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Devils With Wings #2
Devils with Wings: Silk Drop
This exciting fictionalised retelling of the invasion of Crete is written by an author with extensive experience in army intelligence. It's the follow up to Devils With Wings, and continues the wartime adventures of Fallschirmjager paratrooper Paul Brand and his Feldwebel Max Grun. On a high after their successful subjugation of Fort Eben Emael, Paul Brand, now in command of his own company, and Feldwebel Max Grun, are parachuted into Greece to help capture the bridge spanning the Corinth Canal. Tough times are ahead when the German High Command decide to invade the Island of Crete. This will be the first ever airborne invasion in military history. The Fallschirmjager, supported by the famous Gebirgsjager mountain troops, are up against 40,000 allied soldiers - who will fight to the bitter end to protect Crete. Operating behind enemy lines, Paul Brand and Max Grun will face challenges that not only tests their fortitude but strains the close bond between them. Silk Drop is a thrilling sequel to Devils With Wings and is based on a factual episode.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 3, 2012
23 people want to read
About the author
Harvey Black
23 books52 followersNow a writer, Harvey served with British Army Intelligence. His experience ranges from covert surveillance in Northern Ireland to Communist East Berlin during the cold war.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 25, 2012
One of the benefits of a long Thanksgiving weekend was staying up late to finish one of my many started books, this one off my Kindle app for iPad. I really have to get better at finishing one book before starting another!
The book finished is Harvey Black's Silk Drop, Book #2 in his Devils with Wings Series.
In Silk Drop Harvey deals with the German airborne assault on the Island of Crete in May, 1941.
The historical backdrop of the novel is that the Italians are not faring so well in their war against Greece. The Germans in order to bail out their ally and protect their southern flank (in preparation for the invasion of Russia) must subdue the Balkans including Greece and then the island of Crete.
Britain and the Commonwealth countries of New Zealand and Australia are contesting the German advance in Greece and then in Crete. On Crete they are led by the New Zealand General Freyberg.
The Grune Teufel (Green Devils, as the German paratroopers are called) are sent first to seize the strategic port of Corinth in Greece then later to seize the island of Crete in what was Operation Mercur.
The battle would be the first large scale airborne operation of WW2. It featured the German 7th Airborne Division and as follow up the 5th Mountain Division who would land either by sea once the Cretan ports were secured or via air transports.
The island was defended by British, Australian, New Zealand and Greek troops who fought furiously against the Fallschirmjagers (paratroops) and Gebirgsjagers (mountain troops), so furiously, that the Germans lost 7,000 men taking the island.
Hitler forbade any further large scale airborne operations after Mercur because of the casualty rate. This would prove to be a mistake in the later Desert War because the British held the island of Malta throughout the war in the desert. Malta was a strategic point that wreaked havoc on the German and Italian supply system serving as an unsinkable aircraft carrier and denying the Africa Corp much needed supply.
Once again the main characters of the series are Paul Brand and Max Grun. By now Paul Brand is a Oberleutnant (like a first lieutenant in the American Army) and a company commander (about 100 men) and Max is the company's Feldwebel (like a first sergeant in the American Army)
In Silk Drop each character is further developed with a couple of surprises along the way. I won't be sharing any spoilers but I was very surprised by one early development in the book regarding Paul. How the incident plays out later, during the assault on Crete is also interesting and understandable.
Brand's company is part of a special battalion led by Major Volkmann (known as the Raven by his troops) and serves as a divisional asset to the 7th Airborne Division. The unit is assigned to a special task and Brand's company is to serve as the advance guard.
The story is never slow and the company's adventures on the fringes of the main conflict make for one exciting read, especially after Max is severely wounded and cut off behind enemy lines with his beloved officer and friend.
I'm also enjoying the character development of some of the minor characters like Fessman, ex-poacher and now scout extraordinary. Another favorite of mine is Leeb who rises from the ranks to command a platoon of his own.
By now all of Paul's officer friends like Helmut and Erich are attached to staff positions or command companies of their own so there is much less interaction between them, yet enough to get the reader to realize the comradeship between them.
There is more than one griping moment in this book and I'll mention but two.
During the initial drop on Crete the Fallschirmjagers are crammed into Ju-52 transport planes . Arriving over Crete they are subjected to AA fire. Being stuck in an aircraft, not being able to see what's going on, and being shot at by flak has got to be one of the most terrifying experiences a paratrooper could endure. The book captures the feeling well.
Another frightening moment occurs when the unit is counter-attacked and the British have two Matilda II tanks, heavily armored monsters and the Fallschirmjager's have nothing more powerful than a 50mm mortar to harass the beasts!
Once again Harvey has an eye to detail describing the various equipment used by both sides, a nice touch that appeals to WW2 geeks like myself. Harvey also does a great job of describing of what it was like on Crete, hot, very hot, dusty, not much water, yet in places quite beautiful. Through his descriptions you get the feel of being there and I wondered if Harvey had walked the ground himself in order to get the right touch.
The editing problems from book #1 have been largely resolved and the story moves along quite nicely. (Note that the second edition of Book #1 has eliminated the editing issues as well.)
It is a book about war and I think Mr. Black has struck a good balance between the real violence that is war and adding what might be too much detail. For example, it's enough to know that some Greek partisans committed an atrocity on three captured Fallschirmjager without knowing the grossest of details.
Another thing I appreciate about the books is that Harvey will use the language of soldiers without over doing it for shock effect. During WW2 soldiering and war was mostly the business of men and Harvey's books reflect that without being over-the-top. I for one appreciate it.
The book ends with Volkmann's battalion being sent to the opening of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of Russia. Although I told myself I was going to start another book I changed my mind after Silk Drop and started to read Frozen Sun, the third book by Harvey Black in the Devils with Wings Series that deals with their role in Barbarossa.
From my review on my blog Stuff that Interests Me
The book finished is Harvey Black's Silk Drop, Book #2 in his Devils with Wings Series.
In Silk Drop Harvey deals with the German airborne assault on the Island of Crete in May, 1941.
The historical backdrop of the novel is that the Italians are not faring so well in their war against Greece. The Germans in order to bail out their ally and protect their southern flank (in preparation for the invasion of Russia) must subdue the Balkans including Greece and then the island of Crete.
Britain and the Commonwealth countries of New Zealand and Australia are contesting the German advance in Greece and then in Crete. On Crete they are led by the New Zealand General Freyberg.
The Grune Teufel (Green Devils, as the German paratroopers are called) are sent first to seize the strategic port of Corinth in Greece then later to seize the island of Crete in what was Operation Mercur.
The battle would be the first large scale airborne operation of WW2. It featured the German 7th Airborne Division and as follow up the 5th Mountain Division who would land either by sea once the Cretan ports were secured or via air transports.
The island was defended by British, Australian, New Zealand and Greek troops who fought furiously against the Fallschirmjagers (paratroops) and Gebirgsjagers (mountain troops), so furiously, that the Germans lost 7,000 men taking the island.
Hitler forbade any further large scale airborne operations after Mercur because of the casualty rate. This would prove to be a mistake in the later Desert War because the British held the island of Malta throughout the war in the desert. Malta was a strategic point that wreaked havoc on the German and Italian supply system serving as an unsinkable aircraft carrier and denying the Africa Corp much needed supply.
Once again the main characters of the series are Paul Brand and Max Grun. By now Paul Brand is a Oberleutnant (like a first lieutenant in the American Army) and a company commander (about 100 men) and Max is the company's Feldwebel (like a first sergeant in the American Army)
In Silk Drop each character is further developed with a couple of surprises along the way. I won't be sharing any spoilers but I was very surprised by one early development in the book regarding Paul. How the incident plays out later, during the assault on Crete is also interesting and understandable.
Brand's company is part of a special battalion led by Major Volkmann (known as the Raven by his troops) and serves as a divisional asset to the 7th Airborne Division. The unit is assigned to a special task and Brand's company is to serve as the advance guard.
The story is never slow and the company's adventures on the fringes of the main conflict make for one exciting read, especially after Max is severely wounded and cut off behind enemy lines with his beloved officer and friend.
I'm also enjoying the character development of some of the minor characters like Fessman, ex-poacher and now scout extraordinary. Another favorite of mine is Leeb who rises from the ranks to command a platoon of his own.
By now all of Paul's officer friends like Helmut and Erich are attached to staff positions or command companies of their own so there is much less interaction between them, yet enough to get the reader to realize the comradeship between them.
There is more than one griping moment in this book and I'll mention but two.
During the initial drop on Crete the Fallschirmjagers are crammed into Ju-52 transport planes . Arriving over Crete they are subjected to AA fire. Being stuck in an aircraft, not being able to see what's going on, and being shot at by flak has got to be one of the most terrifying experiences a paratrooper could endure. The book captures the feeling well.
Another frightening moment occurs when the unit is counter-attacked and the British have two Matilda II tanks, heavily armored monsters and the Fallschirmjager's have nothing more powerful than a 50mm mortar to harass the beasts!
Once again Harvey has an eye to detail describing the various equipment used by both sides, a nice touch that appeals to WW2 geeks like myself. Harvey also does a great job of describing of what it was like on Crete, hot, very hot, dusty, not much water, yet in places quite beautiful. Through his descriptions you get the feel of being there and I wondered if Harvey had walked the ground himself in order to get the right touch.
The editing problems from book #1 have been largely resolved and the story moves along quite nicely. (Note that the second edition of Book #1 has eliminated the editing issues as well.)
It is a book about war and I think Mr. Black has struck a good balance between the real violence that is war and adding what might be too much detail. For example, it's enough to know that some Greek partisans committed an atrocity on three captured Fallschirmjager without knowing the grossest of details.
Another thing I appreciate about the books is that Harvey will use the language of soldiers without over doing it for shock effect. During WW2 soldiering and war was mostly the business of men and Harvey's books reflect that without being over-the-top. I for one appreciate it.
The book ends with Volkmann's battalion being sent to the opening of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of Russia. Although I told myself I was going to start another book I changed my mind after Silk Drop and started to read Frozen Sun, the third book by Harvey Black in the Devils with Wings Series that deals with their role in Barbarossa.
From my review on my blog Stuff that Interests Me
May 1, 2012
If you've read my review of the first of Harvey's books (Devils With Wings) you'll know that I gave it four stars, with a few reservations - mainly the editing - holding back an otherwise deserved fifth.
This sequel gets the fifth in spades.
There are still a few typos and editing issues, admittedly (and with we self-published authors it's a sad fact of life) but there are far fewer than in the first book and, while with DWW it actually distracted me a little from the plot, with Silk Drop, that was not the case. I tore through the book at the fastest speed allowed by my two small, demanding kids.
The readability is partially due to (as intimated above) the reduced distraction of editing problems, but is more due to the plot. The first book confused me a little in places (WW2 fiction is not my normal genre) and I had to reread sections. With Silk Drop, Harvey's writing has really come into its own, including his planning and plot writing.
There are so many scenes that I could really picture in my mind's eye as I read (I won't voice any spoilers here, but I will simply say that Corinth and the last 7-8 chapters particularly stand out for me.) It feels as though Harvey has been to all the places he is describing and knows them intimately - I have visited Crete myself and it feels perfect and natural to me.
Moreover, the characters have settled in from the first book. A lot of the character portrayal in the first book was devoted to setting the scene for the unit and their relationships. Harvey has avoided falling into the trap of revisiting old ground, and had largely assumed the reader's knowledge of these relationships, allowing him instead to show them growing.
There are a few shocks and surprises in Silk Drop but I would say, having now read the first two of his books, that Harvey's strength lies in his description and scene-setting. I cannot wait to see what he does with the icy wastes of Russia in Frozen Sun, which is due out in a few months.
Simply, this is a complete step up from Devils with Wings and a deserved winner for me.
This sequel gets the fifth in spades.
There are still a few typos and editing issues, admittedly (and with we self-published authors it's a sad fact of life) but there are far fewer than in the first book and, while with DWW it actually distracted me a little from the plot, with Silk Drop, that was not the case. I tore through the book at the fastest speed allowed by my two small, demanding kids.
The readability is partially due to (as intimated above) the reduced distraction of editing problems, but is more due to the plot. The first book confused me a little in places (WW2 fiction is not my normal genre) and I had to reread sections. With Silk Drop, Harvey's writing has really come into its own, including his planning and plot writing.
There are so many scenes that I could really picture in my mind's eye as I read (I won't voice any spoilers here, but I will simply say that Corinth and the last 7-8 chapters particularly stand out for me.) It feels as though Harvey has been to all the places he is describing and knows them intimately - I have visited Crete myself and it feels perfect and natural to me.
Moreover, the characters have settled in from the first book. A lot of the character portrayal in the first book was devoted to setting the scene for the unit and their relationships. Harvey has avoided falling into the trap of revisiting old ground, and had largely assumed the reader's knowledge of these relationships, allowing him instead to show them growing.
There are a few shocks and surprises in Silk Drop but I would say, having now read the first two of his books, that Harvey's strength lies in his description and scene-setting. I cannot wait to see what he does with the icy wastes of Russia in Frozen Sun, which is due out in a few months.
Simply, this is a complete step up from Devils with Wings and a deserved winner for me.
January 20, 2012
Silk Drop is the second book in Harvey Black’s Devils with Wings series. We re-join Paul and Max after their exploits in Poland and Belgium, basking in the glow of a job well done, they are in training for Operation Sealion. The invasion of Britain is to be their most ambitious jump yet. The failure of Gorings Luftwaffe to destroy the RAF puts their plans on hold but the German high command are not going to let the famous Fallschirmjager regiments sit idle.
Following the Italians disastrous invasion of Greece, Paul and Max are sent, with the rest of the Fallschirmjager to help bolster the Italians. After successfully parachuting into Greece, Paul and Max once again distinguish themselves in battle and are given a leading role in the the largest airborne invasion yet, the Invasion of Crete.
As Paul and Max drop onto the hot and dusty island of Crete, a personal tragedy affects the judgement of Paul and strains his relationship with Max. Trusted with a key role but facing a determined and ferocious allied defence, Paul must draw on all of his experience and training to make sure his company survive the onslaught. Despite the tension, Paul and Max must work together if Crete is to be captured.
This book is a cracking read, the story is well paced and the author uses the dialogue to push the story along (a complaint from the last book). The author has developed the characters from book one so they are more rounded and you begin to really care if they live or die (no mean feat, considering they are the enemy!) The battle scenes are one of the authors strengths, fast paced, technical in their execution but never bogged down in too much detail, the authors experience shining through. The author also captures the stress and strain of battle and the doubts that surface as Paul’s company starts to suffer casualties.
I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading book three, as the Fallschirmjager head to the hell of the Russian front.
Following the Italians disastrous invasion of Greece, Paul and Max are sent, with the rest of the Fallschirmjager to help bolster the Italians. After successfully parachuting into Greece, Paul and Max once again distinguish themselves in battle and are given a leading role in the the largest airborne invasion yet, the Invasion of Crete.
As Paul and Max drop onto the hot and dusty island of Crete, a personal tragedy affects the judgement of Paul and strains his relationship with Max. Trusted with a key role but facing a determined and ferocious allied defence, Paul must draw on all of his experience and training to make sure his company survive the onslaught. Despite the tension, Paul and Max must work together if Crete is to be captured.
This book is a cracking read, the story is well paced and the author uses the dialogue to push the story along (a complaint from the last book). The author has developed the characters from book one so they are more rounded and you begin to really care if they live or die (no mean feat, considering they are the enemy!) The battle scenes are one of the authors strengths, fast paced, technical in their execution but never bogged down in too much detail, the authors experience shining through. The author also captures the stress and strain of battle and the doubts that surface as Paul’s company starts to suffer casualties.
I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading book three, as the Fallschirmjager head to the hell of the Russian front.
May 15, 2012
Author Harvey Black promised us a compelling yarn in this sequel and he delivered. You won't get much detailed inside information about the Battle of Crete, its historical significance or its impact on the future operations and missions of the Fallschrimjager but you will get a good story of brothers-in-arms in combat from the German perspective. The adventures of Oberleutant Paul Brand and his company Feldwebel Max Grunn continue where they left off in Black's first book about the German Fallschrimjager (Paratroopers) glider assault on the Belgian Fort Eban Emael.
In this sequel, Brand's unit participates in the successful invasion of Greece by German forces and the capture of the Corinth Canal. To forestall any air attacks on Greece from the island of Crete, the German High Command determined that Crete must be invaded and secured. Since the British Navy controlled the seas around the island, only an airborne operation could be attempted with any hope of success. Brand's company is given a diversionary role in the massive air assault and when Feldwebel Grunn is seriously wounded in a sharp firefight with Allied troops, Brand is separated from his company. Alone and behind enemy lines with his dying friend, Brand uses every ounce of his courage and strength to try to keep both of them alive. Dealing with his own personal demons as well as his best friend teetering near death, Brand reaches down deep into his heart, mind and body to find the wherewithal to survive.
Silk Drop suffers a bit from editing flaws but overall is a fine read worth the price.
John E. Nevola - Author of The Last Jump - A Novel of World War II
In this sequel, Brand's unit participates in the successful invasion of Greece by German forces and the capture of the Corinth Canal. To forestall any air attacks on Greece from the island of Crete, the German High Command determined that Crete must be invaded and secured. Since the British Navy controlled the seas around the island, only an airborne operation could be attempted with any hope of success. Brand's company is given a diversionary role in the massive air assault and when Feldwebel Grunn is seriously wounded in a sharp firefight with Allied troops, Brand is separated from his company. Alone and behind enemy lines with his dying friend, Brand uses every ounce of his courage and strength to try to keep both of them alive. Dealing with his own personal demons as well as his best friend teetering near death, Brand reaches down deep into his heart, mind and body to find the wherewithal to survive.
Silk Drop suffers a bit from editing flaws but overall is a fine read worth the price.
John E. Nevola - Author of The Last Jump - A Novel of World War II
August 29, 2012
This is the second book in the the Devils With Wings series and my review of the first can be found here. I really enjoyed the first book so was looking forward to reading Silk Drop – I’m pleased to say it lived up to and beyond my expectations.
From the beginning I felt involved with the story, it was set at a good pace and I had trouble putting it down. I liked the feeling of being up close to the action, with some very intense scenes depicting personal battles, which had me on the edge of my seat. I enjoyed learning more about the strategies involved in preparing for operations and how these translated in battle. The setting was described extremely well and again I had a real sense of being there – I could picture the island and villages clearly in my mind.
Silk Drop also showed the contradiction of war. One minute men are injuring and killing each other, the next when the battle is over, they are caring for the wounded and trying to save the lives of their enemies. The novel showed the human side of war and the effects it can have on individuals which added another dimension to the story. I felt very connected with the characters and was concerned as to what would happen to them.
An excellent read with all the things I enjoy – action, tension, great scene setting and characters I became very fond of.
From the beginning I felt involved with the story, it was set at a good pace and I had trouble putting it down. I liked the feeling of being up close to the action, with some very intense scenes depicting personal battles, which had me on the edge of my seat. I enjoyed learning more about the strategies involved in preparing for operations and how these translated in battle. The setting was described extremely well and again I had a real sense of being there – I could picture the island and villages clearly in my mind.
Silk Drop also showed the contradiction of war. One minute men are injuring and killing each other, the next when the battle is over, they are caring for the wounded and trying to save the lives of their enemies. The novel showed the human side of war and the effects it can have on individuals which added another dimension to the story. I felt very connected with the characters and was concerned as to what would happen to them.
An excellent read with all the things I enjoy – action, tension, great scene setting and characters I became very fond of.
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