness of space, playing human and alien against each other--and against their own kind --for their own unknown reasons.

In this collapsing universe, CDF Lieutenant Harry Wilson and the Colonial Union diplomats he works with race against the clock to discover who is behind attacks on the Union and on alien races, to seek peace with a suspicious, angry Earth, and keep humanity's union intact...or else risk oblivion, and extinction--and the end of all things.

]]>
384 John Scalzi 1466849428 Bas 5 4.13 2015 The End of All Things (Old Man's War, #6)
author: John Scalzi
name: Bas
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2023/05/25
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<![CDATA[The Human Division (Old Man's War, #5)]]> 17950545
The people of Earth now know that the human Colonial Union has kept them ignorant of the dangerous universe around them. For generations the CU had defended humanity against hostile aliens, deliberately keeping Earth an ignorant backwater and a source of military recruits. Now the CU’s secrets are known to all. Other alien races have come on the scene and formed a new alliance—an alliance against the Colonial Union. And they’ve invited the people of Earth to join them. For a shaken and betrayed Earth, the choice isn't obvious or easy.

Against such possibilities, managing the survival of the Colonial Union won’t be easy, either. It will take diplomatic finesse, political cunning…and a brilliant “B Team,� centered on the resourceful Lieutenant Harry Wilson, that can be deployed to deal with the unpredictable and unexpected things the universe throws at you when you’re struggling to preserve the unity of the human race.

Being published online from January to April 2013 as a three-month digital serial, The Human Division will appear as a full-length novel of the Old Man’s War universe, plus—for the first time in print—the first tale of Lieutenant Harry Wilson, and a coda that wasn’t part of the digital serialization.]]>
513 John Scalzi Bas 5 4.20 2013 The Human Division (Old Man's War, #5)
author: John Scalzi
name: Bas
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2013
rating: 5
read at: 2023/05/22
date added: 2023/05/22
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<![CDATA[Zoe's Tale (Old Man's War, #4)]]> 8156551 Old Man's War Series #1 Old Man’s War #2 The Ghost Brigades #3 The Last Colony #4 Zoe’s Tale #5 The Human Division #6 The End of All Things Short “After the Coup� Other Tor Books The Android’s Dream Agent to the Stars Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded Fuzzy Nation Redshirts Lock In The Collapsing Empire (forthcoming)At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.]]> 420 John Scalzi Bas 0 4.01 2008 Zoe's Tale (Old Man's War, #4)
author: John Scalzi
name: Bas
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2008
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/16
date added: 2023/05/16
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<![CDATA[The Moscow Option: An Alternative Second World War]]> 30319474 This provocative alternative history looks at WWII from a new angle--what might have happened had the Germans taken Moscow in 1941.



Based on authentic history and real possibilities, this unique speculative narrative plays out the dramatic and grotesque consequences of a Third Reich triumphant. In this terrifyingly plausible scenario, the Germans fight their way into the ruins of Moscow on September 30th, 1941--and the Soviet Union collapses.

Although Russian resistance continues, German ambition multiplies after this signal success. They launch offensives in Africa, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East. Hitler's armies, assured of victory, make their leader's dreams reality and Allied hopes of recovery seem almost hopelessly doomed.

With a convincingly blend of actual history and alternate events, The Moscow Option is a chilling reminder that history might easily have been very different.]]>
216 David Downing 1473877695 Bas 0 currently-reading 3.78 1980 The Moscow Option: An Alternative Second World War
author: David Downing
name: Bas
average rating: 3.78
book published: 1980
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/05/04
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<![CDATA[The Last Colony (Old Man's War, #3)]]> 8180987
That is, until his and Jane's past reaches out to bring them back into the game--as leaders of a new human colony, to be peopled by settlers from all the major human worlds, for a deep political purpose that will put Perry and Sagan back in the thick of interstellar politics, betrayal, and war.]]>
336 John Scalzi Bas 0 4.31 2007 The Last Colony (Old Man's War, #3)
author: John Scalzi
name: Bas
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/04
date added: 2023/05/04
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<![CDATA[The Ghost Brigades (Old Man's War, #2)]]> 9303705
The universe is a dangerous place for humanity—and it's about to become far more dangerous. Three races that humans have clashed with before have allied to halt our expansion into space. Their the turncoat military scientist Charles Boutin, who knows the CDF's biggest military secrets. To prevail, the CDF must find out why Boutin did what he did.

Jared Dirac is the only human who can provide answers -- a superhuman hybrid, created from Boutin's DNA, Jared's brain should be able to access Boutin's electronic memories. But when the memory transplant appears to fail, Jared is given to the Ghost Brigades.

At first, Jared is a perfect soldier, but as Boutin's memories slowly surface, Jared begins to intuit the reason's for Boutin's betrayal. As Jared desperately hunts for his "father," he must also come to grips with his own choices. Time is running The alliance is preparing its offensive, and some of them plan worse things than humanity's mere military defeat�


At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.]]>
356 John Scalzi 1429914726 Bas 0 4.26 2006 The Ghost Brigades (Old Man's War, #2)
author: John Scalzi
name: Bas
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at: 2023/04/25
date added: 2023/04/25
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<![CDATA[Old Man's War (Old Man's War, #1)]]> 36510196
The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce-- and alien races willing to fight us for them are common. So: we fight. To defend Earth, and to stake our own claim to planetary real estate. Far from Earth, the war has been going on for decades: brutal, bloody, unyielding.

Earth itself is a backwater. The bulk of humanity's resources are in the hands of the Colonial Defense Force. Everybody knows that when you reach retirement age, you can join the CDF. They don't want young people; they want people who carry the knowledge and skills of decades of living. You'll be taken off Earth and never allowed to return. You'll serve two years at the front. And if you survive, you'll be given a generous homestead stake of your own, on one of our hard-won colony planets.

John Perry is taking that deal. He has only the vaguest idea what to expect. Because the actual fight, light-years from home, is far, far harder than he can imagine--and what he will become is far stranger.]]>
318 John Scalzi Bas 0 currently-reading 4.25 2005 Old Man's War (Old Man's War, #1)
author: John Scalzi
name: Bas
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2005
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/04/16
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<![CDATA[The House in the Woods (Atticus Priest, #1)]]> 51301674 Four murders. Two detectives. One mystifying crime.

On Christmas Eve, DCI Mackenzie Jones is called to a shooting at a remote farmhouse. Ralph Mallender believes his father lies dead inside. When three more bodies are discovered, it’s clear a festive family gathering has turned into a gruesome tragedy.

At first it seems like an open and shut case: a murder suicide committed by Ralph’s volatile brother Cameron. Then new evidence makes Mack suspect the man who reported the crime is in fact the perpetrator.

But Mack isn’t the only one with a stake in the case. Private investigator Atticus Priest has been hired to get Ralph acquitted. That means unearthing any weaknesses in Mack’s evidence.

Irascible, impatient and unpredictable, Atticus has weaknesses of his own. Mack knows all about them because they share a past - both professionally and personally. This time round, however, they aren’t on the same side. And as Atticus picks at the loose ends of the case, everything starts to unravel in a way neither of them could ever have predicted...]]>
498 Mark Dawson Bas 4 currently-reading 4.29 2020 The House in the Woods (Atticus Priest, #1)
author: Mark Dawson
name: Bas
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2020/03/28
date added: 2023/04/05
shelves: currently-reading
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The Stand 56793452
And here is the bleak new world of the day after: a world stripped of its institutions and emptied of 99 percent of its people. A world in which a handful of panicky survivors choose sides -- or are chosen. A world in which good rides on the frail shoulders of the 108-year-old Mother Abigail -- and the worst nightmares of evil are embodied in a man with a lethal smile and unspeakable powers: Randall Flagg, the dark man.

In 1978 Stephen King published The Stand, the novel that is now considered to be one of his finest works. But as it was first published, The Stand was incomplete, since more than 150,000 words had been cut from the original manuscript.

Now Stephen King's apocalyptic vision of a world blasted by plague and embroiled in an elemental struggle between good and evil has been restored to its entirety. The Stand : The Complete And Uncut Edition includes more than five hundred pages of material previously deleted, along with new material that King added as he reworked the manuscript for a new generation. It gives us new characters and endows familiar ones with new depths. It has a new beginning and a new ending. What emerges is a gripping work with the scope and moral comlexity of a true epic.

For hundreds of thousands of fans who read The Stand in its original version and wanted more, this new edition is Stephen King's gift. And those who are reading The Stand for the first time will discover a triumphant and eerily plausible work of the imagination that takes on the issues that will determine our survival.]]>
1348 Stephen King Bas 5 4.43 1978 The Stand
author: Stephen King
name: Bas
average rating: 4.43
book published: 1978
rating: 5
read at: 2023/04/02
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<![CDATA[Tarakan: An Australian tragedy]]> 32884544
Peter Stanley explores that battle, what it was like and what it means to us over fifty years on. He traces the operation from its origins in MacArthur's GHQ, down to the rifle sections patrolling in Tarakan's rugged jungle.

Tarakan: An Australian Tragedy suggests new ways of looking at Australia's experience of war. It critically appraises the view that the Borneo campaign was unnecessary, arguing that it was a justifiable operation doomed by the politics of coalition warfare and by bad planning.

Tarakan: An Australian Tragedy illuminates the Australian experience of war. Through it, we can hear the men on Tarakan - scared, angry, humorous, proud, bitter and, above all, Australian - the voices of a vanished Australia.

Tarakan: An Australian Tragedy is the story of people at war, how it affected them, and how we have remembered it and them.]]>
288 Peter Stanley 1925268586 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.50 Tarakan: An Australian tragedy
author: Peter Stanley
name: Bas
average rating: 4.50
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date added: 2023/03/12
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Breakout at Stalingrad 36009531 'One of the greatest novels of the Second World War' The Times 'A remarkable find' Antony Beevor'A masterpiece' Mail on SundayStalingrad, November 1942. Lieutenant Breuer dreams of returning home for Christmas. But he and his fellow German soldiers will spend winter in a frozen hell � as snow, ice and relentless Soviet assaults reduce the once-mighty Sixth Army to a diseased and starving rabble. Breakout at Stalingrad is a stark and terrifying portrait of the horrors of war, and a profoundly humane depiction of comradeship in adversity.The book itself has an extraordinary story behind it. Its author fought at Stalingrad and was imprisoned by the Soviets. In captivity, he wrote a novel based on his experiences, which the Soviets confiscated before releasing him. Gerlach resorted to hypnosis to remember his narrative, and in 1957 it was published as The Forsaken Army. Fifty-five years later Carsten Gansel, an academic, came across the original manuscript of Gerlach's novel in a Moscow archive. This first translation into English of Breakout at Stalingrad includes the story of Gansel's sensational discovery.]]> 772 Heinrich Gerlach 1786690616 Bas 4 4.30 2016 Breakout at Stalingrad
author: Heinrich Gerlach
name: Bas
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2023/03/12
date added: 2023/03/12
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EO-N 55714931 2019: Alison Wiley, a once-idealistic biotech CEO, is processing her new she’s the last bud on the last branch of her family tree. On the heels of her mother’s illness and crushing death, a phone call from Scott Wilcox, a former combat medic turned government investigator, pulls her into a seventy-four year old mystery that begins beneath the surface of a Norwegian glacier.

1945: Squadron Leader Jack Barton, a cocky Royal Canadian Air Force pilot, flies combat missions over occupied Europe. Major Günther Graf, a war-weary and disillusioned Luftwaffe pilot, is trapped in the unspeakable horrors of Nazi Germany. Their paths, so different yet so similar, are connected by a young girl, a victim of appalling cruelty who may carry the promise of a better future.

As these five lives converge in a sweeping arc that takes readers on a tightly woven and gripping journey—from the destruction and cruelty of war to the relentless pressures of corporate greed—EO-N reminds us that individual actions matter, and that courage comes in many forms.]]>
300 Dave Mason 1735706426 Bas 5 4.50 2020 EO-N
author: Dave Mason
name: Bas
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2020
rating: 5
read at: 2023/03/12
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The DC Job (Case Lee, #8) 58168497 Spies, lies, and killers emerge from the shadows.
And Case Lee is unleashed into the heart of darkness.

Contracted to find a diplomat’s missing teenage daughter, his gut says there’s more to the story—a feeling supported when DC assassins paint a target on his back. With an eye over his shoulder, the quest starts among the ancient ruins of Petra. Frustration mounts as an enigmatic Bedouin clan reveals a whisper-thin trail about the girl’s disappearance. Back in DC, Case confronts the diplomat, who discloses a deadly conspiracy. Case packages the conspiracy as shadow games for others to play and focuses on the prime mission. Find the girl. But can he leverage the conspiracy to help his search?

Ruthless players continue targeting Case as a threat to their plans. In hot pursuit, they are determined to silence him—and the truth. Relentless, he follows lead after lead as the clock ticks and odds of rescuing the girl fade.

Help arrives from the most unexpected of places, and the trail leads to a nightmare some would consider a fate worse than death. Undaunted and alone, he enters the lethal setting. And introduces his enemies to the world according to Case Lee.

In this globe-trotting adventure—the eighth stand-alone novel from the Bestselling Case Lee series—Author Vince Milam delivers another heart-pounding thriller from the power centers of Washington DC to the ancient ruins of a lost civilization; from the most lawless place in America to the pitiless slave markets of Africa and the lethal deserts of the Sahara.]]>
330 Vince Milam Bas 0 4.57 The DC Job (Case Lee, #8)
author: Vince Milam
name: Bas
average rating: 4.57
book published:
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read at: 2023/02/03
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<![CDATA[On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft]]> 11254937
There is a reason why Stephen King is one of the bestselling writers in the world, ever. Described in the Guardian as 'the most remarkable storyteller in modern American literature', Stephen King writes books that draw you in and are impossible to put down.

~hodder.co.uk]]>
388 Stephen King Bas 0 currently-reading 4.50 2000 On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft
author: Stephen King
name: Bas
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2000
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/01/07
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<![CDATA[The Divided City (Gregor Reinhardt #3)]]> 33282005 Luke McCallin, author of The Pale House and The Man from Berlin, delivers a dark, compelling thriller set in post-World War II Germany featuring ex-intelligence officer Captain Gregor Reinhardt.

A year after Germany’s defeat, Reinhardt has been hired back onto Berlin’s civilian police force. The city is divided among the victorious allied powers, but tensions are growing, and the police are riven by internal rivalries as factions within it jockey for power and influence with Berlin’s new masters.

When a man is found slain in a broken-down tenement, Reinhardt embarks on a gruesome investigation. It seems a serial killer is on the loose, and matters only escalate when it’s discovered that one of the victims was the brother of a Nazi scientist.

Reinhardt’s search for the truth takes him across the divided city and soon embroils him in a plot involving the Western Allies and the Soviets. And as he comes under the scrutiny of a group of Germans who want to continue the war—and faces an unwanted reminder from his own past—Reinhardt realizes that this investigation could cost him everything as he pursues a killer who believes that all wrongs must be avenged�


From the Trade Paperback edition.]]>
446 Luke McCallin 0698407229 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.42 2016 The Divided City (Gregor Reinhardt #3)
author: Luke McCallin
name: Bas
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2016
rating: 0
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date added: 2022/12/09
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<![CDATA[The Pale House (Gregor Reinhardt, #2)]]> 19828124 As the Nazi war machine is pushed back across Europe, defeat has become inevitable. But there are those who seek to continue the fight beyond the battlefield. German intelligence officer Captain Gregor Reinhardt has just been reassigned to the Feldjaegerkorps—a new branch of the military police with far-reaching powers. His position separates him from the friends and allies he has made in the last two years, including a circle of fellow dissenting Germans who formed a rough resistance cell against the Nazis. And he needs them now more than ever.While retreating through Yugoslavia with the rest of the army, Reinhardt witnesses a massacre of civilians by the dreaded Ustaše—only to discover there is more to the incident than anyone believes. When five mutilated bodies turn up, Reinhardt knows the stakes are growing more important—and more dangerous.As his investigation begins to draw the attention of those in power, Reinhardt’s friends and associates are made to suffer. But as he desperately tries to uncover the truth, his own past with the Ustaše threatens his efforts. Because when it comes to death and betrayal, some people have long memories. And they remember Reinhardt all too well.And now, Reinhardt will have to fight them once more.]]> 358 Luke McCallin 1101596880 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.28 2014 The Pale House (Gregor Reinhardt, #2)
author: Luke McCallin
name: Bas
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2014
rating: 0
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date added: 2022/11/21
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<![CDATA[The Man From Berlin (Gregor Reinhardt #1)]]> 18405070 In a land of brutality and bloodshed�
One death can still change everything.

In war-torn Yugoslavia, a beautiful young filmmaker and photographer—a veritable hero to her people—and a German officer have been brutally murdered.

Assigned to the case is military intelligence officer Captain Gregor Reinhardt. Already haunted by his wartime actions and the mistakes he’s made off the battlefield, he soon finds that his investigation may be more than just a murder—and that the late Yugoslavian heroine may have been much more brilliant—and treacherous—than anyone knew.

Maneuvering his way through a minefield of political, military, and personal agendas and vendettas, Reinhardt knows that someone is leaving a trail of dead bodies to cover their tracks. But those bloody tracks may lead Reinhardt to a secret hidden within the ranks of the powerful that they will do anything to keep.

And his search for the truth may kill him before he ever finds it.]]>
450 Luke McCallin 1101596872 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.09 2013 The Man From Berlin (Gregor Reinhardt #1)
author: Luke McCallin
name: Bas
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2013
rating: 0
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date added: 2022/11/15
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The Difference Engine 22584481 382 William Gibson 147320805X Bas 0 currently-reading 3.38 1990 The Difference Engine
author: William Gibson
name: Bas
average rating: 3.38
book published: 1990
rating: 0
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date added: 2022/11/08
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The Nevada Job (Case Lee, #7) 56393755 With thousands of lives at stake, a reluctant Case Lee enters the scene.

Never bet against the little guy.

It was a low-key investigation. Until signals flared that danger lay ahead with people’s lives a throw-away commodity. It started in Bolivia’s Chaco region. A vast lawless area where life is cheap and raw power rules the roost. As the search for rare elements heats up, Case runs into spies and mercenaries and a village living in terror. While he’s no superhero, no caped crusader, Case Lee knows he can’t walk away. With so many lives at stake, he flips the switch and brings special skills to the table. Very special skills.

The trail leads back to the Nevada wildlands. The billionaire tycoon now knows the individual responsible for disrupting his global operations and paints a target on Case’s back, aided by corrupt politicians and dirty cops. Meanwhile, spies lurk in the background. Whose side are they on?

Word quickly spreads among his former Delta teammates, who arrive and lend a hand. Outnumbered and outgunned, with powerful forces allied against them, they make a stand. With no quarter asked. Or given.]]>
371 Vince Milam Bas 0 currently-reading 4.55 The Nevada Job (Case Lee, #7)
author: Vince Milam
name: Bas
average rating: 4.55
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date added: 2022/11/04
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<![CDATA[The Orcas Island Job (Case Lee, #6)]]> 55016990 Case Lee doesn’t quit. He goes back in.

And kicks the hornet’s nest.

The CIA’s top spy offered him a contract. He didn’t relish working with her again, but the money was too good. The job started as a standard sleuthing gig. But when he discovers a major drug deal, disturbing questions are raised. Case calls on his best friend and heads for the border. Case Lee, meet the Cartel. It gets ugly.

The trail leads back to the Pacific Northwest, revealing a high-level conspiracy with spies, traitors, and corrupt politicians. Who is pulling the deadly strings? And why?

The heat cranks up and the CIA terminates the contract. But he doesn’t quit. While he’s no superhero, no caped crusader, Case Lee knows when it’s time to make a stand. They unleash powerful forces against him with no quarter asked. Or given.]]>
236 Vince Milam Bas 4 4.50 2020 The Orcas Island Job (Case Lee, #6)
author: Vince Milam
name: Bas
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2022/11/04
date added: 2022/11/04
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The Cold War 19485465 In 1950, when Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, Ho Chi Minh and Kim Il-Sung met in Moscow to discuss the future, they had reason to feel optimistic. International Communism seemed everywhere on the offensive: all of Eastern Europe was securely in the Soviet camp; America's monopoly on nuclear weapons was a thing of the past; and Mao's forces had assumed control over the world's most populous country. The story of the previous five decades was one of the worst fears confirmed, and there seemed as of 1950 little sign, at least to the West, that the next fifty years would be any less dark.



In fact, of course, the century's end brought the widespread triumph of political and economic freedom over its ideological enemies. In The Cold War, John Lewis Gaddis makes a major contribution to our understanding of this epochal story. Beginning with the Second World War and ending with the collapse of the Soviet Union, he provides a thrilling account of the strategic dynamics that drove the age. Now, as Britain once more finds itself in a global confrontation with an implacable ideological enemy, The Cold War tells a story whose lessons it is vitally necessary to understand.

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327 John Lewis Gaddis 0241958717 Bas 5 4.14 2005 The Cold War
author: John Lewis Gaddis
name: Bas
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2022/10/26
date added: 2022/10/26
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The Hawaii Job (Case Lee, #5) 51477355 258 Vince Milam Bas 5 4.55 The Hawaii Job (Case Lee, #5)
author: Vince Milam
name: Bas
average rating: 4.55
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2022/10/12
date added: 2022/10/12
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<![CDATA[The Sandman (John Milton, #21)]]> 59436996
When an inmate is found unresponsive in his high security cell at Belmarsh prison, he’s rushed to hospital for treatment. The prisoner is human trafficker and international fixer Tristan Huxley, a man a lot of people have good reason to want dead. But Huxley mysteriously never makes it to the hospital. He may have plenty of enemies but it seems he has some very powerful friends too.

Huxley’s disappearance is bad news for anyone who betrayed him. One of those people is John Milton. Originally assigned to protect Huxley, things turned sour when he discovered the disturbing truth about his old friend's activities. Huxley isn’t someone who forgives and forgets. But neither is Milton - when someone deserves punishment, he’s compelled to deliver it, no matter where in the world that journey takes him.

A dangerous man is on the loose and Milton isn’t the only one on his hit list. But could he be the only one capable of taking him out for good?]]>
414 Mark Dawson Bas 0 currently-reading 4.53 The Sandman (John Milton, #21)
author: Mark Dawson
name: Bas
average rating: 4.53
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The Amazon Job (Case Lee, #4) 45858896 A new heart-pounding thriller of espionage, treachery, and terrorism from the bestselling Case Lee Series.

When a rogue scientist disappears with an earth-shattering discovery, a man with special skills is sent to find her. Will he succeed in time to stop a global disaster?

Former Delta operator Case Lee is contracted to extract a lost Swiss bio-prospector from Brazil, where he learns the scientist has vanished with an incredible organic substance that has the potential for genocide.

Case is plunged into the pursuit of his life through dark rain forest and the gritty slums of Rio—where victory is defined by staying alive against ruthless spies, an underworld of drug dealers, and deep-shadow conspirators.

"I'm a fan of Vince Flynn and Lee Child. Vince Milam is cut from the same stock - an excellent writer!" Kindle Reviewer

"If you like Reacher, John Puller, Joe Pike and Elvis Cole than add Case to your list of must reads." Kindle Reviewer

The Amazon Job is the fourth standalone novel in the high-octane Case Lee espionage thriller series. If you like conflicted heroes, non-stop action, and treacherous global threats, then you’ll love Vince Milam’s gripping novel.

Buy The Amazon Job today and join the adventure!

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255 Vince Milam Bas 4 4.53 2019 The Amazon Job (Case Lee, #4)
author: Vince Milam
name: Bas
average rating: 4.53
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2022/09/26
date added: 2022/09/26
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<![CDATA[The Caribbean Job (Case Lee, #3)]]> 41214221 A simple job. Low key. Investigate the mysterious deaths of two rich guys. No worries. Until spies and professional hitters started coming out of the woodwork, pointed my direction.

And discovered a man with special skills. Very special skills. Welcome to the world of Case Lee. A retired Delta operator unleashed into a world of deadly espionage and ultimate betrayal.

Fans of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher, Tom Clancy, Vince Flynn’s Mitch Rapp, and Robert Ludlum’s Jason Bourne will love the Case Lee series.

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251 Vince Milam Bas 0 4.41 2018 The Caribbean Job (Case Lee, #3)
author: Vince Milam
name: Bas
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2022/09/18
date added: 2022/09/18
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<![CDATA[The New Guinea Job (Case Lee, #2)]]> 37888959
A murdered wife. A bounty on his head. Case lives an isolated life on the Ace of Spades, an old wooden cruiser plying the waters of the Intracoastal Waterway from Virginia to Florida. His only friends are a collection of former Delta Force teammates spread across the globe. And an enigmatic broker of clandestine information, Jules of the Clubhouse.

Case wants out. But bounty hunters and spies and shadowed players keep pulling him back in. And discover his special skills. Very special skills. If you like Jack Reacher and Mitch Rapp, you'll love this new novel from acclaimed author Vince Milam.]]>
271 Vince Milam 1662501218 Bas 5 4.40 2018 The New Guinea Job (Case Lee, #2)
author: Vince Milam
name: Bas
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2018
rating: 5
read at: 2022/09/11
date added: 2022/09/11
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<![CDATA[The Suriname Job (Case Lee, #1)]]> 36355076
A murdered wife. A bounty on his head. Case lives an isolated life on the Ace of Spades, an old wooden cruiser plying the waters of the Intracoastal Waterway from Virginia to Florida. His only friends are a collection of former Delta Force teammates spread across the globe. And an enigmatic broker of clandestine information, Jules of the Clubhouse.

Case wants out. But when he returns from South America, bounty hunters arrive. And in their search for him discover his special skills. Very special skills.

This is a new release of an edition originally published by Vince Milam Books.]]>
271 Vince Milam 166250120X Bas 4 4.27 2017 The Suriname Job (Case Lee, #1)
author: Vince Milam
name: Bas
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2022/09/05
date added: 2022/09/05
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<![CDATA[Monte Cassino: Ten Armies in Hell]]> 19068767 404 Peter Caddick-Adams Bas 4 4.08 2012 Monte Cassino: Ten Armies in Hell
author: Peter Caddick-Adams
name: Bas
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2012
rating: 4
read at: 2022/09/01
date added: 2022/09/01
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<![CDATA[SAS Ghost Patrol: The Ultra-Secret Unit That Posed As Nazi Stormtroopers]]> 35689767 The Ultra-Secret Unit That Posed As Nazi Stormtroopers

The Most Daring Mission Ever Undertaken

SAS Ghost Patrol is the explosive true story of the day in 1942 when the SAS donned Nazi uniforms to perpetrate the most audacious and daring mission of the war. Beyond top secret, deniable in the extreme (and of course enjoying Churchill's enthusiastic blessing), this is one of the most remarkable stories of wartime lawlessness, eccentricity and raw courage in the face of impossible odds - a thoroughly British undertaking.

What unfolded - the longest mission ever undertaken by Allied special forces - was an epic of daring, courage, tragedy and survival that remains unrivalled to this day, and which rightly became a foundation stone of Special Forces legend. Written with Lewis's signature authenticity and dramatic verve, SAS Ghost Patrol is peopled by a cast of the utterly maverick and the extraordinary. In its quirky eccentricities and outrageous rule-breaking, this is a story that only the British could have authored, and with such panache and aplomb. It may read like the stuff of impossible myth or folklore, but every single word is true.

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352 Damien Lewis 1786483130 Bas 4 4.31 SAS Ghost Patrol: The Ultra-Secret Unit That Posed As Nazi Stormtroopers
author: Damien Lewis
name: Bas
average rating: 4.31
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rating: 4
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<![CDATA[Hogs in the Sand: A Gulf War A-10 Pilot's Combat Journal]]> 55085308 I am awed by my destructive power. With a small squeeze of the gun trigger under my right index finger, I can rip the turret off a thirty-ton battle tank and throw it 200 feet across the desert, while the rest of the tank burns in an explosion of white-hot, burning phosphorescence. But the cold, morbid reality of it does not exist from where I sit and watch it happen. There's no dramatic chord. No deafening explosion. No screams suddenly stifled. The soundtrack of a pilot's war is mostly silent. The mighty, iconic A-10 Warthog was first thrust into battle in Operation Desert Storm. The men who took it through walls of flak and surface-to-air missiles to help defeat the world's fourth-largest army were as untested as their airplanes, so they relied on personal determination and the amazing A-10 to accomplish their missions, despite the odds. Hogs in the Sand is the epic and deeply-personal year-long journey of one of those pilots as he fights an increasingly terrifying war, all the while attempting to win over a woman and keep control of his internal demons. For anyone who has admired the Warthog, seen it in action, or called upon it to be their salvation, this story will fulfill a desire to virtually strap into the cockpit, while gaining unprecedented understanding of the mind of a modern combat pilot.]]> 442 Buck Wyndham Bas 0 4.28 Hogs in the Sand: A Gulf War A-10 Pilot's Combat Journal
author: Buck Wyndham
name: Bas
average rating: 4.28
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The Heretic 51449520
McCormack has returned to Glasgow after a stint with the Metropolitan Police in London. The reason for his return is left a lurking mystery throughout. He is investigating a series of murders that seem at first to be the result of random bouts of violence among Glasgow’s poor and destitute. McCormack, however, has insight into Glasgow’s underground that many of his colleagues don’t. He has a secret of his own that he guards carefully but that takes him places and introduces him to people that prove essential to his investigations.

Mcilvanney’s The Quaker was named the Scottish Crime Fiction Book of the Year and a Washington Post Best Book of the Year. The Guardian called it “a solidly crafted and satisfying detective story.� McIlvanney is known for his well crafted plots, his deep characterization, and his stylish prose. The Heretic is no exception.]]>
521 Liam McIlvanney Bas 0 4.46 2022 The Heretic
author: Liam McIlvanney
name: Bas
average rating: 4.46
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2022/07/23
date added: 2022/07/23
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Serenade to the Big Bird 33951860 Bert Stiles (1920-1944) was an American author of short stories who was killed in action during World War II while serving as a fighter pilot in the US Army Air Forces.His mother commemorated his memory by having his book published in 1947 in England (Lindsay Drummond Ltd.), with its first U.S. publication in 1952 (W.W. Norton & Company). Entitled Serenade to the Big Bird, the book achieved cult status among aviation enthusiasts for its honest depictions of bomber combat and also won favorable literary reviews for its spare, Hemingway-style prose and its anti-war sensitivity.]]> 147 Bert Stiles 8822894901 Bas 0 3.91 1952 Serenade to the Big Bird
author: Bert Stiles
name: Bas
average rating: 3.91
book published: 1952
rating: 0
read at: 2022/07/16
date added: 2022/07/16
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<![CDATA[The Quaker (Duncan McCormack #1)]]> 40543547 His name fills the streets with fear�

In the chilling new crime novel from award-winning author Liam McIlvanney, a serial killer stalks the streets of Glasgow and DI McCormack follows a trail of secrets to uncover the truth�

A city torn apart.
Glasgow, 1969. In the grip of the worst winter for years, the city is brought to its knees by a killer whose name fills the streets with fear: the Quaker. He takes his next victim � the third woman from the same nightclub � and dumps her in the street like rubbish.

A detective with everything to prove.
The police are left chasing a ghost, with no new leads and no hope of catching their prey. DI McCormack, a talented young detective from the Highlands, is ordered to join the investigation. But his arrival is met with anger from a group of officers on the brink of despair. Soon he learns just how difficult life can be for an outsider.

A killer who hunts in the shadows.
When another woman is found murdered in a tenement flat, it’s clear the case is by no means over. From ruined backstreets to the dark heart of Glasgow, McCormack follows a trail of secrets that will change the city � and his life � forever�

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390 Liam McIlvanney Bas 0 4.25 2018 The Quaker (Duncan McCormack #1)
author: Liam McIlvanney
name: Bas
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2022/07/10
date added: 2022/07/10
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The Road To Stalingrad 26785440 The Road to Stalingrad, Professor Erickson takes us in detail from the inept command structures and strategic delusions of the pre-invasion Soviet Union, through the humiliations as her armies fell back on all fronts before the Barbarossa onslaught, until the tide turned at last at Stalingrad. Unsparingly, he assesses the generals and political leaders and analyses the confusions and wranglings within both Allied and Axis commands. The climax, the grinding battle for Stalingrad, leaves the Red Army poised for its majestic counter-offensive, Operation 'Uranus', discovering it had 'caught a tiger by the tail'.]]> 907 John Erickson 1474603033 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.25 1975 The Road To Stalingrad
author: John Erickson
name: Bas
average rating: 4.25
book published: 1975
rating: 0
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date added: 2022/06/16
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Deathworld 3 (Deathworld, #3) 19176168 156 Harry Harrison 0575115947 Bas 0 4.23 1968 Deathworld 3 (Deathworld, #3)
author: Harry Harrison
name: Bas
average rating: 4.23
book published: 1968
rating: 0
read at: 2022/06/16
date added: 2022/06/16
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<![CDATA[Deathworld 2: With linked Table of Contents]]> 27230156 114 Harry Harrison 1515402010 Bas 4 3.99 1963 Deathworld 2: With linked Table of Contents
author: Harry Harrison
name: Bas
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1963
rating: 4
read at: 2022/06/13
date added: 2022/06/13
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Deathworld 1 6354483
Deathworld is one of the classics of the Golden Age of science fiction, born in the pages of Astounding Science Fiction under the editorship of John W. Campbell, Jr.

This edition adds a lengthy introduction about Deathworld and Harry Harrison, plus a Selected Bibliography covering Harry Harrison's novels. It is taken from the original magazine publication, which has some minor variations from later book editions.]]>
140 Harry Harrison 1434439747 Bas 5 short and sweet

A wonderful story of humans evolving in different directions. How environment drives change and how man can try to bend the world or move with the world.
I read Deathworld years and years ago and have always loved the story. Reading it 40 years later, nothing of its strength has diminished. ]]>
4.03 1960 Deathworld 1
author: Harry Harrison
name: Bas
average rating: 4.03
book published: 1960
rating: 5
read at: 2022/06/10
date added: 2022/06/10
shelves:
review:
short and sweet

A wonderful story of humans evolving in different directions. How environment drives change and how man can try to bend the world or move with the world.
I read Deathworld years and years ago and have always loved the story. Reading it 40 years later, nothing of its strength has diminished.
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<![CDATA[King and Emperor (The Hammer and the Cross)]]> 19454647 480 Harry Harrison Bas 0 4.50 1996 King and Emperor (The Hammer and the Cross)
author: Harry Harrison
name: Bas
average rating: 4.50
book published: 1996
rating: 0
read at: 2022/06/06
date added: 2022/06/06
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<![CDATA[One King's Way (The Hammer and the Cross)]]> 19325747 405 Harry Harrison Bas 0 currently-reading 4.65 1995 One King's Way (The Hammer and the Cross)
author: Harry Harrison
name: Bas
average rating: 4.65
book published: 1995
rating: 0
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date added: 2022/05/18
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The Hammer and the Cross 19074421 At the center of this bloody conflict is Shef, bastard son of a Norse raider and a captive English lady. A smith and a warrior, he is driven by strange visions that seem to come from Odin himself. Torn by divided loyalties, Shef alone dares to imagine new weapons and tactics with which to carve out a kingdom - and threaten the holy power of Rome itself!]]> 428 Harry Harrison 0575115955 Bas 0 currently-reading 4.44 1993 The Hammer and the Cross
author: Harry Harrison
name: Bas
average rating: 4.44
book published: 1993
rating: 0
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date added: 2022/05/06
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<![CDATA[The Operators: On The Street with Britain's Most Secret Service]]> 23787705 A rare look inside the British Army’s elite special forces unit and its counter-terrorism surveillance operations—from one of its own. Few outside the security services have heard of 14 Company. As deadly as the SAS yet more secret, the Operators of 14 Company are Britain’s most effective weapon against international terrorism. For every bomb that goes off 14 Company prevent twelve. The selection process is the most physically, intellectually and emotionally demanding anywhere in the world. Trained to operate under cover, Operators have at their disposal an arsenal of techniques and weapons unmatched by any other UK government or military agency. This is the true story of one Operator and of some of the most hair-raising military operations ever conducted on the streets of Britain.]]> 343 James Rennie 1473835844 Bas 0 4.09 1996 The Operators: On The Street with Britain's Most Secret Service
author: James Rennie
name: Bas
average rating: 4.09
book published: 1996
rating: 0
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date added: 2022/05/06
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<![CDATA[A Clean Sweep: The Destruction of the Japanese Army Air force Fighter Arm Over New Guinea 1943-44]]> 29765308 This is not a standard description of the events, which has been done before, but a presentation of a general background and days of air combat over New Guinea, beginning in August 1943 with the first big successful air strikes on the base complex at Wewak, presenting the US fighter claims and JAAF losses compiled from captured JAAF records, decoded radio traffic, post-war writings and memoirs.
The Japanese pilots identified are listed by name and unit, and in some cases the successful US pilot or squadron can be identified. On other occasions the US claims and JAAF figures match exactly.
While identification by name and unit is included, also the JAAF unit strength state in aircraft is sometimes available and this gives a closer figure to US claims.
Within all this is the decoded JAAF radio traffic advising how many fighters were being sent from Manila.
These figures indicate just how complete was the destruction of the JAAF fighter arm in New Guinea during the time frame August 43-May 44.
There is an analysis of Neel Kearby's CMOH combat over Wewak on 11 October 1943, a possible identification of another US ace, and confirmation of 'probables' to 'destroyed' for two US pilots.
On some days the combats were so large that detailed analysis using the available information here is not feasible, but on others some detail is presented to confirm claims.
This is not a full text-type account of the events, but a presentation of units involved, claims and losses on a daily basis.
There are no maps or photos as it is assumed the potential reader already has this information and is a person interested in fighter combats in WW2, with special interest in the New Guinea theatre.]]>
113 Lex McAulay Bas 0 currently-reading 3.80 A Clean Sweep: The Destruction of the Japanese Army Air force Fighter Arm Over New Guinea 1943-44
author: Lex McAulay
name: Bas
average rating: 3.80
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date added: 2022/03/26
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Unknown Soldiers 25556604 Unknown Soldiers is the story of a platoon of ordinary Finnish soldiers fighting their Soviet Union counterparts during the Second World War. Drawing on Linna's own wartime experiences, this gritty and realistic account shatters the myth of the noble, obedient Finnish soldier.]]> 461 Väinö Linna Bas 0 currently-reading 4.39 2000 Unknown Soldiers
author: Väinö Linna
name: Bas
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2000
rating: 0
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date added: 2022/03/21
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