Guest Review: The Secret Listeners by Sinclair McKay

Follow-up to the bestselling The Secret Life of Bletchley Park, the hitherto-untold story of how young men and women across the world listened in to and intercepted the enemy’s radio traffic so that Bletchley Park’s codebreakers could turn the course of the war. Before Bletchley Park could break the German war machine’s codes, its daily military communications had to be monitored and recorded by “the Listening Service” – the wartime department whose bases moved with every theatre of war: Cairo, Malta, Gibraltar, Iraq, Cyprus, as well as having listening stations along the eastern coast of Britain to intercept radio traffic in the European theatre. This is the story of the – usually very young – men and women sent out to far-flung outposts to listen in for Bletchley Park, an oral history of exotic locations and ordinary lives turned upside down by a sudden remote posting – the heady nightlife of Cairo, filing-cabinets full of snakes in North Africa, and flights out to Delhi by luxurious flying boat.

 

Review: This book describes the exploits of the Wireless Interception Service, or Y Service, during the Second World War. This was a highly secretive organisation comprising armed forces and civilian personnel whose task was to listen in to encrypted enemy wireless communications, usually transmitted in morse code, and transcribe the sequences of letters that were being sent. These wireless intercepts were then submitted to the codebreakers at Bletchley Park. Hence, Y Service was responsible for intercepting and supplying the raw material to be decoded. However, the young men and women of the Y Service were posted not just to various listening stations around the United Kingdom, but to locations abroad nearer the front line, or even to an isolated island in the Indian Ocean.

The author, Sinclair McKay, had written previously "The Secret Life of Bletchley Park", so "The Secret Listeners" complements this earlier publication. It is based on archival material and interviews with numerous surviving veterans of Y Service. The book gives a fascinating insight of the work of this little-known organisation and the dedication of the operators who worked round the clock in sometimes difficult conditions to intercept and transcribe enemy communications.

Although I enjoyed the book, I do have a major criticism of the standard of proof reading since there are several obvious typographical errors. In addition, there are a number of glaring geographical errors, such as Harwich transposed from Essex to Suffolk, and Skegness transposed from Lincolnshire to Yorkshire. In addition, a map at the front of the book shows Heliopolis, a suburb of Cairo in Egypt, transposed to Algeria

To order your copy, just click the link! UK or US

Guest Review: The Kamikaze Hunters-Fighting For The Pacific 1945 by Will Iredale

I've got a new series of reviews coming up on the blog over the next few weeks. These reviews will be on historical or sporting non-fiction reads. This isn't something I would necessarily read myself but something my Dad is really into and so he has reviewed some of his recent reads for the blog in case we have any readers with a keen interest in either of these areas. This is the first review and look out for weekend posts coming up with a similar theme. Enjoy!

In May 1945, with victory in Europe established, the war was all but over. But on the other side of the world, the Allies were still engaged in a bitter struggle to control the Pacific. And it was then that the Japanese unleashed a terrible new form of warfare: the suicide pilots, or Kamikaze.

Drawing on meticulous research and unique personal access to the remaining survivors, Will Iredale follows a group of young men from the moment they joined up through their initial training to the terrifying reality of fighting against pilots who, in the cruel last summer of the war, chose death rather than risk their country's dishonourable defeat and deliberately flew their planes into Allied aircraft carriers. A story of courage, valour and dogged determination, The Kamikaze Hunters is a gripping account of how a few brave young men helped to ensure lasting peace.

  

Review: This book is a factual account of the little-known exploits of the airmen of the Fleet Air Arm who flew with the British Pacific Fleet during 1945 until the end of hostilities in August of that year.

I was drawn to the book because my father served as a radar officer on an escort carrier in the British Pacific Fleet. It is an insightful addition to the bibliography of a relatively little-known aspect of the war in the Pacific. In fact, so few people are aware of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth's contribution to the naval war in the Far East that the British Pacific Fleet is often dubbed the "Forgotten Fleet".

Although the title suggests the main focus is on the Pacific campaign, the history of naval aviation together with the recruitment and training of the aircrew who fought in the skies over the Pacific and Japan are covered. Indeed, it is not until nearly halfway through the book that the creation and embarkation of the British Pacific Fleet is described.

The author, Will Iredale is a former journalist and the book is written in a journalistic language. Although not suitable for all of the sections, the style does lend extra drama to the accounts of the air strikes carried out by the young aircrew of the British Pacific Fleet and the deadly kamikaze attacks launched against the fleet's ships, in which the Japanese pilots dived their aircraft directly into the ships.

The book is based largely on interviews with survivors of the conflict and personal letters and diaries, together with research of official archives. As such, the account concentrates rather narrowly on a relatively small group of individuals and, in my view, would have benefited from a broader approach. Hence, the book focuses almost exclusively on the larger fleet aircraft carriers and it is not until the final chapter that that the smaller escort carriers are mentioned, and then none by name. In addition, I cannot agree with Will Iredale's description of First Sea Lord Sir Andrew Cunningham as a "pen pusher in London" when the latter had served in the front line during the First World War as a destroyer captain and, for much of the Second World War, was Commander-In-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet. In this capacity, he had ordered the strike against the Italian fleet at Taranto, the first all-aircraft naval attack in history, which is mentioned in some of the early chapters of the book.

However, these are minor detractions and for the most part, I found the book an enjoyable and gripping read and an important contribution to the limited bibliography about the "Forgotten Fleet".

To order your copy now, just click the link! UK or US 

Review: Songs of Love and War by Santa Montefiore

Their lives were mapped out ahead of them. But love and war will change everything…

West Cork, Ireland, 1900. The year marks the start of a new century, and the birth of three very different women: Kitty Deverill, the flame-haired Anglo-Irish daughter of the castle, Bridie Doyle, the daughter of the Irish cook and Celia Deverill, Kitty's flamboyant English cousin.

Together they grow up in the dreamy grounds of the family's grand estate, Castle Deverill. Yet their peaceful way of life is threatened when Ireland's struggle for independence reaches their isolated part of the country.

A bastion of British supremacy, the castle itself is in danger of destruction as the war closes in around it, and Kitty, in love with the rebel Jack O'Leary and enflamed by her own sense of patriotism, is torn between loyalty to her Anglo-Irish family and her deep love of Ireland and Jack.

Wrenched apart by betrayal, their world turned to ash, the girls' friendship seems all but lost as they are swept to different parts of the globe. Yet, they have one thing in common: a fierce and unwavering longing for Castle Deverill and all the memories contained within it. 

Review: this was very different to my usual reading material. Although I have read a few of Santa Montefiore's books previously, none of them have been quite as 'historical' as this one and so I have to admit I struggled to get into this one a little initially. I think that the thing I struggled with the most was keeping track of who all the characters were and how they related together. The structure of the books was that it was divvied into 3 parts. There was also a prologue and a epilogue. I loved the structure of the book and my favourite part, the part that had me really gripped was the third part. I felt, by this point that I had got to knew the characters and really invested in them so from this pint onwards I couldn't stop listening to it! 

The characters were an interesting mix of English and Irish during the time when English weren't really welcome in Ireland and it was a fairly dangerous place to be. We also has a mix of the right families and their servants. These characters went through so much drama and created so much drama, I can't really single any one character out as a favourite. I really liked the journey that maid Bridie went on. I won't give away any spoilers but I'm sure you'll be championing her from the start! 

Of course the setting description in this one was beautiful. The description of the Irish landscape is just breathtaking. Some of the book is set in New York and I could totally picture the scenes as Monterfiore was describing them. There are also so bits set in England and I think that this author really captures the mood at the time in her descriptions. As I say, this book was quite different for me. I enjoyed it overall. I have it in paperback but actually listened to it in audiobook. I'd really quite like the chance to go back to beginning of the book and read the first couple of chapters because the epilogue takes the book full circle, if you read it I would really recommend flicking back to the beginning after you're done! 

Review: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Winning will make you famous.
Losing means certain death.

The nation of Panem, formed from a post-apocalyptic North America, is a country that consists of a wealthy Capitol region surrounded by 12 poorer districts. Early in its history, a rebellion led by a 13th district against the Capitol resulted in its destruction and the creation of an annual televised event known as the Hunger Games. In punishment, and as a reminder of the power and grace of the Capitol, each district must yield one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 through a lottery system to participate in the games. The 'tributes' are chosen during the annual Reaping and are forced to fight to the death, leaving only one survivor to claim victory.

When 16-year-old Katniss's young sister, Prim, is selected as District 12's female representative, Katniss volunteers to take her place. She and her male counterpart Peeta, are pitted against bigger, stronger representatives, some of whom have trained for this their whole lives. , she sees it as a death sentence. But Katniss has been close to death before. For her, survival is second nature. 

Review: ok so i liked this novel so much more than I thought I was going to. people have been telling me to get stuck into this one for absolutely ages and I don't know why I left it so long. I enjoyed this one so much that I immediately downloaded the next book in the trilogy and it is my next read!

I'm not always a massive fan of things which are set in another world or have that dystopian or fantasy element to them but this one felt like it was true to real life as well as being set in a  world where there are different districts and each has their own responsibility. I have to admit that initially, the idea of The Hunger Games and young people killing each other really out me off but once i got going with the book, the excitement overtook everything else and I was shouting at it 'push him off, throw him down!' etc etc!

I really liked the character of Katniss and I expected her to be a contender in the games right from the start. She is a real person and relatable as a character. She knows what she want and stands up for what she believes in and I always love that in a character. The other characters in the games, the games makers and the mentors were all pretty cool people as well but this one main character really stuck out for me and she will be my lasting memory of this book. 

Ok so this book is intended for younger readers and definitely appeals to them. I am reading this with a group of 11 year olds at school at the moment and they are loving it. Because it is for that younger audience, the storyline is somewhat predictable, as much as a book about young people trying to kill each other to win can be and some of the events can seem a little contrived but honestly, I lost sight of that when I because wrapped up in the games themselves and of Katniss's fight for survival, or not!

Its really hard to review this book without spoilers so I'll end here just by saying, I really enjoyed this book showing that, even if you're not into dystopian fiction or stories set in fantastical worlds, you can get into this one. There area  few moments that aren't for the squeamish but you can definitely gloss over those and really get yourself into this trilogy too!

Review! The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. 

Review: I was a little intimidated to read this book because it seems to be on EVERYONE'S favourite book list, every bookshop I go in it's up there on the MUST READ books stand and when I said I was in the process of reading it people were telling me how much they loved it. The problem was, I didn't love it! I enjoyed listening to it, I got it on audiobook and it was wonderfully read. I think perhaps if I'd got the paperback, i might have given up on this one because its a long old slog! I liked the concept and I liked the setting, it just didn't wow me in the way I thought it might.

The writing though is just beautiful, everyone told me it was beautifully written and this is where the hype is definitely right! The smilies and the description are just gorgeous, I am definitely going to recommend this to some of the kids that I teach and am definitely going to use some of the descriptions of settings and people when I teach that aspect of writing. I would find myself lost in the descriptions as I was driving along listening to it.

I was really pleased to discover that the book thief was a girl, definitely expected it to be a boy and so I thought making her a girl was an excellent choice and something which makes it stand out from other books. I also liked the fact that death was the narrator and found his asides during the book particularly amusing and at some times poignant. I have read and enjoyed a few books set during the nazi occupation/world war II times recently and so the setting wasn't the problem but I just didn't feel the storyline went anywhere and I think that's why I didn't enjoy it.

I liked the characters and I liked some of the individual story lines throughout the novel but overall it didn't wow me. I totally fell in love with Papa and defy anyone not to, I thought that Liesel and her friends were fab characters, I just prefer a book with a definite-this is the beginning, this is what happened, this is an ending. I found the epilogue quite moving and had a tear when I found out the fates of some of the characters in the novel. If you prefer your writing in short bursts of beautiful description then this is one for you. If you are looking for a quick read then I wouldn't recommend this book as your next buy.

To read this book for yourself, click here.

Review! The Girl Under The Olive Tree by Leah Flemming

I was lucky enough to receive a copy of this for review and thought it sounded like the kind of thing my mum loves to red, so I asked her if she'd do a guest review for me. She agreed and so here is her thoughts on The Girl Under The Olive Tree!

May 1941 and the island of Crete is invaded by paratroopers from the air. After a lengthy fight, thousands of British and Commonwealth soldiers are forced to take to the hills or become escaping PoWs, sheltered by the Cretan villagers.

Sixty years later, Lois West and her young son, Alex, invite feisty Great Aunt Pen to a special eighty-fifth birthday celebration on Crete, knowing she has not been back there since the war.

Penelope George - formerly Giorgidiou - is reluctant to go but is persuaded by the fact it is the 60th anniversary of the Battle. It is time for her to return and make the journey she never thought she'd dare to. On the outward voyage from Athens, she relives her experiences in the city from her early years as a trainee nurse to those last dark days stranded on the island, the last female foreigner.

When word spreads of her visit, and old Cretan friends and family come to greet her, Lois and Alex are caught up in her epic pilgrimage and the journey which leads her to a reunion with the friend she thought she had lost forever - and the truth behind a secret buried deep in the past ...

The Girl Under the Olive Tree is a story of one girl’s journey through adversity and survival against all the odds, and of the people she meets along the way.

We first meet Penny George as a young girl in 1936, trying to evade her mother’s plans to launch her into society and marry her off to a ‘suitable’ man. She definitely has other plans, but the problem is how to escape. Her interest in archaeology is fuelled by meeting Bruce, a New Zealander with a passion for the subject. Unbeknown to her, their paths will cross many times in the years to come.

Penny’s escape from her mother’s clutches comes unexpectedly, when her brother-in-law is posted to Athens and she is allowed to go for a visit. During her extended stay with her sister and brother-in-law, she is able to follow her interest in archaeology, but, with the threat of war coming, she decides to train as a Red Cross nurse. She meets up with a young Jewish girl, Yolanda, who trains with her, and the two become firm friends, Penny learning a lot about the Jewish people and their customs in the process. Yolanda, like Penny, has parents who wish to map out her future and choose a husband for her, which is not entirely to her liking.

With war clouds gathering, British people are leaving Greece, but Penny is determined to stay behind and carry on with her chosen vocation. She has inherited Greek colouring from her paternal grandfather, and can pass herself off as Greek, especially when she reverts to the family name of Georgiou and dyes her blonde hair dark. Despite attempts to make her leave Greece many times, Penny finally ends up in Crete, nursing wounded soldiers. The German invasion and occupation of the island brings new challenges, and Penny becomesheavily involved with the resistance movement there.

In the course of her nursing duties, Penny meets up with a high-ranking German officer, Rainer, injured during the invasion. He develops a fascination for her. Despite her attempts to avoid him, and the fact that they are on different sides, they meet up several times over the years.

Running alongside the story of Penny during the war is a tale of her return to Crete in the present day (2001), and her surprising discoveries when she gets there. This part involves her grand-niece, Lois, and Lois’s son, Alex. Lois is recovering from a broken marriage, and decides to take Aunt Penny back to Crete as a birthday treat, the timing coinciding with a sixtieth anniversary reunion on the island. The narrative jumps back and forward between the 1940s and 2001, which is a bit distracting.

In this novel, we see a different image of Crete from the idyllic island we are used to as modern-day tourists. As has been seen many times in history, we see the war causing devastation of the landscape and ancient sites. During the occupation of the island, there is also muchlooting of artefacts that were centuries old. We also learn of the strength and tenacity of the Cretan people under conditions of great hardship and oppression.

Although Penny and Yolanda both find the loves of their lives during the course of the narrative, it is more a tale of war and survival than a love story. The ending of the story is quite abrupt and unexpected. It would be nice to know what happened next.

To get your copy of this novel click here

Review! Longbourn by Jo Baker

The servants at Longbourn estate--only glancingly mentioned in Jane Austen's classic--take center stage in Jo Baker's lively, cunning new novel. Here are the Bennets as we have never known them: seen through the eyes of those scrubbing the floors, cooking the meals, emptying the chamber pots. Our heroine is Sarah, an orphaned housemaid beginning to chafe against the boundaries of her class. When the militia marches into town, a new footman arrives under mysterious circumstances, and Sarah finds herself the object of the attentions of an ambitious young former slave working at neighboring Netherfield Hall, the carefully choreographed world downstairs at Longbourn threatens to be completely, perhaps irrevocably, up-ended. From the stern but soft-hearted housekeeper to the starry-eyed kitchen maid, these new characters come vividly to life in this already beloved world. Jo Baker shows us what Jane Austen wouldn't in a captivating, wonderfully evocative, moving work of fiction.

Review: wow! What a fabulous retelling! When I first heard about this book I thought it was a wonderful concept and knew that I would have to read it. Now I sometimes struggle with the language and lengthily descriptions in some of Austen's novels and was worried that I might struggle with this one but it was such an easy and compelling read, I had no problems whatsoever. The language, in fact was one of my favourite parts. The narration was in easy to follow English but the thing the servants said to on another and indeed the other characters in the novel, the Bennets, the Bingley folk were all as they would have been phrased at that time and I thought it gave a really good a balance! Some of the things Mrs Bennet or Mrs Hill said had me laughing out loud!

The characters in this novel were fabulous, such a good idea to feature these hard working and yet 

unseen characters from Pride and Prejudice! Sarah is the main character really and like a lot of books that I read, she is a young women who is hard working and wants good things for herself and so is prepared to work for them. She gets herself into a couple of romantic entanglements along the way, readers will be pleased to hear, and she really goes for the things she wants in life, even if it means things are going to be difficult for her. The relationship she has with Mrs Hill (a wonderfully formidable character) is a mother/daughter type and the relationship she has with the younger maid Polly is also like that only in this case, Sarah is the mother figure. 

She also has a good relationship with the two older Bennet girls which means that she does get to travel in this novel. This is not just a story about the everyday comings and goings in the Bennet household, there is a lot more that goes on below stairs than we realise. You get such a good feel for the pain the servants must have been in constantly tramping up and down the stairs, and the description of the aches and pain, and the chilblains are so realistic, you really get to feel their pain.

You learn more about the landscape surrounding Longbourn, the journeys to London, to Netherfield and eventually, of course, to Pemberley.  The novel is divided into three significant parts, the first two parts are mainly based at Longbourn, with a short journey into London, but the final part focuses slightly more on the story of the footman and how he came to be. I didn't find this part quite as enjoyable as the previous two sections, but the very end of this section is where Sarah goes to Pemberley with Elizabeth and this was really very enjoyable so made up for the rest of this part. It was an interesting choice to divide the book into parts like this but I think it really works, and each section is definitely separate from the last!

Overall this book really lived up to my expectations, exceeded them even. I found it a real page turner, the language is beautiful, the characters engaging and what a gorgeous cover too! I think that most readers will really enjoy this book, it does help to know the story of Pride and Prejudice but I don't think it is essential and you certainly don't have to be overly familiar with Austen and her work in order to fully enjoy this wonderful novel! A must buy!

You can order your copy of Longbourn by clicking on the cover picture!

Review! Cross my heart by Carmen Reid

Brussels, 1940. Fifteen-year-old Nicole watches as the Nazis invade Belgium. Determined not to stand by as her country is brought to its knees, Nicole vows to fight back and joins the Belgian Resistance. Under her new alias - Coco - Nicole embarks on a dangerous new life as a spy, where the only question is not if you'll be caught, but when...

Review: I was lucky enough to receive this review copy from Random House and, being a massive Carmen Reid fan, I was eager to get started! This wouldn't normally be my kind of book, but I'm trying really hard to read outside my comfort zone more and this blog thankfully gives me just the opportunity to do that. This book had me hooked right from the word go! It was full of action and suspense and yet a clear moral value running all the way through. It is set in 1940 and war has just broken out. Nicole lives in Belgium and Nazi soldiers have begun their invasion. She joins a Resistance group, and that is where the action really begins. I think this was a great idea for a storyline because, we hear a lot about children evacuated from the UK during the war, about soldiers in the UK, USA and Europe, but there really isn't an awful lot about teenagers during the war, those on the cusp of adulthood, not quite a soldier and yet not a child any longer either!

I loved the character of Nicole, she really did her part for feminism in every chapter of the book. She is strong and stand up for what she believes in. Even when she knows she shouldn't, even when she is being told it isn't safe, she couldn't do it, she goes for it, for the greater good of her country. She has strong ideas and uses her initiative, she doesn't follow the crowd and she definitely isn't concerned about what others think of her. The things that she overcomes in this story and truly phenomenal, I won't go into them too far because the amazement you experience as a reader, hearing the trials and tribulations she faces on a hourly basis of immense. 

There are a host of other characters in this book that are equally fabulous and support Nicole throughout her journey. The main male character in the book Anton is a fellow Resistance member and he and Nicole have a lovely relationship. This runs throughout the whole of the book and softens the edges of the fighting and drama that is going on in occupied Europe. I am pleased that their romance isn't the dominant storyline here though, i think the story told, was far more important and far more enjoyable!

Normally I'm not brilliant at reading a book with a setting, not so close to home. I've never been to a concentration camp, or to Germany, and obviously I haven't visited Belgium during the war, however, the setting wasn't a bit problem in this case. The rooms and houses that Nicole was in, and the predicaments she got herself into in other locations were so well-described that I had no problem picturing the solitude, and damp and darkness, it practically leapt off the page at me!

Whether you have read anything by Carmen Reid before or not, I would thoroughly recommend giving this novel a go. Even if, like me, you aren't normally into books set in the war, or action books, this one totally stands out as something different! It had me gasping, and encouraging characters to change their minds out loud. This was a completely new discovery for me, and I think one that other readers should get to experience for themselves!

To get your copy of this fabulous piece of YA fiction, click here...