What do you think?
Rate this book
Spitfire Mavericks #3
The Fleeting Target: A night-time mission to assassinate the enemy...
Another terrifying fight in the skies for the Maverick Squadron! For fans of Derek Robinson, James Holland, Frank Barnard and Jack Higgins.
Who is leaking secrets to the enemy…?
1941
Flying Officer Angus Mackennelly is flying over Northern France when his tank is holed and he’s forced to crash-land.
Luckily, he is picked up by the French Resistance before the enemy can get to him and, after a tense few days moving between safe houses, he escapes back to Blighty.
Reunited with his squadron, Angus expects to return to flying duties. However, Squadron Leader Bentley informs him that he’s not going to be flying sorties. He is singled out to lead a top-secret mission.
The special mission is to conduct a low flying night operation with six blacked out Spitfires to strafe a convoy carrying a top general from the German High Command and assassinate him.
Training quickly commences but a spate of unexpected enemy fighter attacks leads the team to suspect that a spy is trying to leak details of the upcoming mission to the Germans.
Angus is put on the case to squirrel out the informer and protect the rest of the men from the enemy within.
Will Angus succeed in his secret mission? Can he identify the mole?
Or will the lives of all the men in Maverick Squadron be compromised…?
THE FLEETING TARGET is the third book in the Spitfire Mavericks Thrillers action-packed aviation adventures set during the second world war and featuring a team of vigilante pilots.
THE SPITFIRE MAVERICKS THRILLER
Book Dawn of Hope
Book A Fool’s Errand
Book A Fleeting Target
Who is leaking secrets to the enemy…?
1941
Flying Officer Angus Mackennelly is flying over Northern France when his tank is holed and he’s forced to crash-land.
Luckily, he is picked up by the French Resistance before the enemy can get to him and, after a tense few days moving between safe houses, he escapes back to Blighty.
Reunited with his squadron, Angus expects to return to flying duties. However, Squadron Leader Bentley informs him that he’s not going to be flying sorties. He is singled out to lead a top-secret mission.
The special mission is to conduct a low flying night operation with six blacked out Spitfires to strafe a convoy carrying a top general from the German High Command and assassinate him.
Training quickly commences but a spate of unexpected enemy fighter attacks leads the team to suspect that a spy is trying to leak details of the upcoming mission to the Germans.
Angus is put on the case to squirrel out the informer and protect the rest of the men from the enemy within.
Will Angus succeed in his secret mission? Can he identify the mole?
Or will the lives of all the men in Maverick Squadron be compromised…?
THE FLEETING TARGET is the third book in the Spitfire Mavericks Thrillers action-packed aviation adventures set during the second world war and featuring a team of vigilante pilots.
THE SPITFIRE MAVERICKS THRILLER
Book Dawn of Hope
Book A Fool’s Errand
Book A Fleeting Target
271 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 27, 2023
336 people are currently reading
13 people want to read
About the author
D.R. Bailey
29 books17 followersD.R. Bailey was raised in a family of bibliophiles. From an early age, he developed eclectic tastes in fiction including Sci-Fi, Romance, Crime, and the Classics. Some of his favourite authors remain, Gerald Durrell, Jane Austen, Peter James, Ellis Peters, and Isaac Asimov. At the age of eleven, he wrote his first fictional story about his toy teddy bear clan. Since then he has gone on to have some of his non-fiction article published in magazines, published a fictional crime series and a courtroom drama series. He has engaged in several different careers and says that these life experiences have all contributed greatly to his penchant for storytelling.
Bailey’s latest foray into fiction is a new WW2 Aviation Thriller series, The Spitfire Mavericks. It features spies, thrilling action packed aerial combat, romance and more. The series features a maverick crew of pilots thrown out from every squadron. The hero of the hour Flying Officer Angus Mackennelly endeavours to save the day in a series of thrilling adventures.
Bailey has also penned five full-length crime novels which is a genre he is particularly fond of. The Confessional Killings is the first of a series containing a heady mix of crime, suspense, humour, steamy romance and much more. Bailey has also tackled some controversial and topical subjects surrounding the Catholic Church in this story. The stories are set in Ireland, and Bailey confesses to having a great affection for the Irish.
Bailey has also published The Innocent Killing, and four other books in a Courtroom Drama series featuring a fictional barrister in Dublin called Bernadette Mackenna. This new series is a spicy mix of courtroom drama and same-sex romance. When asked why he started writing the books, Bailey said it was a story that needed to be told and one he would want to read himself.
The Spitfire Mavericks, DI Gallway Investigates, Bernadette Mackenna Investigates are set to continue for many more books to come. Bailey is dedicated to excellence and writes with passion but at the same time tries to make his words accessible to those of all persuasions, often shocking perhaps, but never dull.
Bailey’s latest foray into fiction is a new WW2 Aviation Thriller series, The Spitfire Mavericks. It features spies, thrilling action packed aerial combat, romance and more. The series features a maverick crew of pilots thrown out from every squadron. The hero of the hour Flying Officer Angus Mackennelly endeavours to save the day in a series of thrilling adventures.
Bailey has also penned five full-length crime novels which is a genre he is particularly fond of. The Confessional Killings is the first of a series containing a heady mix of crime, suspense, humour, steamy romance and much more. Bailey has also tackled some controversial and topical subjects surrounding the Catholic Church in this story. The stories are set in Ireland, and Bailey confesses to having a great affection for the Irish.
Bailey has also published The Innocent Killing, and four other books in a Courtroom Drama series featuring a fictional barrister in Dublin called Bernadette Mackenna. This new series is a spicy mix of courtroom drama and same-sex romance. When asked why he started writing the books, Bailey said it was a story that needed to be told and one he would want to read himself.
The Spitfire Mavericks, DI Gallway Investigates, Bernadette Mackenna Investigates are set to continue for many more books to come. Bailey is dedicated to excellence and writes with passion but at the same time tries to make his words accessible to those of all persuasions, often shocking perhaps, but never dull.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 10, 2024
I
Having read this book out of order I was aware of the eventual out come. That is the mission would be a success. The twist and turns the author were enough to make this a good read anyway.
Having read this book out of order I was aware of the eventual out come. That is the mission would be a success. The twist and turns the author were enough to make this a good read anyway.
November 2, 2023
Good read
Up to the last books I enjoyed the read, looking forward to the next in line, hopefully will be just as good
Up to the last books I enjoyed the read, looking forward to the next in line, hopefully will be just as good
July 25, 2024
Big Top
Return of the Marx Brothers unmasking another spy! Uncertainty of a war time romance lasting. The challenge of flying night ops in Spitfire aircraft!
Return of the Marx Brothers unmasking another spy! Uncertainty of a war time romance lasting. The challenge of flying night ops in Spitfire aircraft!
February 13, 2024
good read
Spitfire pilots, secret mission, hero escapes after being shot down, spies.
What else could the reader want for a rollicking wartime novel.
Good read, recommend.
Spitfire pilots, secret mission, hero escapes after being shot down, spies.
What else could the reader want for a rollicking wartime novel.
Good read, recommend.
December 24, 2023
Fantastic book s couldn’t it it down.
November 18, 2025
A high-octane thrill ride through the skies of WWII! The Fleeting Target grips from start to finish with daring missions, tense espionage, and edge-of-your-seat aerial combat. Fans of Jack Higgins and Derek Robinson will be hooked. Angus Mackennelly is a hero you’ll root for until the final, explosive moment.
November 9, 2023
sometimes boring
Too much down time, mostly boring talk. Cut out all the useless banter that doesn’t add anything to the story.
Too much down time, mostly boring talk. Cut out all the useless banter that doesn’t add anything to the story.
February 26, 2024
Formulaic with a lot of side chatter and two clowns from MI6
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews