Douglas W. Jacobson

I read this author’s other book a year and a half ago, enjoying most of it but finding the ending lacking. This novel both shines and suffered from the same areas as the last one.

The book’s plot is phenomenal. The tale starts out stunning with the invasion of Poland and just keeps the steam up all the way to the liberation of Antwerp four years later. There is not one slow area of the book; it’s just chock full of nail-chewing escapes, close calls, horrifying battles, and the struggle against an overwhelming invader/enemy. All of this is a big plus in a spy/Resistance thriller.

I enjoyed the characters in this volume, too. Anna more than Jan, as she seemed the more developed of the two, but both kept me on the edge of my seat on their journeys through war-torn Europe and fighting against the Nazis. I liked how vulnerable and realistic both were. They weren’t super-secret agents but real people driven to act against the ultimate evil.

Where this book falters, like the first, was towards the end and the ending itself. Again we have a serious lack of resolution. The reader is left hanging when it comes to character development and dealing with the entire trauma the author put them through. The actual spy stuff is concluded but then we’re left with nothing on how the characters dealt with the war itself and all its brutality.

This is especially evident with Anna’s storyline. I mean, dang this girl was put through the ringer but nothing. No scenes of healing or peace after her ordeal. Just a scene asking for time. I mean, really?!?! Her storyline also suffered towards the end from a bit too much melodrama. The whole thing with Dieter felt out of place and just stuck in there for sh*ts and giggles.

So good things and bad things within, this book was about the same as the previous. A plotline that won’t let you go and realistic, down-to-earth characters were a real plus. Yet, an ending that lacked resolution and some out-of-place melodrama towards the end really sucked the good out of the book. A solid three stars, I’d give this book a read if you’re in the market for a spy thriller as they story pleases. Brace yourself for that ending, though.… (plus d'informations)

I enjoyed this novel. It had a great setting, intriguing characters, and edge of your seat suspense inherent to all spy novels. Yet, when all is said and done, I was disappointed at the ending. The story really seems to have just cut off and the reader is left blinking wondering what happened.

I liked the characters of Natalia, Adam, and Rabbit. They were very fleshed out and three-dimensional in some very trying circumstances. I was engaged enough by them to be sucked into their struggle to survive and find the missing evidence against the Russians needed to keep Poland free. The author did an admirable job breathing life into these three leading characters.

The choice of setting this novel in Nazi-occupied Poland, specifically the Warsaw Uprising of '44, and immediately after the war with Russia solidifying its hold on Poland was an engrossing change from the typical. Most Resistance novels like this I've come across are set in Nazi-occupied France, Belguim, or Holland. Poland was a nice change of pace.

And boy does the author not hold back on the horrors of war and the anxiety of Soviet oppression! The tank scene towards the beginning of the novel where Natalia and Adam meet? Dude... still shudder thinking about that. The author brings all the terror, pain, and loss inherent to this time frame and setting to horrific life. It brings a realism to the story that is both shocking and sticks with the reader.

I felt the ending left something to be desired, really. When all is said and done, the story ends pretty much where it began. And while it's probably realistic in that not everything gets resolved in favor of our heroes, I just feel that in our fiction we need a bit more resolution. I don't know... In the end, I just felt disappointed at how the story ended. So much loss and for not much result...

This novel stands as a middle of the road spy thriller. The reader is kept on the edge of their seat, engaged with the characters and the setting. But ultimately, I was left with a bitter taste in my mouth in how little resolution I really got. The twist in the end almost made me throw my Kindle across the room in frustration. I don't know if I'd recommend this book or not since resolution and payout is so important for a spy thriller, at least for me. But the characters, suspense, and setting are wonderful. So I'll leave it up to the individual.… (plus d'informations)

This novel is a little bit of everything. If you enjoy spy thrillers, historical fiction or a good love story you will enjoy this well written novel. The 800 pound gorilla in the room however, is always the true story of what happened to over 20,000 Poles in the early part of WW-II when under orders from Joseph Stalin, they were massacred in the Katyn forest.

Most people were not familiar with this event, understandably so since the general focus of the period covers the atrocities committed by the Germans in Poland, until recently when Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin finally ‘came clean’ and admitted to the events. Unfortunately, a horrible plane crash killing the Polish President and a large number of the country’s leaders occurred as they were flying to a ceremony commemorating the horror that took place during the war, bringing yet more grief to Poland.

The novel flows smoothly and I can attest that the author has spent a lot of time researching the events, strategies and weapons of the period. It is well written and although there are a few areas where the pace slows a bit, you are soon caught up in the story again.

I enjoyed the story, appreciated the research Douglas W. Jacobson applied to it and the almost happy ending to the love story when the boy…well, you’ll just have to read it yourself.

Before writing my review, I wanted to wait on continueing events regarding the background to this story. See this link for further information - http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/11/world/europe/11poland.html?pagewanted=all

www.daniellittle.com… (plus d'informations)