The Fire Fighter: A Novel of War

by Francis Cottam

Autumn, 1940, and the Luftwaffe is firebombing London, a capital rendered virtually defenseless by a legacy of appeasement and governmental incompetence. Jack Finlay, a young man already notorious for his capacity to fight fires, and men, is hauled reluctantly back from his artillery unit in the Western Desert. Finlay's Liverpool past is murky but London needs him now - no questions asked - to wage an elemental battle on streets made strange by the scale of the destruction.

His task is to do all he can to prevent five buildings vital to Britain's war effort from being engulfed. But resources are scarce, the mood bleak and Finlay himself suspicious about the real motive for the mission charged him by his enigmatic Whitehall taskmaster, Captain Grey. And then Finlay falls in love with a woman as unorthodox as he a wartime liaison as improbable as it is intense, which makes him vulnerable.

With a cynical eye and a tender heart, this taut, tantalizing novel tracks a dangerous intelligence game, and spotlights with a rare and telling force the indiscriminate path of war and fire through ordinary lives.

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Francis or F.G. Cottam was born and brought up in Southport in Lancashire, attending the University of Kent at Canterbury where he took a degree in history before embarking on a career in journalism in London. He lived for 20 years in North Lambeth and during the 1990s was prominent in the lad-mag revolution, launch editing FHM, inventing Total Sport magazine and then launching the UK edition of Men’s Health. He is the father of a young son and baby daughter and now lives in Kingston upon Thames. His fiction is thought up over daily runs along the towpath between Kingston and Hampton Court Bridges.

Reviews

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set during the Nazi Blitz on London in late 1940, this 2001 novel is very realistic with vivid descriptions of the destruction and terror as well as a fine evocation of the fear of not knowing if an invasion and defeat was imminent. A fire fighter is dispatched from the Western Desert to London to advise a mysterious military committee on the precautions necessary to save five buildings apparently vital for the war effort. Intrigue as to the reason why adds to a compelling narrative even if the love story doesn’t ever convince. 3.5 stars

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been meaning to read this for quite some time as I have read all of the authors supernatural novels, which he writes as F.G Cottam.
The Firefighter is not a supernatural tale, although a ghost does feature briefly. This is a story of one man's struggle as a firefighter during the blitz.
Well written, it is a poignant tale of resilience and courage.

[Amelia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Revolving around ex-firefighter Jack Finlay being pulled from army lines during the Blitz and brought back to London for his fire fighting expertise. He's quickly assigned to look after 5 specific buildings although it soon becomes clear that there's more to his mission then meets the eye.

The story is told in a style I'm not familiar nor entirely comfortable with but as it goes on the reader gets pulled into the story as it jumps around the place and they find themselves just as eager to finally understand what is happening as Finlay does. In the end that aim is achieved even if it is slightly lackluster.

All up a short interesting read.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this an unusual story in the fact that I've never read a book laid out quite like this before. Jack Findley is fighting in WW2 and is called back to London to be a firefighter. The men he speaks with are not overly forthcoming with any information and one wonders what exactly is going on. So many characters with an air of mystery - are they really who they seem to be? And, of course, a love interest. His past hanging over his head through the whole story. A very dark and complex plot but I really didn't want to put the book down as I was trying to figure out what would happen next and why things were happening the way they were.

[Sandra Stolz · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was alright. I felt it lacked something - not enough to really "sink one's teeth into". I would not read it again.

[Sheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing was good - loved the vocabulary and the history. Not sure that the ending justified the rest of the book. Felt very unsatisfied with the story.

[Kate Millin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I do love book crossing as without it I would never have picked up this book to read. It is a thought provoking story about a chief fire officer in London during the heaviest bombing early I the 2nd world war. It gets across the impact of this combined with the legacy of the 14-18 war on him and the people around him.