Liquidate Paris

Legion of the Damned #8

by Sven Hassel

I had a grenade in my hand. So, no doubt, did the English private. I tore out the pin with my teeth. Lay there and counted. Twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four. . .

It is Hitler's last chance to save The Third Reich. . . Millions of Allied troops have landed in Normandy. The orders are Sven and his comrades, hardened by a savage war that has led them from the bloody steppes of the Russian Front, to the slopes of Monte Cassino, are ordered to withdraw to Strasbourg and destroy Paris on the way. . . Liquidate Paris shows the eruption of  World War II in its most brutal and cruel phase, as allied troops advance upon Paris and the penal regiment retreat

Genres: War, Fiction, Historical Fiction, World War II, Military Fiction, Historical, Novels

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1967

About the author

Hassel served in the Danish merchant navy till 1937, when he moved to Germany to join the army. He served with the second Panzer Division stationed at Eisenach and in 1939 was a tank driver during the invasion of Poland. A year later he attempted to escape because of being mentally exhausted. He was transferred to a Sonderabteilung, a penal unit manned by criminals and dissidents. He served with the 2nd Cavalry Regiment and later the 11th and 27th Panzer Regiments (6th Panzer Division) on all fronts except North Africa and was wounded several times. Eventually he reached the rank of lieutenant and received an Iron Cross 1st and 2nd class. He surrendered to Soviet troops in Berlin in 1945 and spent the following years in various POW camps. He began to write his first book Legion of the Damned while he was interned. He was released in 1949, and was planning to join the French Foreign Legion when he met Dorthe Jensen. They got married in 1951. He went to work in a car factory. In 1957 Sven Hassel suffered from an attack of a sickness caught during the war and was paralyzed for almost two years. After recovery, he began to write more books.

See also Sven Hazel

Reviews

[Razvan Banciu · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual, Mr. Hassel ties his stories to real-life events and then develops his own secondary plot.
They may say that reading one of his books is quite enough, but if you like his style, and that's my case, you'll enjoy all his products. And his "heroes", Tiny and Porta included...

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the same Sven Hassel that I read for the first time when I was 12 years old, falling in love with war stories and the sheer amount of ways you can tell said stories. I'm happy to go back to him from time to time, because now I also know the historical context of whatever battle he's writing about. In this book, D-Day made an appearance, and as I've been to the Normandy war cemetery and read as much as I can on the subject, I can integrate these soldiers in a grander picture. The writing is in the typical Hassel style - short, tough, disruptive to the peaceful mind. You can be sure you'll be entertained by all of his works.

[Mihai M Tiganus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este prima mea carte de razboi pe care o citesc si pot sa zic ca mi-a placut. Sven prezintă războiul din toate punctele de vedere, de la patriotism si prietenie la furt si trădare. Al doilea război mondial a reprezentat o perioadă sumbră in istoria omenirii, care a lăsat urme adânci. Desi este un conflict recent, foarte multi oameni nu cunosc prea multe lucruri despre acesta, iar astfel de carti ne ajută intr-o anumită masura sa înțelegem mai bine acea perioadă. O carte ca aceasta ar trebui sa fie pe lista oricărui cititor, pentru ca in profunzimea ei nu este despre război ci este o carte despre oameni, alegerile lor si urmările acestora.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite a nice read. Bad guys making their way to survive not caring much for the rules.

[Elina Mäkitalo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Melkoisen tylsä ja puuduttava lukukokemus. Lukemiseen käytetty aika tuntui tuplasti sen mitä se oikeasti olikaan. Välillä teksti oli jotenkin sekavaa ja siirtymät ajassa ja/tai paikassa vähän epäselviä. Mitään kovin erikoista ei tapahtunut vaikka joitain tapahtumia olikin niin nekin oli jokseenkin erittäin laiskasti kirjoitettuja. Päähenkilö oli alussa ihan jännä mutta loppua kohden kaikki henkilöhahmot vain ärsyttivät. Ei siis minun juttuni enkä usko että tulen muita tämän kirjailijan kirjoja lukemaan ainakaan hetkeen.

Helmet- haasteen toinen kierros: 24. Kirjan nimessä on kysymysmerkki tai huutomerkki.

[Paulo "paper books only" · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review to come

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a child looking at book carousels while on holiday, Sven Hassel's books with their gory and violent covers seemed to be everywhere, so it was with surprise that I found his name on a list of forgotten authors, despite still being in print. Hassel seems to have given the impression that he had been a soldier and indeed he appears as a character, but a counter-story is that he'd got most of his material from talking to veterans in pubs. Having now read one of these books, the latter story is almost certainly the case: the combat sections in this book read like a toy soldier's wet dream.

The British Churchill tank, one of the most heavily armoured allied AFVs, seems to be surprisingly easy to knock out and incapable of returning fire effectively. Six of these with their crews sit patiently in a shooting gallery row waiting to be knocked out by Tiger tanks, despite Hassel's own comment that a stationary tank is mince and having had plenty of notice the German tanks are coming.

Allied troops run blindly down the MG42's barrel, instead of exploiting the need to change its barrel frequently, which is not mentioned.

Hassel seems to have needed a new translator who actually knew something about weapons. Side arms are referred to throughout as 'revolvers', including the P38 German pistol which was definitely an automatic. 'Bazookas' are referred to several times, which would probably have been the panzerfaust at that stage of the war, although the Germans did have re loadable AT weapons.

The plot is not very coherent, to some extent being a plugged together set of short stories, but things tighten up as Sven's tight knit section falls back on and makes itself at home in Paris where it becomes involved in the black market. There is quite a lot of high level politics and the pen portraits of German leaders strike true. The Gestapo is presented as no more popular with its own side than the enemy. Hassel inserts incidents of German compassion as a counter to the allied narrative of un remitting brutality: thus wounded British soldiers are comforted and Jewish resistance workers are saved from the firing squad.

There is some cameraderie between the opposing lower ranks, for which I have heard some evidence. Captured Americans are treated to booze and exchange 'no prisoner' stories. Conversely allied war crimes are highlighted, the Canadians apparently being particularly reviled for shooting their prisoners, which I have never come across before and wonder about truth of it. Even in the most full on combat sequences, Hassel asserts that the hard-bitten German troops felt sorry for the green troops they were mowing down with their MG42s. War is a weird thing.

Hassel also includes vignettes that seem to relate to real life incidents of resistance and also the brutality against the general population. This leads on to the general hypocrisy around the liberation of Paris as collaborators rush to cover their tracks and women in relationships with German soldiers are victimised. Hassel even inserts a frankly unlikely and ultimately tragic love affair. More wet dreams there I think. Although I haven't had the inclination to check these vignettes out, they do read as some of the most interesting parts of the book.

Having scored three of these books literally 'under the counter' at a local second hand place, I have another two to go and am on the look out for 'Legion of the Damned', which seems to have some sort of iconic status. This was used as holiday reading and that's probably the best place for it. Although at times Hassel presents a real rollercoaster, at times this disjointed story can get rather tedious. As you may have noticed, Paris was not liquidated.

[Hans-Petter Sandseth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leste den norske utgaven

[Nona · Rating 3 out of 5]

I could say I grew up with Sven Hassel. He was an everlasting presence in out bathroom, where my father always kept one of his volumes for... inspiration purposes. I had never read more than a few pages out of curiosity, when I was searching for the same... inspiration. War stories (not historical fiction about the war, but actual war stories) have never been in my area of interest. I read it now after being challenged by my husband, who, for some reason only known to the universe, has some of the same tastes in books (and other things) as my father.

I can't say that I enjoyed it. Sure, some parts are humorous. Sven and the gang do a lot of stupid things that one can't help but to laugh at. They carry a dead pig in a casket, for instance. They blow up their own companions, they steal food, they get drunk in the middle of fighting and play cards in the trenches while enemy fire rains on their heads...

Sven Hassel is trying to put a humane face on the WWII German army by creating these crazy, insolent, drunk tank unit whose members have no regard for army discipline and authority, thus putting them in absurd and sometimes hilarious, sometimes emotional situations. These people enrolled in the army to escape prison for various offences and are now creating chaos, inclusive by aiding the "enemy", stealing rations, becoming romantic with French women. There's a disconnect in my mind as I'm supposed to care for these people, but at the same time they were Nazis and criminals.

But, despite its funny moments and this "we're not monsters" image that Hassel tries to create, the book is far from being a masterpiece of any kind. In fact, my father was probably right - it's "toilet read", the male equivalent of chick-lit. When it didn't make me laugh, it bored me (and it's quite a short book!) with its pointless repetitions - how many times can we read about a group of men getting drunk and blowing stuff up? - and inexistent character development.

The plot itself lacks coherence. The title talks about Paris but they don't really get to Paris until well past the middle of the book. Hassel talks about specific episodes which are mostly unrelated. I think it would have worked better as a series of short stories, but it doesn't make any sense as a novel. There's really no red line tying everything together.

My husband asked me if I'll keep reading other books in the series. Probably not, or at least not as a first choice. Maybe if they're the only unread books in the house, but that's almost impossible to ever happen.

[Andreas Schmidt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Altro romanzo in pieno stile Argberg; come già sperimentato negli altri libri, la battaglia, che dà inizio a questo libro, si presenta come fosse pura poesia. 'Liquidate Parigi' ha come collocazione storica i mesi che vanno dallo sbarco alleato in Normandia, ai primi di giugno del 1944, fino alla fine di agosto. Data entro la quale parigi sarà liberata. La guerra si svolge in questo lasso di tempo, con scontri, massacri, ritirate dell'esercito tedesco. E il 27°, la quinta compagnia, secondo gruppo, di cui fanno parte i soliti ( Barcellona Blom, Fratellino/Tiny/Petit-Frére, il legionario, il vecchio unno, Porta, Heide, Sven, Gunther ... ) si trova a combattere. A volte a piedi, a volte in trincea, a volte in ritirata, a volte sui letali Tiger II o Panther; fino a quando si giunge ad un punto focale: la distruzione di Parigi. E' il secondo libro che non è fine a se stesso, per Argberg, ma una trama sbiadita inizia a sorgere ( a mio avviso quello che prima faceva voltare pagina dopo pagina al lettore, erano le sole gesta dei personaggi descritti con forza carismatica da Hassel ) quando Himmler ordina a Von Cholvitz di radere al suolo Parigi secondo gli ordini di Hitler. In questo libro, come in tanti altri, la guerra e la società tedesca e delle nazioni soggiogate, sono presentate nel modo più naturale ma al contempo curioso, possibile. In primo luogo, nessuno è indispensabile. Le fucilazioni e le esecuzioni sommarie, si voglia per insubordinazione, si voglia per giustizia militare, o qualunque altra cosa, sono all'ordine del giorno. Il valente generale, il giovane senza paura e abile nella guerra, l'ufficiale capace, eccetera, tutti sono soltanto pedine in un gioco più grande di loro, mosso dalle alte sfere, che servono una causa che non appartiene loro e per la quale possono e devono morire. La curiosità e l'assurdità però sta proprio in questo: è la pedina uomo che non ha valore, a fare lo stato delle cose. Generali, soldati, civili, sono tutti ingranaggi di una grande macchina, che funziona anche forse non come una macchina di precisione come si vorrebbe per il III Reich: sono vittime e al contempo involontari carnefici. E poi, c'è la guerra, che non ha alcun significato se non quello di morte e distruzione.

[Socrate · Rating 3 out of 5]

— Mă întreb, spuse Micuţul, punându-şi mâna la ochi şi uitându-se în zare, dacă poţi să ajungi în Anglia înot?

— Probabil că da, răspunse Legionarul, cu o voce plictisită.

— Dac-ai fi peşte, adăugă Bătrânul.

— Şi ai avea cu tine hrană câtă îţi trebuie…

— Oricum, ţi-ar lua o groază de timp.

— Hm!

Micuţul îşi aţinti din nou privirea către orizont, încruntându-se şi scărpinându-se în vârful capului.

— Dar a făcut-o careva? spuse el într-un târziu.

— Sigur, dar nu de-aici.

— Unde-ai ajunge dac-ai porni de-aici? insistă Micuţul, care nu ar fost el dacă nu s-ar fi ţinut cu-ncăpățânare de o idee, când îi căşuna pe ea.

Legionarul ridică din umeri.

— Al naibii să fiu dacă ştiu… Poate la Dover.

— Atunci, cam cât de departe zici că ar fi? încercă iar Micuţul.

— Mm… treizeci de kilometri. Optzeci de kilometri. Un drum al dracului de greu, în orice caz.

— De ce nu l-am încerca?

Bătrânul zâmbi:

— Pentru că te-ai îneca înainte să ajungi la jumătate.

— Faci pariu?

— De ce nu? Sunt sigur de ceea ce îţi spun!

— Desigur, murmură Barcelona, există întotdeauna şi un alt punct de vedere. Dacă te-ai rătăci, ceea ce ar fi foarte probabil, fiindcă fiecare părticică din mare arată exact la fel ca oricare altă părticică din mare, nu ai cum să ştii unde-ai ajunge până la urmă. S-ar putea să fii destul de norocos să te trezeşti pe coasta Irlandei, dar, dacă ai trece pe lângă ea, ar trebui să o ţii aşa tot înainte, până în Groenlanda.

[Leonard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I discovered Sven Hassel's many books back in the 1970's. I was in my early twenties, newly married and ready to settle in an armchair and read. The War had ended twenty five years previously, my father playing an active part in the fighting, so I was intrigued to get an insight into the War from the other side, get a different view.
This was long before the wonders of the internet and Kindle. I devoured them, bought the paperbacks one after the other, read them all. Of course, as sometimes happens, I had a clear out and took them as well as many other books to the literary graveyard, the charity shop.
A month or two ago while looking for a new book on my Kindle I came across Sven again. I wasn't disappointed! I find his writing quirky and sometimes hard to follow; but his characters are very real and paint a picture of the Second World War from a very different perspective than is the norm, in fact his characters remind me of my father who was also very rebellious, not a man to follow the rules, but at least he came home alive!. I will be buying more of Sven's outpourings. he is addictive and keeps you reading!

[Oscar Espejo Badiola · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me sigue chirriando los episodios jocosos de esta serie de novelas, pero tengo que decir que cada vez hay menos y por el contrario hay cada vez más episodios con crudeza y dureza que reflejan lo que tuvo que ser en realidad la IIGM.
Aquí tras el desembarco de Normandía, destinan a nuestro grupo protagonista a París y allí, vuelven a sobrevivir, sabiendo que ya la guerra está irremediablemente perdida, con lo cual la vida de la milicia es más relajada y ellos tienen menos disciplina, llegando a confraternizar con el contrario.
Al principio de cada episodio hay una parte en cursiva que relata con toda crudeza situaciones reales vividas durante la contienda, algunos ponen los pelos de punta.
Por cierto, y no es revelar detalles de la trama, pero París ni ardió ni se liquidó.

[Jeff Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sven Hassel returned to form after, in my opinion, the disappointing Monte Casino. The penal tank regiment are stationed on the Normandy coast before a fighting withdraw to Caen. All the regular characters return, annoyingly Tiny is once again Little John, as they attempt to win any minor victory with authority. The last quarter sees them relaxing in Paris where Porta attempts to sneak a dead pig through the centre of the city. Once again the author makes several notable errors such as Russians Cossack's fighting in Caan and the Gurkha in Normandy. These are minor quibbles with Hassel the foremost fiction writer of the Second World War.

[Iustinian Nanu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recunosc, nu am mai citit acest gen de carti pana acum, dar sunt bucuros ca am inceput. La recomandarea unui prieten am cumparat “Lichidati Parisul” si “Gestapo” - o editie excelenta de la editura Nemira, iar astazi cand am terminat “Lichidati Parisul”, deja astept cu nerabdare curierul care o sa imi aduca si restul colectiei.
Am ramas surprins sa aud cati dintre prietenii mei sau dintre membrii familiei l-au citit pe Sven Hassel pe nerasuflate fara ca unul sa imi pomeneasca atatia ani de aceste volume pline de actiune, umor, prietenii, dragoste si razboi.

[Ercan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is book does not contain so much character description but especially environment description. I think we all need those descriptions for the imagination of the scenes. This made the book not so fun to read.

I may have got attention to this because of I read Trevanian's "The Summer of Katya" at the same time. I read so gorgerous and excellent character and environment descriptions in the scenes in that book.

[Brian Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sven and his unit find themselves in France for the Normandy landings up to the liberation of Paris.
As usual, it's the characters and their interactions that make the book interesting.
Some tense moments, some gallows humour and all that holds his group of misfits together is their camaraderie.

For some reason, "Tiny" from all of the other books is suddenly referred to as "Little John", but otherwise it's pretty much what you've come to expect from a Sven Hassel book.

[Louis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting to read a book from the point of view of a German tank regiment and hear about the final weeks of the German occupation of Paris, but the narrative just didn't do it for me and despite a few scenes I really enjoyed was left feeling flat. Perhaps I just missed its appeal. Not a abd book in any shape or form, I'd probably say 3.5* - not enough for 4*.

[Matic Sket · Rating 3 out of 5]

... "Way beyond the Maas, the Schelde and the Rhein,
Advancing upon Frankfurt, a hundred tanks in line!
A hundred German tanks and the Furher's Black Hussars
Gone to counqer France, cheered on by loud huzzars!
With a hundred throbbing motors, a hundred grinding chains,
A hundred German tanks are rolling o'er the plains!" ...

[Virginia · Rating 3 out of 5]

De todos los libro de Sven Hassel que he leído este es el que menos me ha gustado. El autor describe la ocupación alemana durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial de Francia. Aparecen los personajes, ya bien conocidos, de otras entregas, pero existen partes, donde el argumento que no guardan la coherencia y te hacen perder el hilo de la historia.

[Sandra McCourt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one I really enjoyed reading. It is again very gritty and the D-Day landings are spoken of. Because I had a healthy interest in the wars when I was a teenager I enjoyed reading this from a different perspective. There is more of a constant storyline with this one as the group move about towards Paris.

[MARTIN JOHN CORFE · Rating 4 out of 5]

Last read a Sven Hassel book in the 1970's and I wondered if I would enjoy it. The mix of horror and humour still works, Sven's desperate group of men amongst their misdeeds appear to have some moral traits. But I have forgotten the name of Odin's pig.

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Continue to catch up with these books from my youth. Still a vivid portrait of life at the sharp end of war. Shows how desperately sad the human race is, and how the most horrifying, can become the every day.

[Simion Andrei · Rating 5 out of 5]

👍

[Belenco Teodor · Rating 5 out of 5]

So cool and sinister)))

[Roberto Zorba · Rating 3 out of 5]

I could add 0.5 for humor if it was possible :)

[Daniel 2002 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book written by a former German soldier, who, in my opinion, knows how to transport you to a world where Paris it's invaded by germans.

[Ioji Ignat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice!

[Maximo Cambria · Rating 3 out of 5]

No me gustó tanto como otros de sus libros. Pareciera que quiso copiar un estilo que no iba con él, más hollywoodense que sus otras obras

[Madalin MD Deaconescu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sven Hassel might be one of the best authors in this period. It gives a better understanding about the war, nobody likes it.