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The Blood Flag
The Blood Flag was last seen on October 18, 1944, when Heinrich Himmler displayed it proudly as he commissioned the Volkssturm, the Nazi Party's new militia created to avert the certain defeat that awaited Germany. Hitler believed the Blood Flag, Blutfahne, carried sacred powers. It held the blood of the first Nazi martyrs, those killed in the Beer Hall Putsch in Munich in 1923, when Hitler first tried to take over Germany. Several Nazis were shot and fell onto the flag, pouring their blood into the already red fabric. That flag-with a white circle and a black swastika in the middle-still lives. Kyle Morrissey, a special agent for the FBI, travels to Europe with his father to see him receive the Legion of Honor from France for his service at Normandy. But after the ceremony, while traveling through Germany, Kyle and his family encounter neo-Nazis perpetuating the evil philosophy he thought his father's generation had ended once and for all. Kyle soon discovers that tens of thousands are ready to raise the swastika once more and renew the hatred of the thirties and forties. Baffled and furious, Kyle embarks on a personal mission to bring down the movement. But how? In trying to understand the history of Nazism, Kyle learns of the Blood Flag and knows it is the key to his success. From DC to Dresden to Recklinghausen and Argentina, the Blood Flag leads Kyle on a worldwide race in an attempt to end international Nazism for good.
277 pages, Hardcover
First published November 10, 2015
40 people are currently reading
543 people want to read
About the author
James W. Huston
11 books107 followersIn addition to being the author of Falcon Seven, Marine One, Secret Justice, Shadows of Power, Fallout, Flash Point, The Price of Power and Balance of Power, I am a partner in the international law firm of Morrison & Foerster, and head of the Trial Practice Group, and a former Navy Flight Officer in F-14s.
I grew up in West Lafayette, Indiana, and attended the University of South Carolina on a Navy ROTC scholarship, majoring in history, with a minor in English. During my senior summer, I did an exchange cruise with the French Navy on a destroyer, the EE Kersaint out of Brest (which was a wonderful experience and reinforced my decision to go into the Navy), and then attended the University of Warwick in England, to study English Reformation history and English literature.
After college, I received my Navy wings as a Naval Flight Officer and after F-14 training in San Diego, was assigned to VF-84, the Jolly Rogers, on the USS Nimitz. While in VF-84, I participated in making the movie, The Final Countdown, starring Kirk Douglas, Katherine Ross, and Martin Sheen. The filming for the movie was done in several places, but most of the flying was done out of Naval Air Station Key West, Florida. The entire movie crew was in Key West, and we would review the dailies (yesterday's filming) every night. I was asked to help direct a couple of scenes—the blowing up of the yacht by the Zeros, and the F-14 low-level flyby over Katherine Ross—as well as filming several other scenes with a Panavision camera in the back seat of the F-14. The DVD version of The Final Countdown was recently released. The producers pulled together the Jolly Rogers guys who did the flying, to create and "behind-the-scenes" bonus cut.
I did two Mediterranean cruises while in the Jolly Rogers, and other shorter cruises to the Caribbean and the North Atlantic. I was selected to attend TOPGUN and graduated before my second cruise.
After six years in the Navy, I left active duty in 1981 to attend the University of Virginia School of Law. After graduation, I joined the San Diego-based law firm, Gray Cary Ames & Frye, and began flying in the Navy Reserves. After a few years in the Reserves, I transferred from flying to Naval Intelligence. Naval intelligence was quite interesting and allowed me access to top secret information about world affairs and military developments. I was on active duty at JICPAC, the Joint Intelligence Center, Pacific Fleet, in Pearl Harbor, when Iraq invaded Kuwait, leading to Desert Storm. I got to see a lot about what happened behind the scenes in an event like that, and how much of importance never makes it to the press.
My writing career started in the form of op-eds for the Escondido Times Advocate and the San Diego Union-Tribune, covering current affairs topics. After numerous editorials, I decided to try fiction. Neither my first novel nor my second were accepted for publication. I went through several hundred rejection letters, and labored almost every night for five years before I had any hope of getting published. I've gone back and looked at those books since, and I could make them publishable now, but they weren't very good back then.
My third novel was different. It combined many areas of my personal experience into one story—military action, political intrigue, and Constitutional Law. I found a clause in the U.S. Constitution that hadn't been used since 1812, and asked the simple question: "What if it was used today? What would happen?"
The first published novel, Balance of Power (William Morrow, 1998), was optioned by Jerry Bruckheimer and Disney. The novel was adapted into a screenplay by Mark Baumbach, but was never made into a film.
Five more novels followed in the next five years—The Price of Power (William Morrow, 1999), Flash Point (William Morrow, 2000), Fallout (William Morrow, 2001), The Shadows of Power (William Morrow, 2002), and Secret Justice (William Morrow, 2003).
I grew up in West Lafayette, Indiana, and attended the University of South Carolina on a Navy ROTC scholarship, majoring in history, with a minor in English. During my senior summer, I did an exchange cruise with the French Navy on a destroyer, the EE Kersaint out of Brest (which was a wonderful experience and reinforced my decision to go into the Navy), and then attended the University of Warwick in England, to study English Reformation history and English literature.
After college, I received my Navy wings as a Naval Flight Officer and after F-14 training in San Diego, was assigned to VF-84, the Jolly Rogers, on the USS Nimitz. While in VF-84, I participated in making the movie, The Final Countdown, starring Kirk Douglas, Katherine Ross, and Martin Sheen. The filming for the movie was done in several places, but most of the flying was done out of Naval Air Station Key West, Florida. The entire movie crew was in Key West, and we would review the dailies (yesterday's filming) every night. I was asked to help direct a couple of scenes—the blowing up of the yacht by the Zeros, and the F-14 low-level flyby over Katherine Ross—as well as filming several other scenes with a Panavision camera in the back seat of the F-14. The DVD version of The Final Countdown was recently released. The producers pulled together the Jolly Rogers guys who did the flying, to create and "behind-the-scenes" bonus cut.
I did two Mediterranean cruises while in the Jolly Rogers, and other shorter cruises to the Caribbean and the North Atlantic. I was selected to attend TOPGUN and graduated before my second cruise.
After six years in the Navy, I left active duty in 1981 to attend the University of Virginia School of Law. After graduation, I joined the San Diego-based law firm, Gray Cary Ames & Frye, and began flying in the Navy Reserves. After a few years in the Reserves, I transferred from flying to Naval Intelligence. Naval intelligence was quite interesting and allowed me access to top secret information about world affairs and military developments. I was on active duty at JICPAC, the Joint Intelligence Center, Pacific Fleet, in Pearl Harbor, when Iraq invaded Kuwait, leading to Desert Storm. I got to see a lot about what happened behind the scenes in an event like that, and how much of importance never makes it to the press.
My writing career started in the form of op-eds for the Escondido Times Advocate and the San Diego Union-Tribune, covering current affairs topics. After numerous editorials, I decided to try fiction. Neither my first novel nor my second were accepted for publication. I went through several hundred rejection letters, and labored almost every night for five years before I had any hope of getting published. I've gone back and looked at those books since, and I could make them publishable now, but they weren't very good back then.
My third novel was different. It combined many areas of my personal experience into one story—military action, political intrigue, and Constitutional Law. I found a clause in the U.S. Constitution that hadn't been used since 1812, and asked the simple question: "What if it was used today? What would happen?"
The first published novel, Balance of Power (William Morrow, 1998), was optioned by Jerry Bruckheimer and Disney. The novel was adapted into a screenplay by Mark Baumbach, but was never made into a film.
Five more novels followed in the next five years—The Price of Power (William Morrow, 1999), Flash Point (William Morrow, 2000), Fallout (William Morrow, 2001), The Shadows of Power (William Morrow, 2002), and Secret Justice (William Morrow, 2003).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
November 19, 2015
An incredible book with an intriguing storyline that immediately grabs your attention. Filled with many well-developed characters and pieces of history that join to create a fantastic book. You won't want to put the book down!
November 18, 2015
Page turning excitement! This book makes you want to stay up late and keep on reading! I've been wanting for Huston to write another novel for the last few years and this was well worth the wait.
March 8, 2017
I would recommend that you have had some exposure to the early 20th century history to be able to get the most out of this book. I have read William L. Shirer’s The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich which helped me understand a lot of the “whats” and “whys” in the book. The book revolves around the search for the most holy relic to the Nazi culture, the Blood Flag (Blutfahne) which holds the blood from the first Nazi “Martyrs” who died during the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch. Hitler treated it like a holy relic. It disappeared shortly before the war ended.
Kyle Morrissey specializes in international terrorism for the FBI. He experiences a moment of unreality when days after attending the D-Day Ceremony at Normandy, he and his family are caught in a Nazi march in Germany. He questions how the evil the greatest generation fought and beat can still be in existence. As he researches modern Nazi-ism, he becomes obsessed, leading him to cooperate with the FBI agent in charge of tracking Neo-Nazis. Before too long Kyle finds himself looking for the Blood Flag as a way to gain admission to the top Neo-Nazi group in the world.
I enjoyed the history in the story. I thought the characters, especially Kyle and Jedidiah were interesting but never fully fleshed out. During the incident that starts Kyle’s obsession, he is accompanied by his wife and children. They promptly vanish except for one or two mentions for the rest of the book. He drops his own work in International Terrorism to pursue his Nazi obsession and the FBI does not reign him in. Jedidiah’s backstory is never truly explored. He was a virulent Neo-Nazi and now he is a confidential informant for the FBI. I never really got a good handle on his conversion. The German officers in the equivalent of the FBI remained a question on whether they sympathized with the Neo-Nazis or not.
To be clear, I enjoyed the book. I listened at every opportunity I had for the last few days. It certainly held my attention. But it ended somewhat abruptly and I was left with a lot of unanswered questions (see paragraph above).
Peter Ganim did a nice job as a narrator. He handled all the accents, American (both Southern and more non descript) German, and Russian well. Mr. Ganim did a nice job with the few females when they made appearances. His pacing with consistent with the action. The production values were excellent. I would definitely listen to another book narrated by Peter Ganim and will read another by James W. Huston. I just wish he had made The Blood Flag a little longer so my questions were answered.
Story (Plot) 4
Performance 5
Production Quality 5
Attention Holding 5
"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Jukebox dot com."
Kyle Morrissey specializes in international terrorism for the FBI. He experiences a moment of unreality when days after attending the D-Day Ceremony at Normandy, he and his family are caught in a Nazi march in Germany. He questions how the evil the greatest generation fought and beat can still be in existence. As he researches modern Nazi-ism, he becomes obsessed, leading him to cooperate with the FBI agent in charge of tracking Neo-Nazis. Before too long Kyle finds himself looking for the Blood Flag as a way to gain admission to the top Neo-Nazi group in the world.
I enjoyed the history in the story. I thought the characters, especially Kyle and Jedidiah were interesting but never fully fleshed out. During the incident that starts Kyle’s obsession, he is accompanied by his wife and children. They promptly vanish except for one or two mentions for the rest of the book. He drops his own work in International Terrorism to pursue his Nazi obsession and the FBI does not reign him in. Jedidiah’s backstory is never truly explored. He was a virulent Neo-Nazi and now he is a confidential informant for the FBI. I never really got a good handle on his conversion. The German officers in the equivalent of the FBI remained a question on whether they sympathized with the Neo-Nazis or not.
To be clear, I enjoyed the book. I listened at every opportunity I had for the last few days. It certainly held my attention. But it ended somewhat abruptly and I was left with a lot of unanswered questions (see paragraph above).
Peter Ganim did a nice job as a narrator. He handled all the accents, American (both Southern and more non descript) German, and Russian well. Mr. Ganim did a nice job with the few females when they made appearances. His pacing with consistent with the action. The production values were excellent. I would definitely listen to another book narrated by Peter Ganim and will read another by James W. Huston. I just wish he had made The Blood Flag a little longer so my questions were answered.
Story (Plot) 4
Performance 5
Production Quality 5
Attention Holding 5
"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Jukebox dot com."
September 15, 2023
James W. Huston is apparently a very good writer of modern day thrillers. You would never know that reading this piece of hack work. It features one-dimensional characters; an unbelievable plot; cartoonish posturing; and silly dialogue. It is sophomoric in the extreme. The lead character, who is supposed to be a highly skilled FBI agent, talks like a pretentious 14 year old. It is a dismal affair.
March 8, 2017
Enjoyed this book. Good story but abrupt ending. Good history of Nazi party also.
February 16, 2016
I’ve been reading this author’s books for a good long while now. He kind of semi-retired from writing in 2003 after putting out seven books. Though he did release another in 2009, and then just put out the book I’ve read. He’s one of the few author’s I’ve read everything published, and there’s a high percentage of his books I’ve rated 5 stars.
Let’s see. Nine books. 44.44% of them have been rated, by me, five stars. 66.7% have been rated 4 or more stars. Then there are the two I’ve rated three stars. ‘The Blood Flag’, sadly, is one of the ones I rated three stars.
There are many reasons for this 3 star rating. I rather liked the history that was injected, relatively seamlessly. And the overall story itself was intriguing. So, what’s up with the 3 star rating? What went wrong? To a large extent it boils down to two things: I just didn’t like the main character, and there was an absurdity – and a somewhat unthinking ‘me see danger, me rush forward pounding fist against chest growling until danger gone’ type of ‘plan’ to defeat the rise of the fourth Reich.
Those two points are tied together, since they are based on the same thing – the main character (and his thought process). The main character is an FBI agent working on counter-terrorism by the name of Kyle Morrissey. The book opens with this main character, Kyle, over in Europe to help his father celebrate and receive a medal (I’ve some vague recollection that a medal was involved, maybe not). Not sure what happened with the father, maybe he immediately hopped a plane and returned home, maybe he just did his own thing, but despite being the reason for being in Europe, his presence was barely felt. Heck, I’m not really 100% certain the guy was actually alive – what with several comments along the line of ‘I bet your father would have been proud.’ I’m not wording this right so let me try again.
Kyle, an FBI agent, is in Europe with his family. Initially over there to help his father celebrate the anniversary of the end of WWII, or the Normandy invasion. After that celebration, Kyle and family, sans Kyle’s father, head out in a car to visit various places. This is not at all detailed. The visit, I mean. One moment is detailed, though. Picture in your mind a family in a car on a city street. Suddenly people pop up, a whole crowd, in front of the car. Wearing KKK like outfits (though I believe the coloration of the robes was different), and Nazi arm-bands. Carrying torches. And utterly silent. You, the driver, start to edge the car backwards. Whereupon another group of robed people pop up. They begin to swarm around and then past your car. Then a flash goes off. Your son has taken a picture. Suddenly one of the robed people rushes forward and screams something in German. He tries to open the door behind which your son sits holding the camera. Failing to get in, he, the robed guy, wanders around and screams at you, the driver. He then begins pounding on the window with his torch. Meanwhile your wife is screaming at you to move (I may have the order of this off slightly), but you just stare straight ahead unmoving. Window breaks. Robed man asks for your keys. You give them. Wife again demands that you don’t do that, to leave. You make some weird response indicating it would be better not to leave. Robed fella wanders back around, opens your child’s car door, demands the camera, takes camera, and breaks it.
This is where my dislike for the main character began. Maybe nothing could have been done; maybe he did the right thing just sitting there. But he was in a car. He was surrounded by people wearing robes, carrying torches and proudly displaying Nazi armbands and banners. In a country where Nazi symbols are outlawed. Naturally I’d just sit in the car horrified by what I was seeing instead of fleeing. Or not. I don’t know. This is the beginning of my appreciation that the main character has poor planning skills and poor ‘spur-of-the-moment’ skills. (Though if he really this bad the book would have turned out quite differently.)
This is also when he becomes obsessed with Neo-Nazism. And it’s spread throughout the world. For a smart guy who works as an FBI agent and on counter-terrorism, he shows massive and alarming lack of knowledge. The guy reacts completely surprised, and may or may not have stated a few times ‘but I thought they all died when the Second World War ended!’ (they or Nazism). Seriously? It’s the character, not the author, because the author provides certain points of interest that the character seemed too naïve and lacking in knowledge to know.
Numerous times throughout this book I made status updates that basically read something like ‘the FBI agent may be the worst FBI agent of all time.’ It’s his attitude to other agents, to his bosses, to confidential informants, to everyone. Some examples: without any plan, he rushes over to visit with a guy who works on domestic terrorism, then practically drags that guy to see that guy’s boss. So that he could be allowed to temporarily help on a case. He had no plan beyond ‘I wish to temporarily work on an assignment’. Naturally the boss said no. Naturally, the FBI agent took that no to be yes. Both from the domestic terrorism boss guy and from the counter-terrorism boss lady (his boss). Both basically say no, to which he heard yes. He then flies around on his own dime doing stuff. Point one; before I provide another example, I kept waiting for this FBI agent to wake up. To have a brain wave. To . . . think coherently for a moment or two. There’s this organization, see, which desires to terrorize and overthrow governments around the world. The agent could not see anything within that concept to grab a hold of and use as a hinge point, an entry point to justify devoting his time, as a counter-terrorism guy? Seriously? Because the book, near the end, gave a very real way he could have had an in, but which he mostly ignored throughout the book.
Second example of why I dislike this character because I think he’s a bad FBI agent: Kyle is lead to a confidential informant. To learn more about neo-Nazism in the USA. It’s not his CI. I want to make that clear from the beginning. He’s just there to meet the guy. Kyle then proceeds, once he meets this massively huge mountain of a man, to grill him. ‘What’s your name?’ *given first name* ‘WHAT’S YOUR NAME! (or What’s your last name?’ ‘How did you get here? Exactly?’ By this point the other FBI agent, to which this CI actually is being handled by, finally pulls Kyle back. But . . seriously? What the fuck?
ETA - Oh, and I should note, the guy wasn't stupid. He just didn't think things through and follow his training. Which he acknowledged numerous times in this book. He kept doing stupid things. Being called on it, being reminded that he had had training that covered this issue, and Kyle would acknowledge that he wasn't operating correctly.
One last point – shortly before 9/11, as in the attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, I read a book by Huston called ‘Fallout’. It involved terrorist using planes against targets in the USA. The intention, by the terrorist pilots, if I recall correctly, wasn’t to use the planes as ramming devices, but I believe one or more eventually did. They targeted nuclear facilities instead of the twin towers. Still, I read that at some point shortly before 9/11, then saw on my television terrorist driving planes into buildings. I mention this for one specific reason. A series of terrorist attacks occur in this book. I do not recall now, but I believe 60 people die. All in Germany. Coordinated. That same day, hours later, I heard news that terrorists attacked several targets in Paris. 120+ people dead. We live in a world where that really isn’t that remarkable, sadly. That series of coincidences. But still. Creepy.
Let’s see. Nine books. 44.44% of them have been rated, by me, five stars. 66.7% have been rated 4 or more stars. Then there are the two I’ve rated three stars. ‘The Blood Flag’, sadly, is one of the ones I rated three stars.
There are many reasons for this 3 star rating. I rather liked the history that was injected, relatively seamlessly. And the overall story itself was intriguing. So, what’s up with the 3 star rating? What went wrong? To a large extent it boils down to two things: I just didn’t like the main character, and there was an absurdity – and a somewhat unthinking ‘me see danger, me rush forward pounding fist against chest growling until danger gone’ type of ‘plan’ to defeat the rise of the fourth Reich.
Those two points are tied together, since they are based on the same thing – the main character (and his thought process). The main character is an FBI agent working on counter-terrorism by the name of Kyle Morrissey. The book opens with this main character, Kyle, over in Europe to help his father celebrate and receive a medal (I’ve some vague recollection that a medal was involved, maybe not). Not sure what happened with the father, maybe he immediately hopped a plane and returned home, maybe he just did his own thing, but despite being the reason for being in Europe, his presence was barely felt. Heck, I’m not really 100% certain the guy was actually alive – what with several comments along the line of ‘I bet your father would have been proud.’ I’m not wording this right so let me try again.
Kyle, an FBI agent, is in Europe with his family. Initially over there to help his father celebrate the anniversary of the end of WWII, or the Normandy invasion. After that celebration, Kyle and family, sans Kyle’s father, head out in a car to visit various places. This is not at all detailed. The visit, I mean. One moment is detailed, though. Picture in your mind a family in a car on a city street. Suddenly people pop up, a whole crowd, in front of the car. Wearing KKK like outfits (though I believe the coloration of the robes was different), and Nazi arm-bands. Carrying torches. And utterly silent. You, the driver, start to edge the car backwards. Whereupon another group of robed people pop up. They begin to swarm around and then past your car. Then a flash goes off. Your son has taken a picture. Suddenly one of the robed people rushes forward and screams something in German. He tries to open the door behind which your son sits holding the camera. Failing to get in, he, the robed guy, wanders around and screams at you, the driver. He then begins pounding on the window with his torch. Meanwhile your wife is screaming at you to move (I may have the order of this off slightly), but you just stare straight ahead unmoving. Window breaks. Robed man asks for your keys. You give them. Wife again demands that you don’t do that, to leave. You make some weird response indicating it would be better not to leave. Robed fella wanders back around, opens your child’s car door, demands the camera, takes camera, and breaks it.
This is where my dislike for the main character began. Maybe nothing could have been done; maybe he did the right thing just sitting there. But he was in a car. He was surrounded by people wearing robes, carrying torches and proudly displaying Nazi armbands and banners. In a country where Nazi symbols are outlawed. Naturally I’d just sit in the car horrified by what I was seeing instead of fleeing. Or not. I don’t know. This is the beginning of my appreciation that the main character has poor planning skills and poor ‘spur-of-the-moment’ skills. (Though if he really this bad the book would have turned out quite differently.)
This is also when he becomes obsessed with Neo-Nazism. And it’s spread throughout the world. For a smart guy who works as an FBI agent and on counter-terrorism, he shows massive and alarming lack of knowledge. The guy reacts completely surprised, and may or may not have stated a few times ‘but I thought they all died when the Second World War ended!’ (they or Nazism). Seriously? It’s the character, not the author, because the author provides certain points of interest that the character seemed too naïve and lacking in knowledge to know.
Numerous times throughout this book I made status updates that basically read something like ‘the FBI agent may be the worst FBI agent of all time.’ It’s his attitude to other agents, to his bosses, to confidential informants, to everyone. Some examples: without any plan, he rushes over to visit with a guy who works on domestic terrorism, then practically drags that guy to see that guy’s boss. So that he could be allowed to temporarily help on a case. He had no plan beyond ‘I wish to temporarily work on an assignment’. Naturally the boss said no. Naturally, the FBI agent took that no to be yes. Both from the domestic terrorism boss guy and from the counter-terrorism boss lady (his boss). Both basically say no, to which he heard yes. He then flies around on his own dime doing stuff. Point one; before I provide another example, I kept waiting for this FBI agent to wake up. To have a brain wave. To . . . think coherently for a moment or two. There’s this organization, see, which desires to terrorize and overthrow governments around the world. The agent could not see anything within that concept to grab a hold of and use as a hinge point, an entry point to justify devoting his time, as a counter-terrorism guy? Seriously? Because the book, near the end, gave a very real way he could have had an in, but which he mostly ignored throughout the book.
Second example of why I dislike this character because I think he’s a bad FBI agent: Kyle is lead to a confidential informant. To learn more about neo-Nazism in the USA. It’s not his CI. I want to make that clear from the beginning. He’s just there to meet the guy. Kyle then proceeds, once he meets this massively huge mountain of a man, to grill him. ‘What’s your name?’ *given first name* ‘WHAT’S YOUR NAME! (or What’s your last name?’ ‘How did you get here? Exactly?’ By this point the other FBI agent, to which this CI actually is being handled by, finally pulls Kyle back. But . . seriously? What the fuck?
ETA - Oh, and I should note, the guy wasn't stupid. He just didn't think things through and follow his training. Which he acknowledged numerous times in this book. He kept doing stupid things. Being called on it, being reminded that he had had training that covered this issue, and Kyle would acknowledge that he wasn't operating correctly.
One last point – shortly before 9/11, as in the attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, I read a book by Huston called ‘Fallout’. It involved terrorist using planes against targets in the USA. The intention, by the terrorist pilots, if I recall correctly, wasn’t to use the planes as ramming devices, but I believe one or more eventually did. They targeted nuclear facilities instead of the twin towers. Still, I read that at some point shortly before 9/11, then saw on my television terrorist driving planes into buildings. I mention this for one specific reason. A series of terrorist attacks occur in this book. I do not recall now, but I believe 60 people die. All in Germany. Coordinated. That same day, hours later, I heard news that terrorists attacked several targets in Paris. 120+ people dead. We live in a world where that really isn’t that remarkable, sadly. That series of coincidences. But still. Creepy.
January 15, 2018
This was a great and very intriguing story. It definitely got my attention right from the start didn’t let go. It is very similar to a treasure hunt through history and readers will not be disappointed. The characters are well developed and at times you learn to trust them and not to trust them. The book will leave you guessing or points and really wanting more. The author definitely did some major research to get all of his facts correct and make sure everything lines up. Just a very descriptive and enjoyable book all the way through. I listen to the audiobook and the performance was flawless. The tone was set early on and the tension was very great throughout the book. The narrator did many voices with accents, female and male voices and was very distinguishable between characters. Definitely worth the listen. I just wished for more when it came to the ending. It was a bit abrupt and I would’ve liked some fallout of the aftermath explained. On the other hand, maybe a little bit of mystery never hurt anybody.
January 6, 2018
Not my usual reading fare but interesting and topical, nonetheless.
The Blood Flag of the title was a real artifact of the Nazi Party. Hitler made it a talisman of the party, for it was stained with the blood of party members shot and killed by Munich police during the failed Beer Hall Putsch of 1923. Hitler can be seen using it during the 1934 Nuremberg rally to consecrate Nazi flags of the assembled SA units.
So with that in mind, this potboiler is on solid historical ground. And as a spy thriller, a genre I usually don't read, it is above average in believability, as it deals with the very real, therefore topical, resurgence of neo-Nazism in the United States and Europe.
The flaws with the book is, it is too talky, the dialogue became flat and a bit confusing at times, and the characters were two-dimensional. Yet I got the feeling that this might have been intended as the first of a series. Alas we'll never know because the author died within months of publication.
The Blood Flag of the title was a real artifact of the Nazi Party. Hitler made it a talisman of the party, for it was stained with the blood of party members shot and killed by Munich police during the failed Beer Hall Putsch of 1923. Hitler can be seen using it during the 1934 Nuremberg rally to consecrate Nazi flags of the assembled SA units.
So with that in mind, this potboiler is on solid historical ground. And as a spy thriller, a genre I usually don't read, it is above average in believability, as it deals with the very real, therefore topical, resurgence of neo-Nazism in the United States and Europe.
The flaws with the book is, it is too talky, the dialogue became flat and a bit confusing at times, and the characters were two-dimensional. Yet I got the feeling that this might have been intended as the first of a series. Alas we'll never know because the author died within months of publication.
September 6, 2017
This book kept my interest from beginning to end. The striking part for me was chapter 4 when the Neo-Nazi gives a two minute presentation on how he successfully recruits. This blew me away because I was agreeing with this Neo-Nazi on most of his points. That shocked me. I had to play that part back about five times because the actor that does the audio version is intense and you feel his love for his country. This writer sucks me in every single time. His books are a journey that I love to take with him. I was going to send James W. Huston a FB message telling him how great I think this ride was when I saw a post the Huston died last year. I am really hoping that isn't true. I want many more journeys with this author. It's sad to think this might be the last I get to share with him. I love his spirit on these journey's. I want more.
January 4, 2023
This was a book I probably should not have liked, but I did. The plot was thin as was the main character’s motivation, but the subject matter was interesting. I had never heard of the Blood Flag before and once the book got moving, there was a lot of information to be found.
I did enjoy a personal connection to the book as well. Being from Columbia, SC, it was fun to see Houston's depiction of the University of South Carolina and Columbia in general. I also think it's the first time I ever saw Irmo mentioned in a book.
Houston's first two novels, Balance of Power and Price of Power remain two of my favorites.
I did enjoy a personal connection to the book as well. Being from Columbia, SC, it was fun to see Houston's depiction of the University of South Carolina and Columbia in general. I also think it's the first time I ever saw Irmo mentioned in a book.
Houston's first two novels, Balance of Power and Price of Power remain two of my favorites.
June 28, 2025
Really good listen. I enjoyed every minute of it. Our hero, an FBI agent tears after a Nazi relic. He co-opts a disaffected Southern boy Nazi and they have adventures. I thought that the bureaucracy didn't do a very good job of keeping up with him and they would have been more controlling in actuality. Author is a former Navy NFO and I enjoyed the dearth of Navy advocacy in this book. There was a good bit of history involved and it was well told. Overall, intriguing story.
October 28, 2025
Wow this was an exciting read from start to finish! Kyle is a special agent with the FBI. When he is traveling in Germany with his family, he has a frightening encounter with Neo-Nazis, and he determines he is going to stop this movement from a resurgence. With a small group of people, he travels to Argentina and finally Germany with a daunting plan. Loved it!
June 20, 2017
This book felt like "meh" to me. Newly rich lawyers. Murdered beautiful young girl. Nazi memorabilia. The book kept you guessing and that was fun, but the characters were thin, and the story was overly sensational in my opinion.
September 9, 2017
I have read several of James W Huston's novels and I don't remember his writing to be sophomoric. Really disappointed. And I won't even get into the subject matter.
Other reader's mileage may vary, as always. No two people read the same book.
Other reader's mileage may vary, as always. No two people read the same book.
March 17, 2019
I don't feel like the author had any idea where he was going with this book. As a whole it felt written by the seat of his pants. The main character seems to luck into nearly every situation and break in the case, as well as the ending.
February 17, 2023
Antisemitism
With all the terrorism that is going on in the world, The Nazi party is alive to try to rise again. With a cast of characters from the FBI the the German equivalent to a neo-Nazi they go to Argentina to Germany to try and squash the new self appointed Hitler.
With all the terrorism that is going on in the world, The Nazi party is alive to try to rise again. With a cast of characters from the FBI the the German equivalent to a neo-Nazi they go to Argentina to Germany to try and squash the new self appointed Hitler.
September 29, 2023
Another Nazi hunter book, protagonists improbably recovering a flag Nazi thugs bled on while they died in the beer hall putsch. The thin plot spins an unlikely reason to acquire the flag and wipe out the neo-Nazi threat.
December 13, 2024
Some sort of spy dude who does what he wants, when he wants and to heck with his boss. Meets up with people who don't really trust or know him, but give him all sorts of info and take him into their confidence. Silly stuff. Gave up after 25%
May 6, 2017
An enjoyable romp through the world of neo Naziism with an interesting plot and good pace.
July 25, 2018
Great book !!!!
Great book loved the ending couldn't have asked for a better way to end the book!! Loved the characters especially Jedediah and Kyle who never have up!!
Great book loved the ending couldn't have asked for a better way to end the book!! Loved the characters especially Jedediah and Kyle who never have up!!
January 12, 2017
I'm a little mixed on this book, but ultimately the base story was strong enough for me to like it, and recommend it!
Pros: this is the story of Kyle Morrissey, an FBI agent assigned to the counterterrorism unit, who gets sucked into modern-day Nazism from a scary experience with his family while traveling through Germany. The base story was great - you get a lot of Nazi and Hitler history mixed in with what is likely happening today, along with their awareness of using new terms and titles so that it doesn't get flagged by police and other military/security units focused on terrorism. It's pretty scary to think about how much of this book is probably true, or close to truth.
Kyle travels all over the world to track down The Blood Flag, die Blutfahne, one of the most cherished symbols associated with the Hitler and the Nazi party from the 1920's - 1940's. (You should read a little history to understand the deep passions that go with the flag.) Kyle gets help along the way from other FBI members, a confidential informant, German and Russian officials, and so forth.
Cons: I got stuck a few times. First and most annoying, all these events are set off by an experience Kyle has with his WIFE and CHILDREN, and yet throughout most of the rest of the book, they are barely mentioned again. Also, the CI has a radical, completely pro-Nazi history, along with tattoos, and yet his willingness to be a CI is never fully fleshed out beyond a small mention of religion. Kyle repeatedly ingores his regular work for the FBI, yet his boss is barely mentioned, and he's not reprimanded. Then there's this Blood Flag, which has not been seen since 1944 or 1945....and yet Kyle, with just a few weeks of investigation, who manages to find it, after 70+ years....really?? There are a few other things where you just need to set aside your disbelief.
Overall, if you allow yourself to get lost in the story, it is a fun action-filled read, with some very interesting Nazi history.
Pros: this is the story of Kyle Morrissey, an FBI agent assigned to the counterterrorism unit, who gets sucked into modern-day Nazism from a scary experience with his family while traveling through Germany. The base story was great - you get a lot of Nazi and Hitler history mixed in with what is likely happening today, along with their awareness of using new terms and titles so that it doesn't get flagged by police and other military/security units focused on terrorism. It's pretty scary to think about how much of this book is probably true, or close to truth.
Kyle travels all over the world to track down The Blood Flag, die Blutfahne, one of the most cherished symbols associated with the Hitler and the Nazi party from the 1920's - 1940's. (You should read a little history to understand the deep passions that go with the flag.) Kyle gets help along the way from other FBI members, a confidential informant, German and Russian officials, and so forth.
Cons: I got stuck a few times. First and most annoying, all these events are set off by an experience Kyle has with his WIFE and CHILDREN, and yet throughout most of the rest of the book, they are barely mentioned again. Also, the CI has a radical, completely pro-Nazi history, along with tattoos, and yet his willingness to be a CI is never fully fleshed out beyond a small mention of religion. Kyle repeatedly ingores his regular work for the FBI, yet his boss is barely mentioned, and he's not reprimanded. Then there's this Blood Flag, which has not been seen since 1944 or 1945....and yet Kyle, with just a few weeks of investigation, who manages to find it, after 70+ years....really?? There are a few other things where you just need to set aside your disbelief.
Overall, if you allow yourself to get lost in the story, it is a fun action-filled read, with some very interesting Nazi history.
May 19, 2016
First off, thanks to Goodreads for letting me win this book. Actually, since I found out the author died I feel kind of bad that it took me so long to get around to reading this and getting my review out.
While the story and writing is engaging it takes a significant amount of suspension of disbelief. Mostly, I can't figure out the main character wasn't fired and abandoned by his family. Incompetence, obsession, makes promises without having any idea if he can fulfill them.
I was annoyed by all the Nazi/neo Nazi explanations but I majored in history so others might find the additional information helpful rather than excessive.
Lastly, the edition I have is in dire need of an editor. I wonder how many of the errors occurred because of Huston's writing style. I read an interview in which he explained that he dictates into a recorder and then a former secretary types them up later. Certainly a few of the mistakes happened that way but most of them should have been caught somewhere along the way.
Despite it's flaws (and my own personal biases) if you enjoy the political/legal/military thriller, this book will still catch your attention.
While the story and writing is engaging it takes a significant amount of suspension of disbelief. Mostly, I can't figure out the main character wasn't fired and abandoned by his family. Incompetence, obsession, makes promises without having any idea if he can fulfill them.
I was annoyed by all the Nazi/neo Nazi explanations but I majored in history so others might find the additional information helpful rather than excessive.
Lastly, the edition I have is in dire need of an editor. I wonder how many of the errors occurred because of Huston's writing style. I read an interview in which he explained that he dictates into a recorder and then a former secretary types them up later. Certainly a few of the mistakes happened that way but most of them should have been caught somewhere along the way.
Despite it's flaws (and my own personal biases) if you enjoy the political/legal/military thriller, this book will still catch your attention.
December 1, 2015
I'd actually give this about a 3.5, but am rounding down because, while it was well-written and engaging some of it was just a bit too much for me to suspend my disbelief about. Other people have written about some of it - the fact that this guy is just able to jump from counter-terrorism into another department without anyone seeming to have many issues with it, etc. I also find it pretty unbelievable that despite having (unless I missed something) essentially having spent his career behind a desk, he's able to jump into field work as though he's been doing it all his life (at least as far as his comfort level goes - he definitely seems to make quite a few rookie mistakes) and that these super-neo-Nazis basically accept him as what he claims to be without giving him a much more serious vetting. I also didn't like, as someone else noted, that his family just seems to serve as props to be terrorized, first at the confrontation that sets him off, and then in the de rigeur scene where his tearful wife begs him to consider the danger he is putting himself and them into.
January 31, 2016
Much like an action movie....Lots of overblown scenes and dialogue but little realism. After reading books by Nelson Deville and Greg Isles, this was like reading a really watered down version. The main character must have quite the frequent flyer miles racked up as he is jetting off to different countries on a whim. And, his job as an FBI agent must leave him great flexibility to make up his own cases and do everything but his job. So many ideas that this author just could not pull together in his quick, vague writing style. In addition, who was the editor that missed providing new paragraphs when speakers change? He had dialogue all mashed together. Tons of unanswered questions to characters and events that the author threw in there to progress the story but did not flesh out fully, a disservice to his reader. (library copy )
November 13, 2016
One of the best thrillers I've read in a while!
I'm a big history buff when it comes to WWII, as my father and uncles fought during it. I'm especially interested interested in German history and the future of the country, as well as the *idea* of Nazism. I have NO DESIRE to take up that mantle, I just find it fascinating that so many people were influenced by one man.
This book does a fantastic job of comparing the old ways and the new, which is sad to me as there are people who still believe Hitler had the right idea.
If you enjoy spy novels, mystery, and action, this is the book for you. I loved it, and think it's worth a reread in the future.
I'm a big history buff when it comes to WWII, as my father and uncles fought during it. I'm especially interested interested in German history and the future of the country, as well as the *idea* of Nazism. I have NO DESIRE to take up that mantle, I just find it fascinating that so many people were influenced by one man.
This book does a fantastic job of comparing the old ways and the new, which is sad to me as there are people who still believe Hitler had the right idea.
If you enjoy spy novels, mystery, and action, this is the book for you. I loved it, and think it's worth a reread in the future.
December 31, 2015
This is the first book I've red by this author. Having seen the other reviews before reading it, I was expecting a more engaging and interesting read. The story is simply not believable.....so little realism in the way events unfold and how the FBI agents conduct themselves. This work could be a Marvel comic book story. Can't believe I actually stuck with it in the vain hope that somehow the ridiculous plot would result in some sort of gratifying payoff. Very disappointing......
December 29, 2015
Thank you for this Goodreads Giveaway.
A true thriller! This book opens up a whole world hidden from most of us.
I didn't want to put it down and look forward to reading James W Huston's other novels.
A true thriller! This book opens up a whole world hidden from most of us.
I didn't want to put it down and look forward to reading James W Huston's other novels.
September 30, 2016
I received a copy of this for free through Goodreads First Reads
This book was terrifying. But was very well written and a great story. The only thing I didn't like is the interactions between the characters. It had a very stilted feel.
This book was terrifying. But was very well written and a great story. The only thing I didn't like is the interactions between the characters. It had a very stilted feel.
January 31, 2016
Really good read. I enjoyed every minute of it. I was hoping that the ending would have included what happened after they returned to the U.S. Great book and an awesome twist at the end
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 16, 2016
Just ok
Good plot with interesting characters but quite wordy could have been a good short story. Will look for this author again
Good plot with interesting characters but quite wordy could have been a good short story. Will look for this author again
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