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Sergeant Jack Tanner #4
Hellfire
Jack Tanner's war takes him to the treacherous sands of the North African desert.
August, 1942. North Africa. The desert war hangs in the balance. Although their retreat has finally been halted, morale in the British Army is at rock bottom. When the commander of the Eighth Army, General Gott, is killed, it seems that foul play is at work. An impenetrable Axis spy circuit could be compromising any hope the Allies have of stemming the Nazi tide.
Jack Tanner, recovering from wounds in a Cairo hospital, is astonished to receive a battlefield commission which will propel him into a very different world when he returns to action. Fit once more, he finds himself facing the full onslaught of Rommel's latest offensive.
In its aftermath, Tanner and his trusty sidekick Sykes are recruited to work behind the Axis lines in a desperate attempt to take the fight to the Nazis. But the murky world of subterfuge, deceit and murder they find themselves a million miles away from the certainties of the battlefield and somehow they must discover who they can trust in the cat-and-mouse world of counter-espionage.
Hellfire sees Tanner fighting his way through his most dangerous adventure yet -- one that takes him from the dark backstreets of Cairo to the open Mediterranean and finally to one of the decisive clashes of the entire war -- the Battle of Alamein.
August, 1942. North Africa. The desert war hangs in the balance. Although their retreat has finally been halted, morale in the British Army is at rock bottom. When the commander of the Eighth Army, General Gott, is killed, it seems that foul play is at work. An impenetrable Axis spy circuit could be compromising any hope the Allies have of stemming the Nazi tide.
Jack Tanner, recovering from wounds in a Cairo hospital, is astonished to receive a battlefield commission which will propel him into a very different world when he returns to action. Fit once more, he finds himself facing the full onslaught of Rommel's latest offensive.
In its aftermath, Tanner and his trusty sidekick Sykes are recruited to work behind the Axis lines in a desperate attempt to take the fight to the Nazis. But the murky world of subterfuge, deceit and murder they find themselves a million miles away from the certainties of the battlefield and somehow they must discover who they can trust in the cat-and-mouse world of counter-espionage.
Hellfire sees Tanner fighting his way through his most dangerous adventure yet -- one that takes him from the dark backstreets of Cairo to the open Mediterranean and finally to one of the decisive clashes of the entire war -- the Battle of Alamein.
384 pages, Paperback
First published July 7, 2011
25 people are currently reading
206 people want to read
About the author
James Holland
67 books1,032 followersLibrarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
James Holland was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire, and studied history at Durham University. He has worked for several London publishing houses and has also written for a number of national newspapers and magazines. Married with a son, he lives near Salisbury.
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
James Holland was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire, and studied history at Durham University. He has worked for several London publishing houses and has also written for a number of national newspapers and magazines. Married with a son, he lives near Salisbury.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
August 31, 2019
Not quite as good as the previous books or indeed as good as the brilliant Warlord comic. But still, more than entertaining enough for Lord Peter Flint !!
3.5 stars
3.5 stars
May 7, 2012
There are very few writers producing anything of note for WW2 fiction reader at present, there are certainly very few who are doing it this well (Guy Saville and James Delingpole being the only notable exceptions)
As usual the books are well written with a pace that picks the reader up and carries you along with our heroes, the action is real and visceral, its written with a real passion for the subject and the characters. But with all this it still contains that element of boys own adventure that readers of Commando, Victor and Battle would have come to love and expect from their war stories, Heroes can still be Heroes here without all the sordid parts of the real world crowing in, leaving it real but idealistic at the same time.
Another excellent story from James Holland
Recommended
(Parm)
Product Description (from back of book)
August, 1942.North Africa. The desert war hangs in the balance. Although their retreat has finally been halted, morale in the British Army is at rock bottom. When the commander of the Eighth Army, General Gott, is killed, it seems that foul play is at work. An impenetrable Axis spy circuit could be compromising any hope the Allies have of stemming the Nazi tide.
Jack Tanner, recovering from wounds in a Cairo hospital, is astonished to receive a battlefield commission which will propel him into a very different world when he returns to action. Fit once more, he finds himself facing the full onslaught of Rommel's latest offensive.
In its aftermath, Tanner and his trusty sidekick Sykes are recruited to work behind the Axis lines in a desperate attempt to take the fight to the Nazis. But the murky world of subterfuge, deceit and murder they find themselves in is a million miles away from the certainties of the battlefield and somehow they must discover who they can trust in the cat-and-mouse world of counter-espionage.
As usual the books are well written with a pace that picks the reader up and carries you along with our heroes, the action is real and visceral, its written with a real passion for the subject and the characters. But with all this it still contains that element of boys own adventure that readers of Commando, Victor and Battle would have come to love and expect from their war stories, Heroes can still be Heroes here without all the sordid parts of the real world crowing in, leaving it real but idealistic at the same time.
Another excellent story from James Holland
Recommended
(Parm)
Product Description (from back of book)
August, 1942.North Africa. The desert war hangs in the balance. Although their retreat has finally been halted, morale in the British Army is at rock bottom. When the commander of the Eighth Army, General Gott, is killed, it seems that foul play is at work. An impenetrable Axis spy circuit could be compromising any hope the Allies have of stemming the Nazi tide.
Jack Tanner, recovering from wounds in a Cairo hospital, is astonished to receive a battlefield commission which will propel him into a very different world when he returns to action. Fit once more, he finds himself facing the full onslaught of Rommel's latest offensive.
In its aftermath, Tanner and his trusty sidekick Sykes are recruited to work behind the Axis lines in a desperate attempt to take the fight to the Nazis. But the murky world of subterfuge, deceit and murder they find themselves in is a million miles away from the certainties of the battlefield and somehow they must discover who they can trust in the cat-and-mouse world of counter-espionage.
June 15, 2019
I really like James Holland's Jack Tanner series. This is the fourth book in the series and it brings him to the North African desert. James Holland uses real WW II events and drops Jack Tanner in the middle of them. We learn about the tactics, the battles, the hardship, conflicted loyalties, the cock-ups and the victories. Sometimes James Holland tries to explain a bit too much in my opinion. But then again, I've read a lot about the Second World War (fiction and non-fiction) and I know that things weren't black and white. Sometimes people on your own side were worse than the enemy.
Anyway, this series is a cross between adventure and history and highly enjoyable, even with the amount of killing and dying in it.
Anyway, this series is a cross between adventure and history and highly enjoyable, even with the amount of killing and dying in it.
May 3, 2023
This for me is the best of the Tanner series (well so far, although there is only 1 to go). In late summer 1942 we find Jack in Cairo, convalescing after being wounded, and away from his platoon, but itching to get back into the action.
When the newly appointed commander of the Eighth Army, General Gott, is killed, Tanner is seconded to an intelligence operation in Cairo, with his old friend Vaughan (from Crete - bk 3). The target is a spy ring in the city. However, Jack is soon passed fit, and returns to his unit and his old friends for the fight against Rommel's Africa Korps. However, his intelligence work is not yet done.
Whilst Jack remains all but infallible, I rather enjoyed this book. The melding of his espionage work with the action scenes in the desert are rather good, and it moves the story along at a good pace. Jack's required beef with a friendly is there, but much less intrusive than in other books, and although I felt the denouement was a bit rushed, it was a good outing. Keen to read the final book in the series in Sicily.
When the newly appointed commander of the Eighth Army, General Gott, is killed, Tanner is seconded to an intelligence operation in Cairo, with his old friend Vaughan (from Crete - bk 3). The target is a spy ring in the city. However, Jack is soon passed fit, and returns to his unit and his old friends for the fight against Rommel's Africa Korps. However, his intelligence work is not yet done.
Whilst Jack remains all but infallible, I rather enjoyed this book. The melding of his espionage work with the action scenes in the desert are rather good, and it moves the story along at a good pace. Jack's required beef with a friendly is there, but much less intrusive than in other books, and although I felt the denouement was a bit rushed, it was a good outing. Keen to read the final book in the series in Sicily.
May 24, 2020
Another enjoyable read by historian James Holland, in the historical fiction series, Sergeant Jack Tanner".
If you have read the other books in the series then you know what this book is going to be like. The author has the same writing style throughout the series, which is not a bad thing. It makes for a good read and is slightly educational about aspects of World War II.
The major complaint about the book (and the series in general) is that the characters are not very well developed and are just stereotypical soldiers. The other one is that sometimes the historical facts or jargon seemed forced, the author really wanted to include some facet of WWII so he jammed it in.
Overall I would recommend this series to fans of historical fiction that are looking for a quick read.
If you have read the other books in the series then you know what this book is going to be like. The author has the same writing style throughout the series, which is not a bad thing. It makes for a good read and is slightly educational about aspects of World War II.
The major complaint about the book (and the series in general) is that the characters are not very well developed and are just stereotypical soldiers. The other one is that sometimes the historical facts or jargon seemed forced, the author really wanted to include some facet of WWII so he jammed it in.
Overall I would recommend this series to fans of historical fiction that are looking for a quick read.
April 16, 2022
Fairly well researched.
A bit far fetched in places, same main characters kept meeting in various places- highly unlikely, but provably a necessary fiction device to keep the story going. One inaccuracy - the Murray switch was not invented until 1943, so could not appear pre Alemein in 1942.
Follows the usual Tanner formula with the same-old same-old “characters” - the Aldis scope, the knock out right hook and “Boy Robin” (Sykes) with his bag of explosives.
But a fun read all the same.
A bit far fetched in places, same main characters kept meeting in various places- highly unlikely, but provably a necessary fiction device to keep the story going. One inaccuracy - the Murray switch was not invented until 1943, so could not appear pre Alemein in 1942.
Follows the usual Tanner formula with the same-old same-old “characters” - the Aldis scope, the knock out right hook and “Boy Robin” (Sykes) with his bag of explosives.
But a fun read all the same.
April 24, 2022
Gripping stuff
This so far has been the best novel in the series. James Holland is a gifted story teller who weaves a tale that keeps the reader totally immersed in the telling. The battles in the dessert so well describe that is so easy to actually feel that you are watching it on the big screen. That's me into the next adventure of Tanner, Peploe and Sykes.
This so far has been the best novel in the series. James Holland is a gifted story teller who weaves a tale that keeps the reader totally immersed in the telling. The battles in the dessert so well describe that is so easy to actually feel that you are watching it on the big screen. That's me into the next adventure of Tanner, Peploe and Sykes.
January 28, 2024
The first half of the book had me on the verge of ditching it completely. I'm invested in the Jack Tanner series, so I kept slogging along. The pace picked up and it became a decent read by books end. Not good, just OK. I'll eventually get to the last known Jack Tanner book #5 but it really seems like this series may have run out of steam.
July 7, 2025
Jeg liker en god Jack. Etternavnet er ikle så farlig så lenge han er høy og kan slåss. den 4. boken om Jack Tanner handler om den supre sersjanten som er uslåelig, igjen.
Kjempespennende! bok 5 er allerede lastet ned
Kjempespennende! bok 5 er allerede lastet ned
March 1, 2020
I blew through this very quickly, a thoroughly enjoyable read. I am a fan of the Jack Tanner stories and I will be sure to read the next in the series.
May 28, 2021
A good interesting read which stayed close to the facts.
July 24, 2023
Bumps along at a fair pace, normal war adventure/ thriller
October 16, 2023
3.75 stars - good story, but appeared very disjointed in places, slow in others... the action descriptions are very good. Overall, worth a read...
Read
May 31, 2024Great story of the war in the desert in 1942
This novel entwined fact and fiction into a gripping and fast paced tale of the turning point of the war in the desert during 1942.
This novel entwined fact and fiction into a gripping and fast paced tale of the turning point of the war in the desert during 1942.
August 16, 2024
Loved the detail they went into throughout the book and how the author clearly did their research on war so that it included tactics and real life scenarios throughout
September 20, 2024
Another cracking Jack Tanner!
February 20, 2025
A good read, large chapters but good story which got better as it went on. Think I would have preferred more focus on the battle action but overall would recommend.
May 11, 2020
Fourth (and biggest) of the Jack Tanner series, this time its 1942 and we're heading toward the battle of Alamein. After recovering in a Cairo hospital waiting to re-join his battalion, Jack is seconded to British SIS, where he helps to uncover an Axis spy ring working in the city. We're soon back in action as Jack and his buddies fight against Rommel in a gruelling battle.
James Holland weaves a great story incorporating El Alamein and the 'secret war' full of historical detail and a cracking page-turning WW2 adventure. Great characters, great action and a satisfying conclusion make for a damn good read.
One more to go - The Devil's Pact - but I'm hoping that Mr Holland is working on a sixth (and possibly seventh) Jack Tanner novel.
James Holland weaves a great story incorporating El Alamein and the 'secret war' full of historical detail and a cracking page-turning WW2 adventure. Great characters, great action and a satisfying conclusion make for a damn good read.
One more to go - The Devil's Pact - but I'm hoping that Mr Holland is working on a sixth (and possibly seventh) Jack Tanner novel.
May 26, 2012
James Holland really getting into his stride now! By far the best of the series so far. Exciting, and interesting. A great mix of characters, story, historical detail and big battles. The backdrop of the desert battles Against Rommel, more interesting than the necessary scene setting retreat from Dunkirk From the previous books. James Holland set out to write Sharpe for WWII. Mission accomplished!
June 5, 2012
This is the forth book in the Jack Tanner series and I am really enjoying them. Partly because the plots aren't bad with this one being by far the best so far but also James Holland him self. As he writes more he seems to become more confident and that is why I say with out a doubt this is the best book so far.
The story is deeper and darker with more layers than just the war and the conflict needed to generate a story.
The story is deeper and darker with more layers than just the war and the conflict needed to generate a story.
July 26, 2012
This is the second Jack Tanner book I've read. Like 'Blood and Honour', it's an OK 'warry', but could be cut to half the length. 'Hellfire' has loads of padding that made me skip pages. At 445 pages, the book was a decent read. At 220 pages it would be a great read. Reader's Digest where are you when we need you?
April 26, 2016
HELLFIRE takes Jack Tanner out of his natural environment - the battlefield - and thrusts him into the murky and complicated word of the intelligence battle. There's enemy agents, British operatives, double agents and a few good surprises mixed in around Tanner's involvement in the fateful battle at El Alamein. James Holland's books get better and better!!
February 12, 2016
Once again I find myself on the edge of my seat trying to get through page after page faster than my eyes can possibly read. I had never expected James Holland to send Jack Tanner down the spy route in any way but the storyline flows perfectly into it. Placing fiction into a historically very accurate background and making it all fit is never easy, yet James Holland does it seamlessly.
November 4, 2013
A great historical-fiction by James Holland. Compare to other historical-fiction books from WW2 that I have read "Hellfire" is well written and very believable. Looking forward to the next book in the "Jack Tanner" series.
August 31, 2015
A well written story with an interesting plot. I like how correct material has been mixed with fiction into a story that feels genuine but still adventurous. Action-filled parts and slower storybased parts go hand in hand which makes you want to continue reading to know what will happen.
December 6, 2016
Another great Jack Tanner story. A bit of a mix in this, the usual great action scenes, this time in North Africa against Rommel and a nice spy story. A great series. Jack Tanner is the Sharpe of World War II.
February 27, 2012
Provides insight into the desert war, World War 2. The plot and character development are thin. The made up personal stories tend to detract, but the book is quite readable.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews