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World War II #1
Bodyguard of Deception
Winner Foreword Reviews' Book of the Year Awards
Award-Winning Finalist USA Best Book Awards
Can the American and British Allies stop a vaunted German spymaster and his U-boat-commander brother from warning Hitler's High Command about the Allies' greatest military secret? It is a secret that could win the war for Germany--or, at the very least, delay the outcome for years with an inestimable cost in bloodshed, physical destruction, and suffering. And it is a secret that the two contentious brothers must grapple with within their own Wehrmacht ranks, as they bring U.S. and British intelligence to their knees on America's doorstep with the clock to D-Day ticking down. From a U-boat on the frigid North Sea to a brutal British interrogation center in heart of London to a remote German-POW camp and the world-famous Broadmoor Hotel overlooking the high plains and snow-dusted mountain peaks of Colorado, Bodyguard of Deception will keep you guessing until the final chapter. The first book of #1 Denver Post Bestselling, Award-Winning Historical Fiction Author Samuel Marquis's World War II Series.
Award-Winning Finalist USA Best Book Awards
Can the American and British Allies stop a vaunted German spymaster and his U-boat-commander brother from warning Hitler's High Command about the Allies' greatest military secret? It is a secret that could win the war for Germany--or, at the very least, delay the outcome for years with an inestimable cost in bloodshed, physical destruction, and suffering. And it is a secret that the two contentious brothers must grapple with within their own Wehrmacht ranks, as they bring U.S. and British intelligence to their knees on America's doorstep with the clock to D-Day ticking down. From a U-boat on the frigid North Sea to a brutal British interrogation center in heart of London to a remote German-POW camp and the world-famous Broadmoor Hotel overlooking the high plains and snow-dusted mountain peaks of Colorado, Bodyguard of Deception will keep you guessing until the final chapter. The first book of #1 Denver Post Bestselling, Award-Winning Historical Fiction Author Samuel Marquis's World War II Series.
331 pages, Paperback
First published March 29, 2016
466 people are currently reading
757 people want to read
About the author
Samuel Marquis
16 books111 followersThe ninth-great-grandson of legendary privateer Captain William Kidd, Samuel Marquis, M.S., P.G., is a professional hydrogeologist, expert witness, and bestselling, award-winning author of twelve American non-fiction-history, historical-fiction, and suspense books, covering primarily the period from colonial America through WWII. His American history and historical fiction books have been #1 Denver Post bestsellers and received multiple national book awards (Kirkus Reviews and Foreword Reviews Book of the Year, American Book Fest and USA Best Book, Readers’ Favorite, Beverly Hills, Independent Publisher, Colorado Book Awards). His historical titles have garnered glowing reviews from bestselling authors, colonial American history and maritime historians, U.S. military veterans, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, Kirkus Reviews, and Foreword Reviews (Starred Reviews, 5 Stars). His website is samuelmarquisbooks.com and for publicity inquiries, please contact BooksForward at info@booksforward.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
February 6, 2016
This review and more available at Book of Bogan
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review.
I've read some pretty awful books in my time, many of them in the military/thriller genre, but this unadulterated piece of dogshit promoting itself as fiction really is the sweaty lice-infested camel's armpit of them all.
Where do I begin? The title seems like a good place.
Bodyguard of Deception, hmm, what could that mean. You will soon realise that it means PRECISELY NOTHING! It is the blended version of two military operations in the second world war - Operation Bodyguard and Operation Deception - which were designed to fool the Germans into thinking the allies were invading in Calais instead of Normandy.
The novel opens in an interesting fashion, to be sure, a German spy has stolen a boat so he can rendezvous with a German u-boat. He is carrying important secrets which he must take back to the OKW to save ze war for ze vaterland! But achtung! Ze u-boat capitan has other ideas. Nein! Instead of quietly making his escape, zey must blow up some destroyers! Haha! Zey will never know what hit them! O scheisse, they found us.
I cannot express how deeply aggravating this kind of crap gets after a while. The author switches between bad german and english seemingly at his convenience, and it starts to sound like a really bad movie made in the 1950s.
On top of this, every character in this book is a cliched stereotype. And the author takes great delight in bringing all of the big players through like it's some sort of ticker tape parade. Is there any real need to have Hitler and J Edgar Hoover and a whole bunch of other luminaries involved in a relatively simple, unrealistic, spy novel?
Supposedly this is the start of a series of books, but - and without spoiling things - it ends at a point which doesn't seem to leave much room for further stories. Something for which I'm probably grateful .
This book is the nutribullet of the second world war. Throw in all of the ideas, every possible operation, every cliche, every episode of Hogans Heroes, and all of the swastikas you can find, press the plunger, and in less than a minute you're left with this green goopy mess where nothing is recognisable in its original form, and some over-dressed telemarketer is there grinning like you just won the bloody lottery. (Kale Hitler?)
This is an extremely painful book to read, and you will only hate yourself if you do. Everyone who reads this book will be dumber for having done so. I award you 0 stars, and may Gott in Himmell have mercy on your souls.
Unfortunately Goodreads won't let me actively give this book 0 stars, so I guess I'm stuck with 1.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review.
I've read some pretty awful books in my time, many of them in the military/thriller genre, but this unadulterated piece of dogshit promoting itself as fiction really is the sweaty lice-infested camel's armpit of them all.
Where do I begin? The title seems like a good place.
Bodyguard of Deception, hmm, what could that mean. You will soon realise that it means PRECISELY NOTHING! It is the blended version of two military operations in the second world war - Operation Bodyguard and Operation Deception - which were designed to fool the Germans into thinking the allies were invading in Calais instead of Normandy.
The novel opens in an interesting fashion, to be sure, a German spy has stolen a boat so he can rendezvous with a German u-boat. He is carrying important secrets which he must take back to the OKW to save ze war for ze vaterland! But achtung! Ze u-boat capitan has other ideas. Nein! Instead of quietly making his escape, zey must blow up some destroyers! Haha! Zey will never know what hit them! O scheisse, they found us.
I cannot express how deeply aggravating this kind of crap gets after a while. The author switches between bad german and english seemingly at his convenience, and it starts to sound like a really bad movie made in the 1950s.
On top of this, every character in this book is a cliched stereotype. And the author takes great delight in bringing all of the big players through like it's some sort of ticker tape parade. Is there any real need to have Hitler and J Edgar Hoover and a whole bunch of other luminaries involved in a relatively simple, unrealistic, spy novel?
Supposedly this is the start of a series of books, but - and without spoiling things - it ends at a point which doesn't seem to leave much room for further stories. Something for which I'm probably grateful .
This book is the nutribullet of the second world war. Throw in all of the ideas, every possible operation, every cliche, every episode of Hogans Heroes, and all of the swastikas you can find, press the plunger, and in less than a minute you're left with this green goopy mess where nothing is recognisable in its original form, and some over-dressed telemarketer is there grinning like you just won the bloody lottery. (Kale Hitler?)
This is an extremely painful book to read, and you will only hate yourself if you do. Everyone who reads this book will be dumber for having done so. I award you 0 stars, and may Gott in Himmell have mercy on your souls.
Unfortunately Goodreads won't let me actively give this book 0 stars, so I guess I'm stuck with 1.
February 10, 2016
Right up there with any pager turner espionage thriller written by the best of them. Marquis does a masterful jog of hooking you in from the first page and never lets you put the book down. The characters are terrific! Can't wait to read the next one in this series.
February 10, 2016
The first book in Samuel Marquis’ WWII Trilogy, Bodyguard of Deception is a great espionage thriller. The pacing is fast throughout and the action is both plausible and wildly exciting. The characters are well-drawn figures with plenty of conflict to deal with, both internally and externally. I especially liked the heroine Katherine Templeton, owner of a cattle ranch and the world-famous Broadmoor Hotel, the flawed German spy-antihero Erik Von Walburg, and Colonel Morrison, who would be rather fighting on the front lines but has been banished to a backwater POW camp in Colorado. WWII buffs will want to check out the extensive reference list in the back on the Double Cross spy system, German POW camps in the U.S. during the war, and U-boats. All in all, Marquis has packed in a ton of historical information and numerous real-world characters to make every scene realistic but also a lot of fun. What makes the book totally unique is it takes a look at the war here in America and it has a uniquely Colorado flavor. A great read for fans of WWII spy genre books by Ken Follett, Ben McIntyre, Jack Higgins, and Alan Furst, yet with a wild Western and slightly campy feel, like a Tarantino film.
February 10, 2016
I really, really enjoyed this latest thrilled from Samuel Marquis!! I do love any books set in the WWII era but this one is at the top of my list. I was intrigued throughout the novel and only read it in a matter of days...one of those I couldn't put down:) A GREAT read for a day on the beach or if you're looking for a thrilling storyline to dive into before bed (but be prepared to not sleep!). I'm excited to see what Samuel Marquis comes out with next...I'll be on the list to read it.
February 11, 2016
Samuel Marquis is a Grade A suspense writer who really throws you into the story, giving such a great sense of place and character development. And like any suspense fan enjoys - he keeps you guessing! Can't wait for the second installment!
February 11, 2016
Samuel Marquis has crafted a riveting military thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat page after page. Can't wait to read more from him!
February 10, 2016
I was intrigued by the synopsis for Bodyguard of Deception; when it comes to historical fiction, I'm never sure what to expect. And I've gotta say, WOW--this novel blew all my expectations out of the water. I LOVED this book; it sucked me in from page one and didn't let go. I've read and enjoyed Sam Marquis' thrillers in the past, but Bodyguard is a cut above the rest, and that's really saying something. Without giving anything away, if you love gripping suspense, complex character dynamics, and plot twists that will keep you guessing, all set against the backdrop of one of the most fascinating (and frightening) wars of all time, this books is for you!
February 10, 2016
I loved this book! Another excellent novel from Sam Marquis full of thrilling twists and turns. I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the trilogy!!
February 19, 2016
Great research, compelling characters, and taut narrative combine in this terrific book. I became enmeshed, in what seemed like real-time, in events that changed WWII and human destiny. I picked op BODYGUARD OF DECEPTION because I loved The Slush Pile Brigade and Blind Thrust. I could not put it down because of the incredible story and rich realism. Samuel Marquis is versatile, brilliant, genre-crashing.
August 31, 2017
In a foreword, Samuel Marquis opens his historical novel Bodyguard of Deception with the assertion that the book “is the story of Operation Cheyenne precisely as it happened during the Second World War and has been concealed for the past seventy years by the U.S. and British governments.” This operation, which according to the author unfolded between May 24 and June 6, 1944, involved the theft by German spies of the Allies’ most closely guarded wartime secrets. (As anyone with a modicum of historical knowledge will know, those were the days leading up to the fateful Normandy landings that set the Allies on the road to the annihilation of Nazi Germany.) Marquis even cites specific recently declassified documents with lengthy filenames that have the ring of authenticity. Yet the events as he describes them in the novel stretch credulity to the breaking point: the coincidences are jaw-dropping. And they never happened. Google Operation Cheyenne. You won't find anything.
When I finished reading the book, those seemingly impossible coincidences forced me to rush to the author’s note at the end. There, Marquis writes that “more than fifty historical figures populate the pages of Bodyguard of Deception.” He then precedes to list them individually. Some of those listed do not appear as characters in the book. (They’re simply mentioned in passing.) But the main characters whose interrelationships give rise to the coincidences that bothered me are not included in that list. In other words, the story as Marquis tells it simply didn’t happen. He even admits in the end that “the novel is ultimately a work of the imagination and entertainment and should be read as nothing more.” In other words, this is not historical fiction.
Oh, more thing: this tale of World War II espionage rests on the successful infiltration of a German spy in England in 1944, where he is shown to have stolen the Allied plans for the invasion of Normandy—among other closely guarded secrets. To the best of my knowledge, that never happened. Accumulated evidence over the years, as memoirs have been written and historical documents declassified, indicates that the British captured and turned every single German spy sent to the United Kingdom. And the FBI captured every German spy operating within the United States during the war.
In other words, I feel cheated. I could have done without that bogus foreword—or those exceedingly unlikely coincidences that any self-respecting novelist should be ashamed to concoct.
Furthermore, the book is not well written. The narrative is awkward at times, and the dialogue forced. There is a scene toward the end of the book in which Adolf Hitler is portrayed in a way that history doesn't support. Literature, this isn’t.
So, why didn’t I give up in disgust somewhere in the middle of the book as those improbable coincidences began to appear? I was sorely tempted, again and again, but I soldiered on in the belief that Marquis was describing actual events. And, the book’s abundant flaws aside, the action is propulsive. Marquis tells a suspenseful story. If that’s enough to induce you to read the book, have at it. But don’t expect to learn anything about the history of World War II espionage.
When I finished reading the book, those seemingly impossible coincidences forced me to rush to the author’s note at the end. There, Marquis writes that “more than fifty historical figures populate the pages of Bodyguard of Deception.” He then precedes to list them individually. Some of those listed do not appear as characters in the book. (They’re simply mentioned in passing.) But the main characters whose interrelationships give rise to the coincidences that bothered me are not included in that list. In other words, the story as Marquis tells it simply didn’t happen. He even admits in the end that “the novel is ultimately a work of the imagination and entertainment and should be read as nothing more.” In other words, this is not historical fiction.
Oh, more thing: this tale of World War II espionage rests on the successful infiltration of a German spy in England in 1944, where he is shown to have stolen the Allied plans for the invasion of Normandy—among other closely guarded secrets. To the best of my knowledge, that never happened. Accumulated evidence over the years, as memoirs have been written and historical documents declassified, indicates that the British captured and turned every single German spy sent to the United Kingdom. And the FBI captured every German spy operating within the United States during the war.
In other words, I feel cheated. I could have done without that bogus foreword—or those exceedingly unlikely coincidences that any self-respecting novelist should be ashamed to concoct.
Furthermore, the book is not well written. The narrative is awkward at times, and the dialogue forced. There is a scene toward the end of the book in which Adolf Hitler is portrayed in a way that history doesn't support. Literature, this isn’t.
So, why didn’t I give up in disgust somewhere in the middle of the book as those improbable coincidences began to appear? I was sorely tempted, again and again, but I soldiered on in the belief that Marquis was describing actual events. And, the book’s abundant flaws aside, the action is propulsive. Marquis tells a suspenseful story. If that’s enough to induce you to read the book, have at it. But don’t expect to learn anything about the history of World War II espionage.
April 17, 2016
Bodyguard of Deception is a suspenseful historical thriller by Samuel Marquis, author of two #1 selling books: The Slush Pile Brigade, which any author should read, and Blind Thrust, both of which I may just be buying shortly, when I have the cash, in order to see how to do it the right way. In Bodyguard of Deception we have the closing months of WWII in Europe and two brothers who are fighting for the same goal, but in different ways. German spy Erik von Walburg has a mission given by ‘The Desert Fox’ himself Erwin Rommel. If successful, the war will end in a way unexpected but beneficial to those involved. Erik ends up with allies in his assignment. One is his brother, U-boat Captain Wolfgang von Walburn, the prototypical Nazi ideal, the “scourge of the North Seas” and the other ally, a woman thousands of miles away without knowledge of any of the goings on of the two at odds brothers.
Samuel Marquis’ historical thriller, Bodyguard of Deception, the fourth thriller from the #1 Bestselling author, is a well-researched, intricately plotted tale of suspense, intrigue and surprises you never see coming, all beginning in May of 1944, days before D-Day. Reading about the German spy Erik von Walburg I could not help but hope for his success. With each chapter the characters become more complex with events making their former routine lives anything but ordinary, and their decisions less reflex than before. Ideals and mantras no longer rule the day. As a former history teacher and now historian/author, I was thrilled at the nods to historical figures throughout the novel. Fans of master spy teller of tales, John le Carré, and John Gardner’s Herbie Krueger series and the Secret Generations series will enjoy this first episode in what is touted as book one in a WWII Trilogy, with the next installment with a release date of January 2017.
I don’t take much time off from my own writing of novels these days, but this was well worth it. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.
Samuel Marquis’ historical thriller, Bodyguard of Deception, the fourth thriller from the #1 Bestselling author, is a well-researched, intricately plotted tale of suspense, intrigue and surprises you never see coming, all beginning in May of 1944, days before D-Day. Reading about the German spy Erik von Walburg I could not help but hope for his success. With each chapter the characters become more complex with events making their former routine lives anything but ordinary, and their decisions less reflex than before. Ideals and mantras no longer rule the day. As a former history teacher and now historian/author, I was thrilled at the nods to historical figures throughout the novel. Fans of master spy teller of tales, John le Carré, and John Gardner’s Herbie Krueger series and the Secret Generations series will enjoy this first episode in what is touted as book one in a WWII Trilogy, with the next installment with a release date of January 2017.
I don’t take much time off from my own writing of novels these days, but this was well worth it. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.
May 18, 2020
Disappointing.
Up front I stopped 20% of the way in. The subject is fascinating and exciting, the writing is not. I quit when the book moved to America for reasons that may have become clear later but seemed equally capable of not becoming clear or proving necessary. This might be unfair but I had lost interest in waiting to care.
The introduction was good but after that it was down hill. The writing is melodramatic where I wanted it to be factual and hard hitting. For example on the U boat there is much explanation of how one character is feeling about his brother, and it is repeated ad nauseam. His feeling didn’t further the plot in the first place and certainly not when the same feelings were repeated in a slightly different way for the third or fourth time.
The bottom line is I wanted to be interested, the subject was interesting, and so were a number of the characters, but the writing couldn’t engage me.
Up front I stopped 20% of the way in. The subject is fascinating and exciting, the writing is not. I quit when the book moved to America for reasons that may have become clear later but seemed equally capable of not becoming clear or proving necessary. This might be unfair but I had lost interest in waiting to care.
The introduction was good but after that it was down hill. The writing is melodramatic where I wanted it to be factual and hard hitting. For example on the U boat there is much explanation of how one character is feeling about his brother, and it is repeated ad nauseam. His feeling didn’t further the plot in the first place and certainly not when the same feelings were repeated in a slightly different way for the third or fourth time.
The bottom line is I wanted to be interested, the subject was interesting, and so were a number of the characters, but the writing couldn’t engage me.
November 6, 2017
Partly interesting but..
The novel started to be a page turner for about the first 100 or so pages but then it become boring. There are several flaws that are incredible wrong - U521 was sunk on July 2, 1943 and the captain was Kapitänleutnant Klaus Bargsten and the only survivor. There are no official records that there was a German spy on this submarine.
The citation of German expressions are wrong as well - no one would address a brother as “Bruederlein” maybe “Bruederchen” but not as stated in the novel. The formal address of a captain of a submarine was either “Herr Kapitän” or “Herr Kaleu” (short for Kapitänleutnant) but never “Herr Kapitän zur See”. If the commander had this rank the correct address would still be “Herr Kapitän”
Several other German expressions in this book are also wrong but it would take too much space here to name them all and to correct.
The novel started to be a page turner for about the first 100 or so pages but then it become boring. There are several flaws that are incredible wrong - U521 was sunk on July 2, 1943 and the captain was Kapitänleutnant Klaus Bargsten and the only survivor. There are no official records that there was a German spy on this submarine.
The citation of German expressions are wrong as well - no one would address a brother as “Bruederlein” maybe “Bruederchen” but not as stated in the novel. The formal address of a captain of a submarine was either “Herr Kapitän” or “Herr Kaleu” (short for Kapitänleutnant) but never “Herr Kapitän zur See”. If the commander had this rank the correct address would still be “Herr Kapitän”
Several other German expressions in this book are also wrong but it would take too much space here to name them all and to correct.
September 7, 2022
Very Disappointing. I like WWII era novels and thrillers so was looking forward to reading this. I can’t believe it was compared with Herman Wouk’s Winds of War. Not even in the same ballpark. Another reviewer said it read like a very bad 1950s movie. I tend to agree. The dialogue was very B-movie-ish. The plot was unbelievable and the heroic actions of the characters even more so.
I know the thriller/ action/adventure genre often stretches the imagination when it come to the feats of their main protagonists but this book takes it to another level. I mean how many bullet wounds and grenade attacks can one body take and still live?
I had also purchased the next book in the series (thank God at a reduced kindle price) but I am not sure I will bother reading it.
I know the thriller/ action/adventure genre often stretches the imagination when it come to the feats of their main protagonists but this book takes it to another level. I mean how many bullet wounds and grenade attacks can one body take and still live?
I had also purchased the next book in the series (thank God at a reduced kindle price) but I am not sure I will bother reading it.
March 25, 2016
Another page turner by Samuel Marquis! This story inspired me to learn more about what was happening in the US during WW 2. Especially in the west! The story is action packed and includes detailed settings. The characters are interesting and complex, and reflect how complicated and difficult it was to survive the war and stay true to one's values and beliefs. One of the themes that stayed with me well after I finished reading the book was the conflict so many Germans must have faced about being loyal to their country, but not to Hitler and the Nazis. I enjoyed this book very much.
September 16, 2016
Another really good book! I honestly had to get to the end to read the post script to make sure it was all fiction. It really seemed like a plausible nonfiction footnote in the annals of WW11. But alas, it is just Marquis' storytelling magic at work again, weaving actual historical figures and physical locations together in realistic but fictional plots. This would make a great film!
February 27, 2016
Samuel Marquis spins a WWII tale that takes readers from the English Channel to Fort Carson, CO, to The Eagle's Nest as a young spymaster steals the secret to the Normandy invasion. I enjoyed this well-researched story almost as much as my favorite Marquis thriller, The Coalition. Hats off to Marquis and his growing body of work.
April 10, 2018
Cannot put it down !
I am 92 years old and have been around the World with the US Navy,spent my childhood in HELL’S KITCHEN, SPENT 40 YEARS as Laser Scientist at Bell Telephone Labs so I believe I have seen a hellavell lot but this wonderful book was a real treat not only in the Author’s command of English but his way of cementing your interest by way of scene changes.
I am 92 years old and have been around the World with the US Navy,spent my childhood in HELL’S KITCHEN, SPENT 40 YEARS as Laser Scientist at Bell Telephone Labs so I believe I have seen a hellavell lot but this wonderful book was a real treat not only in the Author’s command of English but his way of cementing your interest by way of scene changes.
March 25, 2016
I really enjoyed the book especially the historical connections with Colorado.I am not generally a war story reader but I found it captivating reading.
January 7, 2023
Very Disappointing
I've probably been spoiled by reading Alistair MacLean and other great authors. This book comes nowhere near that caliber of writing. I was immediately put off by the pervasive profanity. The numerous geological references were distracting at best. Geology interests me, but not in a World War 2 novel. I won't even go into how disappointing the story itself is. I have the next novel in the series in my Kindle library, but I will not be reading it. I read a comment from a review that said you'll hate yourself if you read it. I don't hate myself, but I do regret the time lost in doing so.
I've probably been spoiled by reading Alistair MacLean and other great authors. This book comes nowhere near that caliber of writing. I was immediately put off by the pervasive profanity. The numerous geological references were distracting at best. Geology interests me, but not in a World War 2 novel. I won't even go into how disappointing the story itself is. I have the next novel in the series in my Kindle library, but I will not be reading it. I read a comment from a review that said you'll hate yourself if you read it. I don't hate myself, but I do regret the time lost in doing so.
September 13, 2019
I've no warm feelings about book.
The author starts by telling us he is going to tell us exactly what happen during a period during WW II that was classifed for 70 years. He ends by telling us that the story is totally from his imagination. This made me very mad. The story was too outrageous to be true, the more so the further i read. This should not be considered true historical fiction. Hoover never pointed a gun at a German POW who exploded a gernade near him. Stupid. A true historical novel cannot stray outside the truth. I do not recommend this novel.
The author starts by telling us he is going to tell us exactly what happen during a period during WW II that was classifed for 70 years. He ends by telling us that the story is totally from his imagination. This made me very mad. The story was too outrageous to be true, the more so the further i read. This should not be considered true historical fiction. Hoover never pointed a gun at a German POW who exploded a gernade near him. Stupid. A true historical novel cannot stray outside the truth. I do not recommend this novel.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 25, 2022
Enigma
Started as an interesting war story and turned into a soap opera. I mean really some of the shooter ups were ridiculous to read and even worse to contemplate. Although I read it all, I was not happy with the last part of the story line. The character's activities were easy to follow, ergo, soap opera. There are no surprises , the format was so obvious, you knew where the book was going without it being written. For instance, where do you think Wolfgang was going when he was captured. The story line is riff with these situations. as c
Started as an interesting war story and turned into a soap opera. I mean really some of the shooter ups were ridiculous to read and even worse to contemplate. Although I read it all, I was not happy with the last part of the story line. The character's activities were easy to follow, ergo, soap opera. There are no surprises , the format was so obvious, you knew where the book was going without it being written. For instance, where do you think Wolfgang was going when he was captured. The story line is riff with these situations. as c
September 16, 2023
This was a fun book, but the plot got sillier as it went on. The author tends to put in too much unnecessary detail. Why on earth would you want to know in the middle of a fight that the gun barrel deflecting a knife is made of steel alloy.
Who would chose a call sign that gave away their cover identity?
Also, why chose to put in so many combat and fight scenes when you aren’t very good at writing them.
Final point, don’t write a final chapter set on a sailing boat if you think a sheet is a sail! Do your research to stick to something you know.
Who would chose a call sign that gave away their cover identity?
Also, why chose to put in so many combat and fight scenes when you aren’t very good at writing them.
Final point, don’t write a final chapter set on a sailing boat if you think a sheet is a sail! Do your research to stick to something you know.
April 18, 2018
Bodyguard of deception.
By Samuel Marquis
Well this is the second book in the last year that I had to quit reading because the authors plot was not believable or ridiculous. Spy picked up by Nazi sub just happens to be captained by his older brother captured and Sent to concentration camp in US Texas right next to a ranch that just happened to be owned by their estranged mother.
By Samuel Marquis
Well this is the second book in the last year that I had to quit reading because the authors plot was not believable or ridiculous. Spy picked up by Nazi sub just happens to be captained by his older brother captured and Sent to concentration camp in US Texas right next to a ranch that just happened to be owned by their estranged mother.
April 21, 2019
The Makings of a Good Story, but ...
There is just too much reliance on the prime/central family discussed in this book, and way, way too much incredulity for how much this one family is involved in all that is written. If the central characters in this book were disbursed around to OTHERs, it would still be action-packed BUT MORE BELIEVABLE. (Maybe).
There is just too much reliance on the prime/central family discussed in this book, and way, way too much incredulity for how much this one family is involved in all that is written. If the central characters in this book were disbursed around to OTHERs, it would still be action-packed BUT MORE BELIEVABLE. (Maybe).
February 1, 2020
I really enjoy books written about World War 2 and the European theater. This was a good read with fine characters, and an interesting story line. This is the first book that I have read by this author, and I will read more of his books.
My one complaint, is that the author tends to repeat himself a lot and it can be distracting.
My one complaint, is that the author tends to repeat himself a lot and it can be distracting.
July 2, 2018
Somewhat misleading
There was very little World War two action. It did have an intriguing story line, fair characterization, a little intensity, but fell apart with the feel good ending
There was very little World War two action. It did have an intriguing story line, fair characterization, a little intensity, but fell apart with the feel good ending
June 28, 2019
Improbable Plot
Because of the plot and character actions that stretched credulity, it was a little difficult to stay with the book and not put it back on the shelf. But the characters were interesting and the book was otherwise well written, so I saw it through to the end.
Because of the plot and character actions that stretched credulity, it was a little difficult to stay with the book and not put it back on the shelf. But the characters were interesting and the book was otherwise well written, so I saw it through to the end.
March 11, 2021
I had never heard of this author before and am very happy I discovered him. I have already started on his next book in this series. There are some technical details in a good part of the book, but mostly understandable and a very enjoyable story line.
April 25, 2021
The book was a page-turner. One character seemed to be bulletproof however and lent some incredulity to the scenario. But the plot was good and there were several instances of irony which maintained interest throughout.
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