The Eagle Has Flown

Liam Devlin #4

by Jack Higgins

By the end of 1943, all evidence of the abortive German attempt to assassinate Winston Churchill has been carefully buried in an unmarked grave in the Norfolk village of Studley Constable. German intelligence knows that paratroop officer Steiner survived "Operation Eagle", and is now a POW somewhere in London. Reichsfuhrer Himmler wants him back – at any cost – and puts his top espionage agents in charge of the perilous rescue mission.

Racing from the nightclubs of Lisbon to Hitler's opulent country retreat to the damp streets of London, Himmler's men get closer to their target – and to the shattering true objective of their mission. . .

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Historical Fiction, Espionage, War, Adventure, Action

335 pages, Hardcover

First published March 7, 1991

About the author

There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Jack Higgins was best known of the many pseudonyms of Henry Patterson. (See also Martin Fallon, Harry Patterson, Hugh Marlowe and James Graham.)

He was the New York Times bestselling author of more than seventy thrillers, including The Eagle Has Landed and The Wolf at the Door. His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide.

Born in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, Patterson grew up in Belfast, Northern Ireland. As a child, Patterson was a voracious reader and later credited his passion for reading with fueling his creative drive to be an author. His upbringing in Belfast also exposed him to the political and religious violence that characterized the city at the time. At seven years old, Patterson was caught in gunfire while riding a tram, and later was in a Belfast movie theater when it was bombed. Though he escaped from both attacks unharmed, the turmoil in Northern Ireland would later become a significant influence in his books, many of which prominently feature the Irish Republican Army. After attending grammar school and college in Leeds, England, Patterson joined the British Army and served two years in the Household Cavalry, from 1947 to 1949, stationed along the East German border. He was considered an expert sharpshooter.

Following his military service, Patterson earned a degree in sociology from the London School of Economics, which led to teaching jobs at two English colleges. In 1959, while teaching at James Graham College, Patterson began writing novels, including some under the alias James Graham. As his popularity grew, Patterson left teaching to write full time. With the 1975 publication of the international blockbuster The Eagle Has Landed, which was later made into a movie of the same name starring Michael Caine, Patterson became a regular fixture on bestseller lists. His books draw heavily from history and include prominent figures—such as John Dillinger—and often center around significant events from such conflicts as World War II, the Korean War, and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Patterson lived in Jersey, in the Channel Islands.

Reviews

[TXGAL1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

4⭐️s

A World War II espionage adventure featuring Liam Devlin, IRA contractor, in service of the German army. His assignment, rescue a valuable German prisoner from his English captors..a real mission impossible!

[Maede · Rating 2 out of 5]

اگر به اسپویلر بیش از حد حساسید، نخونید، هرچند که به نظرم چیزی برای اسپویل وجود نداشت

ادامه ای برای کتاب فرود عقاب

و من ای کاش بفهمم که چرا نویسنده ها اصرار به نوشتن دنباله ی کتاب هایی دارند که باید تمام می شد
در اینجا با ادامه داستان کتاب موفق قبلی و با شخصیت های مهم آن سر و کار داریم. جک هیگینز متوجه شده که داستان در جایی که می دونسته تمام نشده و اشتاینر جان سالم به در برده. دولین دوباره توسط آلمان ها استخدام میشه تا اشتاینر رو از لندن فراری بده. عملیاتی باز هم در ظاهر غیر ممکن

تشابه روال داستان با قبلی آنقدر زیاد بود که کاملا خستم کرد. زرنگ بازی ها و شانس های عجیب دولین، ارتباط با دختری ساده لوح و مظلوم در حین عملیات، برادر های قاچاقچی که "عیناً" تکرار شده بودند و خلبان کارکشته بی طرف و این لیست ادامه داره. تا پنجاه صفحه آخر آنقدر توضیح اضافه بود که فکر می کردم پس این عملیات کی شروع میشه که راحت شیم

و باز هم تقریباً تمام ارتشی های آلمانی این کتاب هم مخالف هیتلر و جنگ و اس اس هستند. برای اینکه سخته به شخصیت های هیتلر دوست علاقه پیدا کرد. پس چه کسی پشت این جنگ بوده؟

تنها چیزی که از این کتاب دوست داشتم شخصیت اشتاینر و اطلاعاتی بود که از فضای کشور ها در مدت جنگ جهانی دوم به دست می آمد

داستان قابل پیش بینی و فراموش شدنی

95.9.11

[Elaine Cougler · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Eagle Has Flown by Jack Higgins. A sequel to The Eagle Has Landed, this novel exudes the same suspense, historical significance and memorable characters. The characters are well drawn--whichever side--showing the crazy unfathomable sadness of war and idiots in high places.

[Addy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fitting sequel to the legendary eagle has landed. Liam Devlin rocks as always and so do most of the other characters. Brilliant story telling. Top stuff.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

The fourth Liam Devlin novel and yet the second one when you look at the timeline of Devlins life. He has escaped the hospital in Holland after the return from the failed mission in The Eagle has landed and has moved to Portugal.
The German intelligence have discovered that Not only Devlin and one Paratrooper has survived, Colonel Steiner is still alive and "enjoys" the hospitality of the British. Himmler wants Steiner back and once more charges one German General to undertake a mission in England. And gets who plays the major part, of course Liam Devlin.
Devlin returns to London to rescue Steiner and this time the rest of the war depends on this timely rescue by Devlin and his skills.

In some ways a copy of the the original classic war novel and in other ways a bloody good yarn. Steiner & Devlin remain an interesting pair of antiheroes if there were ever any.

A very satisfactory sequel to an great first novel that ties up most lose ends and finds itself some satisfactory surprises in the story.

[Ginny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy novels about WWII and this is a good one. Jack Higgins' writing is quick and carries you along with the story.

[Oli Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

The forty-ninth #jackhiggins #martinfallon #hughmarlowe #harrypatterson #henrypatterson #jamesgraham novel #theeaglehasflown published in 1991. A sequel to #theeaglehaslanded. Higgins returns to 1943 World War Two. #liamdevlin and Brigadier Munro are back. Higgins uses the bookend chapters again to suggest that the events depicted are real. Difficult to compete with the original - but this is a solid thriller, entertaining and exciting and well polished. A fun little epilogue to the original. Devlin is a great character (a charming rogue) and takes the prominent role. The Higgins tropes that have been used before, but now in different circumstances: rainy London, a skilled pilot, a violent man able to disguise himself and despite being a killer he is still a gentleman when it comes to the ladies, protecting women folk from nasty thugs, the gangster brothers (one gay, the other a sex mad lunatic), priests, confessionals plus a plot to kill Hitler
All great stuff.

[Josh Soule · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Eagle has Landed was one of the best books I have ever read. It was difficult to start this book with such high expectations, but I was certainly not disappointed.
It read very smoothly and was intriguing from start to finish. I deducted a star because I didn't build a genuine attachment to the characters, and found some behaviors (particularly those of Liam Devlin) to be a bit cliche and redundant. For instance, meeting a girl at a bar who is harassed by a slimy individual until Liam beats him up and wins her heart is the same situation he found himself in during the Eagle has Landed.

Overall, it was good, and an enjoyable read.

[L.M. Mountford · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story but the but it just didn't feel like a worthy follow up to The Eagle Has Landed. The book itself is very enjoyable but there are just so many similarities to EHL that it felt almost like a cop out. Of course, the Himmler subplot was a nice shock.
The characters, however, do not feel like those we met on scudlyconstable.

All in all a fair read, enjoyable but something that felt like a poor sequel. In my humble opinion, I would have enjoyed it more if the characters had been new.

[Ehsan'Shokraie' · Rating 4 out of 5]

جک هیگینز به خوبی ماجرایی پر کشش در دل جنگ جهانی دوم ساخته،ماجرایی که برگرفته از عملیاتی شکست خورده از سمت آلمان نازی ست با چاشنی تخیل همراه شده و اثری جالب را شکل داده که خواندنش خالی از لطف نیست.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fantastic sequel to his bestseller The Eagle Has Landed. Thoroughly enjoyed this book.

[John Ellis · Rating 4 out of 5]

The eagle has landed, was very believable. Still not sure if it was true. But this one was a bit far-fetched, still enjoyed reading.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobook. Entertaining diversion whilst cycling / painting. Romped along at a decent pace as a plot to kill Hitler is foiled by Germans and their allies who think the war will finish more quickly with him than without him. A revisit of Devilin, the Irishman, who has a wayward charm and lives on the edge. Plucky Brit intelligence officers pitting themselves against the forces of evil. Bonkers plot, unbelievable characters but easy to follow and very engaging.

[Nancyann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a reread for me from originally having read The Eagle Has Flown decades ago. In my humble opinion the novel has stood the test of time. A sequel to The Eagle Has Landed, this book answers the question "What happened next?" after the failed attempt to kidnap Winston Churchill by Nazi's during WWII. Many of the same characters are featured, the writing is crisp, dialogue witty, and the pace frantic as both British and German attempt to free a Nazi prisoner of war in London. Entertaining anytime but especially so during a covid-19 quarantine.

[Karunakaran N. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Eagle Has Flown by Jack Higgins... A continuation of the eagle that had landed and flawed in its action... Steiner rescued from London by Delvin... Again a faster second read after so many years...

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

June 2018 So I am figuring this character thing with Higgins out: Liam Devlin is the WW II prototype of the Irish super-hero/villain/savior (depending on any given moment in time) and Sean Dillion is his Viet Nam era doppleganger. Good story. Weird to almost root for A.H..

[Siv Gaby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saying goodbye to Liam Devlin will be hard. He is quite an amazing guy, so complex and realistically created by Jack Higgins that you somehow want to meet him in real life (but only as a friend). I highly recommend reading this book after The Eagle Has Landed.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book and I was not expecting too. The last JH book I ready I thought was just ok, but it seems like I really enjoy his WWII stories more than his generic spy stuff. I'll definitely look for another JH set in that time period. The twists at the end really made it fun.

[GhostofMyrtle]

The Eagle Has Flown is a long belated sequel to Jack Higgins' classic novel The Eagle Has Landed where a daring plan by the Nazi's is laid out to send a group of soldiers into England to kidnap Winston Churchill. It is also the fourth novel to feature Liam Devlin as a main character (he makes cameo appearances in two other novels).

In this one Devlin is hired by Himmler to rescue Kurt Steiner from a place he is being held prisoner after surviving the wounds he received in The Eagle Has Landed.

Despite being written so long after the original this is a fast and entertaining read with a lot of twists and plenty of action. If not quite as good as the first novel, it is still very good.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I seem to have managed to read the latest in this series without actually reading any of the earlier ones (oops!) but I don't think I've missed anything (maybe just spoilt some of the suspense of the earlier books). This is a good, fast paced read centred around the Nazi high command in the latter war years following a failed attempt to assassinate Churchill. It mixes real life and fictional characters and even pulls in the author himself creating a plausible and intriguing story packed with conspiracy, spies, double-agents and the like. While I wouldn't say there was anything amazingly stand out (not for me anyway) it was a really good read.

[Jeff Dickison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the sequel to The Eagle Has Landed. It is good, but not as good as Landed because, basically, it's the same story with places and names changed. It is also 80 pages shorter. Recommended to Higgins fans.

[Leonie · Rating 4 out of 5]

over Xmas I watched The Eagle Has Landed and then found this in a charity shop - serendipity! I zipped though this old school WW2 thriller and had a great time, even if Schellenberg did seem a bit more heroic than current history might imply 😁

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was exactly like "The Eagle Has Landed". I mean there were some differences, a name change here or there. But Steiner who was very clearly dead in the last book is not only still alive, but heals pretty quickly.

We bring in a new German officer since Max from the last book can't come back. But he acts the same as Max and Liam trusts him as quickly as he does Max. The pilot from the last book also nearly died, so now we bring in a new pilot. Give him an interesting back story and then NEVER CAPITALIZE ON IT.

Higgins is all about set up. 3/4 of the book is about getting ready for the mission and the last is the mission quick. It was just too much like the first book for me to really enjoy it.

[Edmond Gagnon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I couldn't give this book any more than 2 stars since I was bored and stopped reading after 100 pages - if a story can't get my interest in that time then it's not worth finishing.
For a war story, I expected a lot more - not just a lot of backroom dialog that barely moved things along.
If you think this book is as good as The Eagle Has Landed, you're in for a big disappointment.
My loss if it got any better in later chapters and pages.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5*

Historical fiction with a lot of truth. Really interesting

[Tiina Susanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ihan kelpo sotaseikkailu

[Philip Dolson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book!

[Louis Barbier · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading "The Eagle Has Landed" and also seeing the film; I always wondered what had happened to Colonel Kurt Steiner. The last paragraph so skillfully written by one of my favorite writers, Jack Higgins leaves a mystery. Why? Well Colonel Kurt Steiner accomplishes his mission in somewhat a different fashion and as life ebbs from his body the reader reads, whatever else may be said, he was a fine soldier and a brave man. The suggestion by the author is that we all should let it end there. But I for one could not. So the years pass as they often do and lo and behold I came across the book "The Eagle Has Flown." This is a must read! If you accept the challenge you will find out what happened. It is another thriller with fast pace action where the main characters from "The Eagle has Landed" are featured again with some other nasty characters that seemed to have crawled out from under a rock. I loved it. I read it without putting it down from start to finish! Now I wonder if this is the end. I gave it five stars because it is a rare book full of adventure that keeps you at the edge of your seat. I loved it.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sequel to "The Eagle Has Landed". Spoiler alert: don't read this review if you haven't read "The Eagle Has Landed". Col. Kurt Steiner was wounded but survived and is imprisoned in the Tower of London. Liam Devlin also survived and escaped. Heinrich Himmler and the SS again hire Devlin to hatch an escape plot to free Col. Steiner. British intelligence are trying to use Col. Steiner as bait to catch Devlin and his co-conspirators in England.

Meanwhile, Himmler and his rival, Admiral Canaris (the head of the Abwehr, German military intelligence), are joining Hitler at a conference in Normandy. What does this have to do with the plot to free Col. Steiner? They're connected but you'll have to read the book to find out how & why.

This book is a quick read. I didn't like it as much as "The Eagle Has Landed" but it's still enjoyable. Liam Devlin is an engaging character, despite being a skilled assassin & enforcer for the I.R.A.

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Eagle Has Flown is the last in the Liam Devlin series and is continuation of the first book The Eagle Had Landed. It is apparent that paratroop officer Steiner survived "Operation Eagle", and is now a POW somewhere in London. Himmler wants him back. He orders his top espionage agents in charge of the perilous rescue mission. IRA assassin Liam Devlin, who is hiding out in the bars of Lisbon, playing piano, is persuaded to return to Britain in an attempt to effect the escape of German soldier Kurt Steiner from the Tower of London and return with him to Berlin. One more time Jack Higgins provides us with a fantastic tale of action and death, with sufficient twists and turns to keep the reader turning the page until the very end. A thoroughly riveting read..........