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Beau Valentine #1
The Berkut
SS man Colonel Gunthur Brumm, his faithful NCO, Sergeant Rau, and Adolf Hitler are on the run from Stalin's Special Operations Group headed by Petrov--the Berkut--after staging Hitler's supposed suicide.
568 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1987
39 people are currently reading
584 people want to read
About the author
Joseph Heywood
50 books189 followersSee also Joe T. Heywood
Joseph Heywood is the son of a career USAF officer. His dad was from Rhinecliff, New York on the Hudson River in Dutchess County, and his mother is from Mize, Mississippi in Sullivan County. His mother’s maiden name was Hegwood and she had only to change one letter to convert to her married name.
He is a 1961 graduate of Rudyard High School in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (Chippewa County). Played football, basketball, baseball, and ran track.
1965 graduate of Michigan State University (BA-Journalism). Joseph played on the Michigan State Lacrosse Club for three years, crease attack, tri-captain in 1965. He was in the last class of mandatory ROTC for land grant universities and predictably chose the Air Force.
In 1965, he married Sandra V. Heywood (1943-2002) of East Lansing. Five children, one dog. Widower.
1965-1970, USAF Instructor Navigator, KC-135 tanker, honorably discharged as captain. Vietnam veteran. Air Medal with 6 Oak Leaf Clusters.
Graduate studies, Western Michigan University, 1974-75, completed course work for MA in English Literature; no degree.
Joseph worked for The Upjohn Company [now Pfizer], 1970-2000, retiring as vice president for worldwide public relations.
He walks every day in all weather conditions, and have hunted and fished Michigan since 1958, mostly alone.
Joseph Heywood's Woods Cop mysteries are based on the lives of Upper Peninsula conservation officers, and for going on seven years has spent about one month a year on patrol with officers, in all kinds of weather, all times of day and under sundry conditions. He worked in all 15 Upper Peninsula Counties as well as in another 15-16 counties BTB (Below the Bridge).
In preparation for work with COs, he often hikes alone at night (flashlight for emergencies) using only ambient light. He has spent nights alone in jungles and on mountains. Has canoe-camped in Michigan, Missouri and Arkansas, over the years he has had one close encounter with a wolf (six feet away in tag alders on the Iron River), and with a cow elk and her calf (in Idaho). Too many close meetings with black bears to count, no injuries.
He loves to take photographs while walking, hiking and fishing, and use some of the pix for his paintings.
Joseph always carry a ruck with emergency equipment, compass, etc. even for short sorties on foot in the U.P. It’s too easy to get under cedars and old growth in an overcast and get hopelessly turned around. He does not use a GPS. "When it comes to lost in the woods there seem to be two categories of people: Them that have been and them that will be. Iron ore deposits can make compass navigation interesting…."
The Upper Peninsula is not just a setting and base for Joseph Heywood but serves as a character in many of his novels. "When I write, I try to take readers to places and events in the U.P. they might not have occasion to visit or experience on their own. For me, the U.P. is a natural jewel and I am always surprised by how little people from BTB know about it."
"The day we arrived in the U.P. to report to Kinross Air Force Base (later renamed Kincheloe, and since decommissioned) my mother cried as we drove up the several-mile two-lane to the front gate; looking at all the woods passing by, I had a feeling I was coming home."
Joseph Heywood is the son of a career USAF officer. His dad was from Rhinecliff, New York on the Hudson River in Dutchess County, and his mother is from Mize, Mississippi in Sullivan County. His mother’s maiden name was Hegwood and she had only to change one letter to convert to her married name.
He is a 1961 graduate of Rudyard High School in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (Chippewa County). Played football, basketball, baseball, and ran track.
1965 graduate of Michigan State University (BA-Journalism). Joseph played on the Michigan State Lacrosse Club for three years, crease attack, tri-captain in 1965. He was in the last class of mandatory ROTC for land grant universities and predictably chose the Air Force.
In 1965, he married Sandra V. Heywood (1943-2002) of East Lansing. Five children, one dog. Widower.
1965-1970, USAF Instructor Navigator, KC-135 tanker, honorably discharged as captain. Vietnam veteran. Air Medal with 6 Oak Leaf Clusters.
Graduate studies, Western Michigan University, 1974-75, completed course work for MA in English Literature; no degree.
Joseph worked for The Upjohn Company [now Pfizer], 1970-2000, retiring as vice president for worldwide public relations.
He walks every day in all weather conditions, and have hunted and fished Michigan since 1958, mostly alone.
Joseph Heywood's Woods Cop mysteries are based on the lives of Upper Peninsula conservation officers, and for going on seven years has spent about one month a year on patrol with officers, in all kinds of weather, all times of day and under sundry conditions. He worked in all 15 Upper Peninsula Counties as well as in another 15-16 counties BTB (Below the Bridge).
In preparation for work with COs, he often hikes alone at night (flashlight for emergencies) using only ambient light. He has spent nights alone in jungles and on mountains. Has canoe-camped in Michigan, Missouri and Arkansas, over the years he has had one close encounter with a wolf (six feet away in tag alders on the Iron River), and with a cow elk and her calf (in Idaho). Too many close meetings with black bears to count, no injuries.
He loves to take photographs while walking, hiking and fishing, and use some of the pix for his paintings.
Joseph always carry a ruck with emergency equipment, compass, etc. even for short sorties on foot in the U.P. It’s too easy to get under cedars and old growth in an overcast and get hopelessly turned around. He does not use a GPS. "When it comes to lost in the woods there seem to be two categories of people: Them that have been and them that will be. Iron ore deposits can make compass navigation interesting…."
The Upper Peninsula is not just a setting and base for Joseph Heywood but serves as a character in many of his novels. "When I write, I try to take readers to places and events in the U.P. they might not have occasion to visit or experience on their own. For me, the U.P. is a natural jewel and I am always surprised by how little people from BTB know about it."
"The day we arrived in the U.P. to report to Kinross Air Force Base (later renamed Kincheloe, and since decommissioned) my mother cried as we drove up the several-mile two-lane to the front gate; looking at all the woods passing by, I had a feeling I was coming home."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 70 reviews
June 30, 2023
A group of battle tested SS men extract Hitler from his bunker...but Stalin has sent his own hunter-killer group to make sure Hitler does not escape him. Great read that I think is very 'script friendly' and could be turned into a really good movie. Would have liked to have seen Peckinpah take this one!
June 13, 2016
Very well-conceived premise of the book. Hitler did not kill himself in a bunker, SS Colonel Gunter Brumma one of the best commandos pulls it out of the bunker with the intent to transfer to Argentina. Stalin wants hard evidence that his worst enemy dead and sends Vasilij Petrov and his capable and ruthless group specials to bring him Hitler's body or to take him alive. Although the basic premise of fiction very easily enters into a story that draws you to the end of the book. A very good book that leaves the question: Was Hitler killed him self or not?
September 11, 2013
I got this book as a present from an old pen pal of mine, a Marine sergeant stationed in the Philippines during Operation Desert Storm. Not only are the SS Men, Soviet spies, and American agents, all totally believable, the weapons systems are detailed and the characters are brutally real and fascinating.
My one complaint is that there was not enough of one particular character -- Rosemary Wilson, a WAC officer who stumbles across one of the Hitler Youth girls sneaking Hitler out of Germany. The author seems to have put her into the book just to have a bit of titillating lesbian excitement, then killed her off in a hurry. Frankly, though Heywood is a master at writing a taut, military thriller, his view of lesbians seems to be very old hat, almost stereotypical. Rosemary Wilson is predatory, blundering, greedy, and stupid -- she's so busy drooling over the mysterious blonde fraulein she misses the obvious hints that the girl is on some kind of secret mission!
I loved this book, but why couldn't Rosemary Wilson have gotten the upper hand? Heywood could very easily have written the opposite scenario -- the repressed German girl falls into the arms of the rich American woman and ends up giving away vital clues! That would have been just as sexy and just as exciting, and we could have done without the cheap and really pointless lesbian-bashing that comes out of nowhere.
But make no mistake -- this is a sizzling thriller!
My one complaint is that there was not enough of one particular character -- Rosemary Wilson, a WAC officer who stumbles across one of the Hitler Youth girls sneaking Hitler out of Germany. The author seems to have put her into the book just to have a bit of titillating lesbian excitement, then killed her off in a hurry. Frankly, though Heywood is a master at writing a taut, military thriller, his view of lesbians seems to be very old hat, almost stereotypical. Rosemary Wilson is predatory, blundering, greedy, and stupid -- she's so busy drooling over the mysterious blonde fraulein she misses the obvious hints that the girl is on some kind of secret mission!
I loved this book, but why couldn't Rosemary Wilson have gotten the upper hand? Heywood could very easily have written the opposite scenario -- the repressed German girl falls into the arms of the rich American woman and ends up giving away vital clues! That would have been just as sexy and just as exciting, and we could have done without the cheap and really pointless lesbian-bashing that comes out of nowhere.
But make no mistake -- this is a sizzling thriller!
June 8, 2013
This story takes place at the end of WWII. A group of Russian soldiers are ordered by Stalin to search for Hitler. Apparently the Soviet dictator does not believe the Facist dictator took his own life.
Heywood takes the reader on a very detailed, and very real journey through post-war Germany, and writes about the likelihood of Hitler managing to escape. He introduces familiar characters throughout the story, and this imaginative book is one of my favorites. If you enjoy WWII thrillers, you will love this book.
Keep on reading!
DavidWho's Minding the Store?
Heywood takes the reader on a very detailed, and very real journey through post-war Germany, and writes about the likelihood of Hitler managing to escape. He introduces familiar characters throughout the story, and this imaginative book is one of my favorites. If you enjoy WWII thrillers, you will love this book.
Keep on reading!
DavidWho's Minding the Store?
July 31, 2012
this was a 4.5 star - read
I found this book was a really enjoyable read - seemingly the author made a serious search about the WW2 and what happened immediately after the Red Army seized Berlin after a bloody battle.
The storyline was interesting also: Hitler didn't committed suicide, and a special Russian unit chased him and his 'rescuers' through the battled and ruined Germany and Italy, followed by the American OSS.
The characters and the storyline was well build, there was always something happening, but the author kept all the things real and believable, so I could connected myself with the characters. Unfortunately there was no place enough for character-buliding (I know, I know this is my constant whim!;), but for a thriller/historical fiction this isn't too important. I could truly like almost all characters, Gunther Brumm and Vasily Ivanich Petrov - they were very detailled and good written characters, but I can say it also about the other Russian team-members, and it was very good how the author illustrated the atmosphere in Kremlin and Stalin's character.
The only thing what disturbed me, and why I couldn't give this book 5 stars, the obligatory romance - there was already two(!), but fortuantely it didn't take too much pages from the story.
Summary: if you need some good read for lazy afternoons, this book is highly recommandable.
I found this book was a really enjoyable read - seemingly the author made a serious search about the WW2 and what happened immediately after the Red Army seized Berlin after a bloody battle.
The storyline was interesting also: Hitler didn't committed suicide, and a special Russian unit chased him and his 'rescuers' through the battled and ruined Germany and Italy, followed by the American OSS.
The characters and the storyline was well build, there was always something happening, but the author kept all the things real and believable, so I could connected myself with the characters. Unfortunately there was no place enough for character-buliding (I know, I know this is my constant whim!;), but for a thriller/historical fiction this isn't too important. I could truly like almost all characters, Gunther Brumm and Vasily Ivanich Petrov - they were very detailled and good written characters, but I can say it also about the other Russian team-members, and it was very good how the author illustrated the atmosphere in Kremlin and Stalin's character.
The only thing what disturbed me, and why I couldn't give this book 5 stars, the obligatory romance - there was already two(!), but fortuantely it didn't take too much pages from the story.
Summary: if you need some good read for lazy afternoons, this book is highly recommandable.
September 11, 2012
***** SPOILERS!!! *****
The book starts of nicely and then gradually loses steam towards the end. There are main characters without any purpose (Valentine). Some plot elements make no sense at all: why would the Russians want to blame the Jews for the sinking? And why would they leave Brumm alive but kill a whole ship full of emigrants? The epilogue hit the final nail into the coffin: the scene does not belong to historical fiction but into cheesy horror books. Completely unrealistic.
The writing style leaves much to be desired.
This is my first Heywood book and I rarely read the thriller genre. But this book can't hold a candle to any of the Ludlum books, for example.
It's not extremely bad, but not much better either.
June 20, 2016
An engrossing, action-packed novel based on the (not entirely implausible) premise that Adolf Hitler faked his death in his bunker and went on the lam, assisted by two Waffen-SS loyalists (Col. Gunter Brumm and Sgt. Maj. Hans "Beard" Rau) and a few "Valkyries" (females in their late teens who style themselves as members of the Werewolves guerrilla group), and assuming the identity of "Herr Wolf" along the way.
In hot pursuit are two entities from the Allied powers:
(1) Roguish American OSS agent Beau Valentine; and
(2) a Soviet Special Operations Group (the WWII predecessor of Spetsnaz?) group, personally commissioned by Josef Stalin, led by Vasily Petrov, codenamed "Berkut" (named for a species of falcon that specializes in hunting wolves, hence the title), and also consisting of Rivitsky, Bailov, Ezdovo (a Siberian and the best hunter/tracker of the team), Gnedin (the doctor) and Talia Pogrebenoi (the one female on the team, and a gorgeous one at that, but certainly not just a pretty face; she's a former Red Army Major who is quite deadly).
This book was first published in 1987 when I was a mere 11 going on 12 years old. I meant to read it back then, but didn't finally get around to it 'til just now, all these years later. But hey, better late than never, as it was well worth the wait.
RANDOM STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS NOTES:
--p. 13: The "slingshot" = precursor of the Fulton Skyhook system?
"Obsersaizberg?" Shouldn't that be Obersalzberg?
--p. 15: "It pleased Petrov to think in economic terms; the capitalists might be depraved, but they were also efficient, and he prized efficiency above most attributes."
--p. 34: "revolver" with a silencer?? SMDH...
--p. 49: "Good evidence of what sort of creatures volunteered to serve in panzer units, he told himself." Haha.
--p. 56: Would Petrov's "revolver" be a Nagant revolver, or actually a Tokarev **autopistol**?
--p. 71: Hmmm, some interesting ideas on interrogation.
--p. 82: Und Herr Major and a Feldwebel on a first-name basis?
--Random Casting Call Comment Part I: Robert Shaw or Hardy Kruger, or perhaps Rutger Hauer, would've been good choices to portray Oberführer (Oberst) Günter Brumm.
And either Sonny Puzikas or Steven Berkoff as Petrov. Liv Schreiber as Rivitsky.
--p. 83; "the boy became an accomplished outdoorsman and hunter, a development that his schoolmasters found difficult to equate with his intellectual talents for virtually every subject he encountered." Sheesh, some academics types just can't seem to grasp the concept of the warrior-scholar.
--p. 91: "slammed his hands against his fat thighs like a plump bird beating its wings in a mating dance." Ha.
--p. 99: There he (the author) goes again with the use of "revolver."
--p. 107: Interesting psychological assessment of Eva Braun.
--p. 128: Interesting assessment of Stalin's eating habits and Caesarian precautions
--p. 134: "Browning .45?" Ahem, that's COLT .45, thank you very much, though John Moses Browning did invent it.
--p. 138: "with a clip shaped like a cake pan, which looked like an oversize Thompson submachine gun." In other words, a drum magazine?
--p. 139: Continuity error: from LTC to MAJ and back to LTC.
--p. 144: "full bull," or full bird?
--p. 154: a rather frightening and unflattering description of the Harz mountains.
--p. 169: "For Johann Pescht hate had become the force that sustained him; it was his deity. He had been a Jew, but no longer. Now he saw himself as an avenger; he would pay back the Nazis."
--p. 172: "The colonel did not ask for an explanation; as a Texan, he understood vengeance in ways that many other Americans might not have." As in Remember the Alamo?
--p. 178: Soviets using miles instead of kilometers?
--p. 189: "Once again it struck him that the difference between churches and palaces was indeed narrow. Both bespoke power; both demanded allegiance under penalty of death or a condemned soul, the difference being only the time frame in which payment would be demanded." Wow.
--p. 251: "If there were no other certainty in life, there was the guarantee that German bureaucracy was committed to redundancy. If the Germans could have reproduced the Rhine so as to have one in reserve for the day when the first dried up, they would have done so."
--p. 262: "It did not bother the American to lie; the important thing was to get to the truth and sometimes lies were what got you there the fastest." Sounds a bit like what my instructor's at FLETC's CITP program taught us. Or as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder of "The X-Files" might say, "All Lies Lead To The Truth."
--p. 266: "even Catholicism could not tame Teutonic ferocity."
--p. 267: SMDH, more overuse of the word "revolver."
--p. 268: "It took him nearly two hours to find an American army unit with the necessary communications equipment, but only a few minutes to bribe a PFC by giving him the names of a couple of local women he could score with." Priorities, heh heh.
--p. 271: Hey wow, finally a reference to an automatic pistol!
--p. 284: Double-entendre intended with "'Ho, ho, ho?'" Heh heh heh.
--p. 292: "It occurred to him that while the Communist party paid homage to equality between the sexes, its practice was much different from its theory."
General comment: I'll have to try this "pertsovka" sometime...
--p. 304: Central Intelligence **Group**??
--pp. 304-305: "Wild Bill" Donovan too roguish for fop Truman, eh?
--pp. 305-306: Haha, Valentine has a Roguish style too, I love it!!
--p. 308: "It was ironic, Valentine often thought, that only the very rich and the very poor--those with everything and those with nothing--had the time or motivation to dedicate their lives to pursuits of a higher order."
--p. 324: "'He seemed more an intellectual than a criminal.'" "'Sometimes they're the same thing.'" Haha, truth!
--p. 330: "Unlike most women, Pogrebenoi took pleasure in firearms..." Like Joe Camel says, "We've come a long way, baby!"
--p. 354: ....demonstrating with his hands, as all pilots do when they talk about their craft." Haha, true dat!
--p. 355: "What the party said for official consumption was one thing; what Russians believed was yet another; like millions of her countrymen, Talia believed in God and in life after death. To her the Devil was real."
--p. 358: Sicilians have Arab blood?
--p. 375: Guglielmo!
--p. 381: "To Valentine, borders were tools designed to keep the simple-minded at bay. If countries wished their borders to be real, they should imitate the Chinese and build a wall." Hmmm, what would Donald Trump say, heh heh.
--p. 391: "'In ten years, the blood-sucking Communists and their union puppets will cripple the country.'" PRESCIENT!!!
--p. 401: "Power brokers in all states are cut from the same cloth." Truth.
--p. 407: "The sea breeze was strong, a familiar scent of decaying fish and petrol. Ports always smelled the same, Rivitsky thought."
--p. 417: "As a result, Rivitsky preferred his women thick of waist and leg..." My kinda guy, heh heh!
--RANDOM CASTING CALL Part II:
John Rhys-Davies as Fr. Grigory/Giacomo
Abe Vigoda as Bela
Greg "The Hammer" Valentine as Beau Valentine (cheesy, I know)
Rachel Weisz as Talia Pogrebenoi
Ron Pearlman as Ezdovo
In hot pursuit are two entities from the Allied powers:
(1) Roguish American OSS agent Beau Valentine; and
(2) a Soviet Special Operations Group (the WWII predecessor of Spetsnaz?) group, personally commissioned by Josef Stalin, led by Vasily Petrov, codenamed "Berkut" (named for a species of falcon that specializes in hunting wolves, hence the title), and also consisting of Rivitsky, Bailov, Ezdovo (a Siberian and the best hunter/tracker of the team), Gnedin (the doctor) and Talia Pogrebenoi (the one female on the team, and a gorgeous one at that, but certainly not just a pretty face; she's a former Red Army Major who is quite deadly).
This book was first published in 1987 when I was a mere 11 going on 12 years old. I meant to read it back then, but didn't finally get around to it 'til just now, all these years later. But hey, better late than never, as it was well worth the wait.
RANDOM STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS NOTES:
--p. 13: The "slingshot" = precursor of the Fulton Skyhook system?
"Obsersaizberg?" Shouldn't that be Obersalzberg?
--p. 15: "It pleased Petrov to think in economic terms; the capitalists might be depraved, but they were also efficient, and he prized efficiency above most attributes."
--p. 34: "revolver" with a silencer?? SMDH...
--p. 49: "Good evidence of what sort of creatures volunteered to serve in panzer units, he told himself." Haha.
--p. 56: Would Petrov's "revolver" be a Nagant revolver, or actually a Tokarev **autopistol**?
--p. 71: Hmmm, some interesting ideas on interrogation.
--p. 82: Und Herr Major and a Feldwebel on a first-name basis?
--Random Casting Call Comment Part I: Robert Shaw or Hardy Kruger, or perhaps Rutger Hauer, would've been good choices to portray Oberführer (Oberst) Günter Brumm.
And either Sonny Puzikas or Steven Berkoff as Petrov. Liv Schreiber as Rivitsky.
--p. 83; "the boy became an accomplished outdoorsman and hunter, a development that his schoolmasters found difficult to equate with his intellectual talents for virtually every subject he encountered." Sheesh, some academics types just can't seem to grasp the concept of the warrior-scholar.
--p. 91: "slammed his hands against his fat thighs like a plump bird beating its wings in a mating dance." Ha.
--p. 99: There he (the author) goes again with the use of "revolver."
--p. 107: Interesting psychological assessment of Eva Braun.
--p. 128: Interesting assessment of Stalin's eating habits and Caesarian precautions
--p. 134: "Browning .45?" Ahem, that's COLT .45, thank you very much, though John Moses Browning did invent it.
--p. 138: "with a clip shaped like a cake pan, which looked like an oversize Thompson submachine gun." In other words, a drum magazine?
--p. 139: Continuity error: from LTC to MAJ and back to LTC.
--p. 144: "full bull," or full bird?
--p. 154: a rather frightening and unflattering description of the Harz mountains.
--p. 169: "For Johann Pescht hate had become the force that sustained him; it was his deity. He had been a Jew, but no longer. Now he saw himself as an avenger; he would pay back the Nazis."
--p. 172: "The colonel did not ask for an explanation; as a Texan, he understood vengeance in ways that many other Americans might not have." As in Remember the Alamo?
--p. 178: Soviets using miles instead of kilometers?
--p. 189: "Once again it struck him that the difference between churches and palaces was indeed narrow. Both bespoke power; both demanded allegiance under penalty of death or a condemned soul, the difference being only the time frame in which payment would be demanded." Wow.
--p. 251: "If there were no other certainty in life, there was the guarantee that German bureaucracy was committed to redundancy. If the Germans could have reproduced the Rhine so as to have one in reserve for the day when the first dried up, they would have done so."
--p. 262: "It did not bother the American to lie; the important thing was to get to the truth and sometimes lies were what got you there the fastest." Sounds a bit like what my instructor's at FLETC's CITP program taught us. Or as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder of "The X-Files" might say, "All Lies Lead To The Truth."
--p. 266: "even Catholicism could not tame Teutonic ferocity."
--p. 267: SMDH, more overuse of the word "revolver."
--p. 268: "It took him nearly two hours to find an American army unit with the necessary communications equipment, but only a few minutes to bribe a PFC by giving him the names of a couple of local women he could score with." Priorities, heh heh.
--p. 271: Hey wow, finally a reference to an automatic pistol!
--p. 284: Double-entendre intended with "'Ho, ho, ho?'" Heh heh heh.
--p. 292: "It occurred to him that while the Communist party paid homage to equality between the sexes, its practice was much different from its theory."
General comment: I'll have to try this "pertsovka" sometime...
--p. 304: Central Intelligence **Group**??
--pp. 304-305: "Wild Bill" Donovan too roguish for fop Truman, eh?
--pp. 305-306: Haha, Valentine has a Roguish style too, I love it!!
--p. 308: "It was ironic, Valentine often thought, that only the very rich and the very poor--those with everything and those with nothing--had the time or motivation to dedicate their lives to pursuits of a higher order."
--p. 324: "'He seemed more an intellectual than a criminal.'" "'Sometimes they're the same thing.'" Haha, truth!
--p. 330: "Unlike most women, Pogrebenoi took pleasure in firearms..." Like Joe Camel says, "We've come a long way, baby!"
--p. 354: ....demonstrating with his hands, as all pilots do when they talk about their craft." Haha, true dat!
--p. 355: "What the party said for official consumption was one thing; what Russians believed was yet another; like millions of her countrymen, Talia believed in God and in life after death. To her the Devil was real."
--p. 358: Sicilians have Arab blood?
--p. 375: Guglielmo!
--p. 381: "To Valentine, borders were tools designed to keep the simple-minded at bay. If countries wished their borders to be real, they should imitate the Chinese and build a wall." Hmmm, what would Donald Trump say, heh heh.
--p. 391: "'In ten years, the blood-sucking Communists and their union puppets will cripple the country.'" PRESCIENT!!!
--p. 401: "Power brokers in all states are cut from the same cloth." Truth.
--p. 407: "The sea breeze was strong, a familiar scent of decaying fish and petrol. Ports always smelled the same, Rivitsky thought."
--p. 417: "As a result, Rivitsky preferred his women thick of waist and leg..." My kinda guy, heh heh!
--RANDOM CASTING CALL Part II:
John Rhys-Davies as Fr. Grigory/Giacomo
Abe Vigoda as Bela
Greg "The Hammer" Valentine as Beau Valentine (cheesy, I know)
Rachel Weisz as Talia Pogrebenoi
Ron Pearlman as Ezdovo
September 7, 2011
Really good book. If you like World War II history, this is a great read. A fictional "what if" on alternative theories to the final demise of Adolf Hitler. Seen from the perspectives of a Russian special operations group and a US OSS officer on his last assignment.
The author is thorough in his use of facts known, and filling the unknowns in with plausible alternatives. He provides a reasonable rationale for the patriotism held by Soviet citizens that I could appreciate, and while I disagreed with it, he even provided a rationale for Stalin's justification of his genocides. I think a very well thought out book, and an enjoyable read.
Thanks to the guy who came and fixed my computer and recommended it to me!!
The author is thorough in his use of facts known, and filling the unknowns in with plausible alternatives. He provides a reasonable rationale for the patriotism held by Soviet citizens that I could appreciate, and while I disagreed with it, he even provided a rationale for Stalin's justification of his genocides. I think a very well thought out book, and an enjoyable read.
Thanks to the guy who came and fixed my computer and recommended it to me!!
February 16, 2018
The pages kept turning themselves it seems, as I was so enraptured and enveloped in the story. If your a history or WW2 buff, you will like this. The scenarios that are presented are actually very plausible. It made me think of what was really possible at the end of the war amid the chaos and the greatest migration known to mankind. I ended up reading the last chapter twice in a row. Something about that was fascinating to me, and, without giving away details, it really seems like something Uncle Joe would do!
June 11, 2013
Brilliant suspense drama all based on suspicion and gaps left after the second world war. The commitment of men and women to the roles they have to play and their dedication to their leaders and countries is admirable and inspiring. I loved the twists and turns taken in the book.
Read
February 20, 2011Read it - can't remember it - brought home to re-read.
May 2, 2018
A "what-would-happen-if" novel. I enjoyed reading The Berkut and recommend it.
October 12, 2020
A magyar címet (Hozd el nekem Hitlert) és a borítót látva valami giga trash könyvre számítottam, de végül csalódnom kellett, mert megdöbbentően alapos és átgondolt histocial fictiont szállított le az alkotó.
Szerencsére azért a trash jelei aézrt itt-ott feltűnnek, de összességében egy kifejezetten érdekes, akciódús kalandregénnyel van dolgunk, amiben nagyon jól elmosódnak a valós történelmi események és a megkomponált történetszálak. Különösen dicséretre méltó a setting: a háború végi, illetve a közveltenül a háború utáni Németország, ami tökéletes táptalajt biztosít a szereplők kalandjai számára..
5 csillagot csak azért nem adok, mert mégiscsak egy dedikáltan ponyva (bár amennyi effortot belerakott az író a kutatásban) műről van szó, de összességében nagyon jól szórakoztam.
Szerencsére azért a trash jelei aézrt itt-ott feltűnnek, de összességében egy kifejezetten érdekes, akciódús kalandregénnyel van dolgunk, amiben nagyon jól elmosódnak a valós történelmi események és a megkomponált történetszálak. Különösen dicséretre méltó a setting: a háború végi, illetve a közveltenül a háború utáni Németország, ami tökéletes táptalajt biztosít a szereplők kalandjai számára..
5 csillagot csak azért nem adok, mert mégiscsak egy dedikáltan ponyva (bár amennyi effortot belerakott az író a kutatásban) műről van szó, de összességében nagyon jól szórakoztam.
November 16, 2018
A guy in the dog park: many thanks. This twist on history is a bit more than I usually go in for. But this novel is a blast. Considering the point is to stretch credulity, author Heywood makes the tale incredibly believable. And the history is correct. He researched the hell out of this -- you get details on Hitler's bunker, hidden in the center of a crumbling Berlin; Stalin's insane levels of personal security; aerial surveillance methods; and how to screw up your trackers while fleeing through a mountain forest. The pacing here is nice, no chance for boredom to develop. All characters are fairly strong in their development and I appreciated how anyone can get knocked out of the game at any time. You may come to respect many of these dedicated players, even though they often wreak reprehensible havoc to achieve their goals.
April 3, 2025
My second read of this story. I first read it many years ago, but the memory of the story and especially the ending have stood the test of time, in other words, this is a story that has stuck with me so re-reading was in order. I initially rated this a five from memory, nothing has changed, it is still a five.
I enjoy stories that tell the overall story from many different angles, from different perspectives, and from different viewpoints, which of course lead to the final climax. The Berkut has them all. I even put this one (don't keep many) on my bookshelf to read again in ten years. Shamefully, this has been the only novel I've read from Heywood, but will soon change that history.
I enjoy stories that tell the overall story from many different angles, from different perspectives, and from different viewpoints, which of course lead to the final climax. The Berkut has them all. I even put this one (don't keep many) on my bookshelf to read again in ten years. Shamefully, this has been the only novel I've read from Heywood, but will soon change that history.
December 18, 2016
I read this book my junior year in college and it has lived on in my mind ever since. My dorm roommate (whom I'm still friends with) basically made me read it because he couldn't stop talking about it and I'm very glad he did.
I'm not going to give a summary or critical review because I would need to read it again since it's been two decades since the last reading. That said, it's on my re-read list and I'm sure it will be as intense now as it was then, maybe more now considering I've matured and know a lot more about WWII after working on documentaries about it.
I'm not going to give a summary or critical review because I would need to read it again since it's been two decades since the last reading. That said, it's on my re-read list and I'm sure it will be as intense now as it was then, maybe more now considering I've matured and know a lot more about WWII after working on documentaries about it.
March 12, 2020
Mind blowing!
An amazing work of fiction, staging Hitler's escape with the help of Colonel Gunter Brumm through a long, tiring mountainous route; from Berlin to Harz Mountains, through Rhine river to Blackheim and their destination is to reach Genoa to embark upon a ship rescuing German Nazis under the supervision of the Church.
But through all this adventure Stalin's "Berkut" Petrov along with his team chases and hunts down "Herr Wolf" on the ship and drags him back to Russia to Kremlin and imprison him in the cage and finally kills him before the death of Stalin.
An amazing work of fiction, staging Hitler's escape with the help of Colonel Gunter Brumm through a long, tiring mountainous route; from Berlin to Harz Mountains, through Rhine river to Blackheim and their destination is to reach Genoa to embark upon a ship rescuing German Nazis under the supervision of the Church.
But through all this adventure Stalin's "Berkut" Petrov along with his team chases and hunts down "Herr Wolf" on the ship and drags him back to Russia to Kremlin and imprison him in the cage and finally kills him before the death of Stalin.
May 5, 2008
One of the best fictional books about WWII out there. It's a story about Hitler being smuggled out of Germany before the Third Reich collapses. He is helped by a top German commando and they are chased by Russian commandos determined to capture Hitler for Stalin.
Warning, there is some bad language and crude scenes, but they fit in-line with the story. I wish this book would be made into a movie.
Warning, there is some bad language and crude scenes, but they fit in-line with the story. I wish this book would be made into a movie.
November 16, 2011
For a book about an elaborate plot to funnel Hitler out of the ash heaps of Germany to Argentina, its not bad. Seems a stretch in the reality department but Heywood does a nice job of describing the landscape of a destroyed Germany in the aftermath immediately following V-Day and what life was like as a German in the part of Berlin occupied by Russians. I had no idea that girls were such sluts back then! (If you read the book you might see the humor in that last sentence)
October 15, 2011
This book blew me away. Didn't think I'd be a fan of historical fiction, but I was loaned this book and didn't have much in the way of options so I gave it a shot. Glad I did!! I'm into characterization and this has it...and the skillful story-telling is hard to describe. A must read and makes a short list of favorites for me.
September 29, 2013
Hitler lives! And it's up to a crack team of Russian commandos to track him through the ruins of post-WW2 Europe and kill him. THE BERKUT is chock full of action, adventure and includes a helping of voluptuous Nazi guerillas for good measure. High marks to Heywood's portrayal of a shattered continent. If you enjoy historical thrillers this is the book for you.
January 5, 2014
This was a fast paced, exciting historical fiction novel depicting the faked death and escape of Hitler from his bunker. Aided by loyal SS members, Hitler is chased across Europe by Stalin's handpicked bounty hunters.The escape is made difficult by Hitler's own ego and refusal to cooperate with his rescuers.
July 14, 2008
Adolph Hitler died in the Fuhrer Bunker on April 30, 1945 -- or did he? The author does an excellent job of exploiting the circumstances around the death of Adolph Hitler. Heywood crafts a superb alternate reality as we follow the last days of the Thousand-Year Reich.
January 12, 2009
Thrilling ride through 1945 Germany and Europe as brilliant minds track a fugitive Hitler who was on the run after faking his own death. The ultimate chase where there are only two outcomes; success or death.
October 2, 2011
This is the best historical fiction about WWII that I have ever read. It really makes you wonder what really did happen. Joseph Heywood wrote this is 1987. I felt like I was reading a Tom Clancy. If you like WWII historical fiction, find this book and read it!
January 16, 2022
Odlican primer istorijske fantastike, pogotovo WWII tematike. Kako mali ljudi, podanici i obozavaoci zude da ispune ocekivanja svojih vodja koji su sve osim onoga sto propovedaju.
A za nas Srbe omiljena tema, da li je Adolf sam okoncao svoj zivot ili mu je Vatikan pomogao.
A za nas Srbe omiljena tema, da li je Adolf sam okoncao svoj zivot ili mu je Vatikan pomogao.
July 23, 2009
For me, this was AWESOME. For anyone who likes war/suspense/Bond-like adventure, I highly recommend.
July 5, 2010
Great book, one that I couldn't put down!
January 6, 2011
I really enjoyed this story. Manhunt, Nazis, WWII. Found it a real page turner.
April 10, 2011
Interesting theory about the demise of Hilter.
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