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The Common Smith VC Adventures #1
The Baltic Run
From the carnage of war a new hero is born.1920. The slaughter of World War One is over, but already secret little wars are breaking out all over 'New Europe'.
Sub-Lieutenant de Vere Smith VC, at twenty the youngest Victoria Cross holder in the British Empire, is asked by the head of the Secret Service to help convoy arms to the Poles, under threat from Russia and Germany.
Jumping at the chance, Smith refits his old patrol boat, Swordfish and sets off for the Baltic. But enemy agents are everywhere, determined to stop Swordfish before its mission can even begin...
The first thrilling adventure in the Common Smith VC series, full of subterfuge and daring, from a master of the action novel.
Sub-Lieutenant de Vere Smith VC, at twenty the youngest Victoria Cross holder in the British Empire, is asked by the head of the Secret Service to help convoy arms to the Poles, under threat from Russia and Germany.
Jumping at the chance, Smith refits his old patrol boat, Swordfish and sets off for the Baltic. But enemy agents are everywhere, determined to stop Swordfish before its mission can even begin...
The first thrilling adventure in the Common Smith VC series, full of subterfuge and daring, from a master of the action novel.
242 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 1993
About the author
Charles Whiting
264 books54 followersCharles Whiting was a British writer and military historian and with some 350 books of fiction and non-fiction to his credit, under his own name and a variety of pseudonyms including Ian Harding, Duncan Harding, K.N. Kostov, John Kerrigan, Klaus Konrad, and Leo Kessler.
Born in the Bootham area of York, England, he was a pupil at the prestigious Nunthorpe Grammar School, leaving at the age of 16 to join the British Army by lying about his age. Keen to be in on the wartime action, Whiting was attached to the 52nd Reconnaissance Regiment and by the age of 18 saw duty as a sergeant in France, Holland, Belgium and Germany in the latter stages of World War II. While still a soldier, he observed conflicts between the highest-ranking British and American generals which he would write about extensively in later years.
After the war, he stayed on in Germany completing his A-levels via correspondence course and teaching English before being enrolled at Leeds University reading History and German Language. As an undergraduate he was afforded opportunities for study at several European universities and, after gaining his degree, would go on to become an assistant professor of history. Elsewhere, Whiting held a variety of jobs which included working as a translator for a German chemical factory and spells as a publicist, a correspondent for The Times and feature writer for such diverse magazines as International Review of Linguistics, Soldier and Playboy.
His first novel was written while still an undergraduate, was published in 1954 and by 1958 had been followed by three wartime thrillers. Between 1960 and 2007 Charles went on to write over 350 titles, including 70 non-fiction titles covering varied topics from the Nazi intelligence service to British Regiments during World War II.
One of his publishers, Easingwold-based Rupert Smith of GH Smith & Son said he was a quiet man and prolific writer.
"He's one of a band of forgotten authors because he sold millions of copies and still, up to his death was doing publishing deals.He was the kind of man who was very self-effacing, one of Britain's forgotten authors, still working at 80 years of age, with his nose down and kicking out books."
Charles Henry Whiting, author and military historian died on July 24 2007, leaving his wife and son.
Born in the Bootham area of York, England, he was a pupil at the prestigious Nunthorpe Grammar School, leaving at the age of 16 to join the British Army by lying about his age. Keen to be in on the wartime action, Whiting was attached to the 52nd Reconnaissance Regiment and by the age of 18 saw duty as a sergeant in France, Holland, Belgium and Germany in the latter stages of World War II. While still a soldier, he observed conflicts between the highest-ranking British and American generals which he would write about extensively in later years.
After the war, he stayed on in Germany completing his A-levels via correspondence course and teaching English before being enrolled at Leeds University reading History and German Language. As an undergraduate he was afforded opportunities for study at several European universities and, after gaining his degree, would go on to become an assistant professor of history. Elsewhere, Whiting held a variety of jobs which included working as a translator for a German chemical factory and spells as a publicist, a correspondent for The Times and feature writer for such diverse magazines as International Review of Linguistics, Soldier and Playboy.
His first novel was written while still an undergraduate, was published in 1954 and by 1958 had been followed by three wartime thrillers. Between 1960 and 2007 Charles went on to write over 350 titles, including 70 non-fiction titles covering varied topics from the Nazi intelligence service to British Regiments during World War II.
One of his publishers, Easingwold-based Rupert Smith of GH Smith & Son said he was a quiet man and prolific writer.
"He's one of a band of forgotten authors because he sold millions of copies and still, up to his death was doing publishing deals.He was the kind of man who was very self-effacing, one of Britain's forgotten authors, still working at 80 years of age, with his nose down and kicking out books."
Charles Henry Whiting, author and military historian died on July 24 2007, leaving his wife and son.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 23, 2022
1 star = I did not like it per GR's rating system.
To be honest, I feel bad about giving it one star even though that's what 1 star means. The problem is that the writing of this book is very amateurish. It feels like it was written as a high school project. The characters and their dialog are unrealistic. There is really no reason for the changing POV's. It just switches from one plot line to another without rhyme or reason. The author should follow one person or stay with one person longer so the reader gets vested and interested in the character. Because of the different characters and POVs in the book at 27% I still wasn't able to get a good feel for it so I just decided to dnf rather than to continue.
Edit: Having read the book description now, wow, amazing. It turns out this is not a novice writer but one who has written over 350 books. I got it completely wrong. But still, after 27% I did not feel any interest.
To be honest, I feel bad about giving it one star even though that's what 1 star means. The problem is that the writing of this book is very amateurish. It feels like it was written as a high school project. The characters and their dialog are unrealistic. There is really no reason for the changing POV's. It just switches from one plot line to another without rhyme or reason. The author should follow one person or stay with one person longer so the reader gets vested and interested in the character. Because of the different characters and POVs in the book at 27% I still wasn't able to get a good feel for it so I just decided to dnf rather than to continue.
Edit: Having read the book description now, wow, amazing. It turns out this is not a novice writer but one who has written over 350 books. I got it completely wrong. But still, after 27% I did not feel any interest.
July 14, 2024
I don't do book reviews
I don't do book reviews like you keep seeing, as I find that some give too much of the plot away and I personally hate that, as it makes the book not worth reading. I much prefer to take the authors back cover write up as a review as it can either intrigue you enough to read the book of provide you enough information to make you decide that the book is not for you.
My review rules are: The more stars, the more I liked it.
If there are too many typos or errors the less stars I give
If the storyline or plot is poor or contains too many errors, the characters are too weak, the ending lacking something, then the less stars I give.
Simple, uncomplicated and to the point without giving anything away.
Some of the books I read have been given to me by the author as a pre-release copy and this does not bias my reviews in any way.
I don't do book reviews like you keep seeing, as I find that some give too much of the plot away and I personally hate that, as it makes the book not worth reading. I much prefer to take the authors back cover write up as a review as it can either intrigue you enough to read the book of provide you enough information to make you decide that the book is not for you.
My review rules are: The more stars, the more I liked it.
If there are too many typos or errors the less stars I give
If the storyline or plot is poor or contains too many errors, the characters are too weak, the ending lacking something, then the less stars I give.
Simple, uncomplicated and to the point without giving anything away.
Some of the books I read have been given to me by the author as a pre-release copy and this does not bias my reviews in any way.
November 29, 2023
When English veterans are asked to unofficially return to war, they jump at the chance to see action once more. De Vere Smith relishes the opportunity to lead his men again and they enjoy using skills honed in the last war. The task of escorting a convoy of Polish fishing boats would be less exciting if each one weren’t laden with guns and ammunition stolen from the Germans. And they aren’t the only ones trying to stop the submarine and its wards from arriving safely to their destination.
Definitely action packed and full of empathy for those defending their homelands. I do not believe I will continue this series due to stomach churning descriptions of violence and even more detailed descriptions of intimate acts.
Definitely action packed and full of empathy for those defending their homelands. I do not believe I will continue this series due to stomach churning descriptions of violence and even more detailed descriptions of intimate acts.
February 20, 2023
Interesting insights into post-WWI European politics, and British support for Polish resistance to communism.Another good war story
A World War Two action of the British featuring a couple of Dartmouth graduates (officers) and motor torpedo boats. (Ships). With European politics, and British support for Polish resistance.
A World War Two action of the British featuring a couple of Dartmouth graduates (officers) and motor torpedo boats. (Ships). With European politics, and British support for Polish resistance.
August 25, 2022
.
.
Contains lots of delicate, “sipped,” and “sips,” and “sipping.”
Also, I don’t know of any “heavy .38” that has a “safety catch,” or that “a silencer” will “silence” on the barrel.
However….
….GOOOOOOOOOOoooood book.
.
.
.
Contains lots of delicate, “sipped,” and “sips,” and “sipping.”
Also, I don’t know of any “heavy .38” that has a “safety catch,” or that “a silencer” will “silence” on the barrel.
However….
….GOOOOOOOOOOoooood book.
.
.
Read
July 31, 2022Well written!
A very well written book. Made sense. A little bit of history. Not just a bunch of action. Very believable. Great characters. Am going to read the next one!
A very well written book. Made sense. A little bit of history. Not just a bunch of action. Very believable. Great characters. Am going to read the next one!
June 23, 2023
Interesting read
Loved the story. Lots of factual descriptions. I hope this author writes more of similar stories. I would like thst.
Loved the story. Lots of factual descriptions. I hope this author writes more of similar stories. I would like thst.
October 31, 2022
Interesting insights into post-WWI European politics, and British support for Polish resistance to communism.
May 23, 2021
I enjoyed the story, but the writing felt a bit rushed and I found jumping from one time/location to another a bit annoying. The plus side was, the main characters were interesting and it will be interesting to see them reappear in later novels.
November 10, 2024
I stopped reading but I will come back to this as my app didn’t have enough space.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews