Shoestring's End: a Novel of the SW Pacific Air War Dec 1942 - March 1943

No Merciful War #6

by Tom Burkhalter

By the end of 1942, the Japanese base at Rabaul on the island of New Britain is still the major strategic factor in two theaters, the South Pacific, which includes Guadalcanal at the southern end of the Solomons chain, and the Southwest Pacific, which includes New Guinea. Possession of Rabaul allows the Japanese to strike Allied forces in either theater. Jimmy Ardana returns to the 35th Fighter Group after recovering from malaria and assorted jungle fevers. The war of the 35th Fighter Group revolves around air support for the Allied troops fighting the Japanese Army at Gona and Buna. The 35th has one squadron equipped with P-38s, but the rest of the group soldiers on with increasingly worn P-39D Airacobras. Danny Evans is now command pilot of Bronco Buster II, the aging B-17E he inherited from Charlie Davis. The 19th Bomb Group has left the theater. Danny Evans and Bronco Buster II now fly for the 43rd Bomb Group. The only other heavy bombardment group in the 5th Air Force, the 90th, equipped with B-24s, suffers continual failures of equipment and training but are gradually improving. Neither group is up to full strength. Tommy “Chinkerbell” Bell makes a major mistake and finds his true home. New replacements arrive, still largely untrained beyond graduating flight school. Jimmy and Danny will have to deal with these pilots as best they can. Some will live. Some won’t. The Japanese have given up on reinforcing Buna and Gona by sea. Instead, they will reinforce their southernmost base at Lae on the Huon Gulf. While the action in the South Pacific theater centers around the Marines and the naval battles around Guadalcanal, in the Southwest Pacific it’s still the Royal Australian Army and Air Force and the American 5th Air Force taking the fight to the Japanese. Turn the page. The time is one minute after midnight, December 24, 1942.

354 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 17, 2020

Reviews

[Charles m smith jr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard work with little to work with.

Being a big fan of fighter pilot's and B 17 bombers I found it hard to put the book down.I have been a fan of ww2 from a early ago. My dad was in the airforce and we were station on Guam in the early 50 and again in the1960. So reading about the air war in the Pacific is something I like. The book just hit it for me.

[Mark Sileikis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect for a reading addict

Tom Burkhalter is a dealer, just like a crack dealer. I mean that in a complement. First off, "Hi, I'm Mark and I'm addicted to WW II historical fiction" There I got that out of the way. I came across Tom through my supplier, Kindle Unlimited. Like other times I thought, "I'll just take a look at the first book in this series and if it sucks nothing lost." That was 4 days ago. Now after 4 days of reading all 6 books in the series I'm in withdrawal, because he has not released book 7. THERE IS GOING TO BE A BOOK 7, RIGHT? Oh God, I just thought what if Tom doesn't write it? What if something terrible happened? OK Mark, just breathe slowly, in....out. Please tell me book 7 is coming! For anyone who doesn't get this, if you like authentic historical fiction in the line of W.E.B. Griffin then you need to read this series, you want to read this series. Don't plan on anything else for several days.

[Bill Seaby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve read all 6 of these books, one after another. The characters are well drawn and the story mix with real events and actual people who fought there is compelling. I found myself stopping throughout and checking Google Maps to place the locations in context. The cockpit descriptions, controls and described flight sequences are absolutely credible. The P-40, P-39, B-17, A-20 and P-38 are covered in the intricate detail they deserve as well as the tactics used to overcome deficiencies and shortcomings. Book 6 ends a month or so before the Yamamoto “surprise.” Hopefully that will finds its way into a 7th book.

[Geoff Morrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read of a little covered part of the Pacific War.
For historical accuracy there was no such thing as the Royal Australian Army - the Australian army forces in New Guinea were part of the 2nd Australian Imperial Force - which was referred to as 2nd AIF.
Also there was a very bloody battle for Milne Bay during this period where some US forces and 2 RAAF P40 squadrons plus a couple of battalions of the 2nd AIF defeated a Japanese invasion attempt to capture the airfields there.

[Keith Barrack · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this whole series. I read all 6 books in less then three weeks. I knew a lot about the war in the pacific prior to this series, but I didn’t know a lot about the beginning of the war except for Guadalcanal, Jimmy Doolittle, and Midway. I knew little about the loss of the Philippines, nothing about Java and New Guinea, and the conditions our military were forced to endure. Thanks for telling the stories that aren’t well known.

[Jwt Jan50 · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Indestructible' Bruning, 'MacArthur's Ultra' Drea, 'Air Combat at 20' Middlebrook and 'The Battle of the Bismarck Sea' McAulay would be IMHO a good place to start for those interested in the historical background to Burkhalter's outstanding work. I've done a little research on the Southwest Pacific campaign and those books are listed on my 5th-air-force shelf. Looking forward to the next edition Tom. Keep up the good work. thx, jt

[F.E. Howard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Burkhalter always delivers great flying sequences and his descriptions of air-to-air combat keep me nailed to my seat. I love the little details of the various aircraft, like how difficult is it to arm your guns in a P-38, or how twitchy the P-39 is to fly.

What hasn't improved as the series has progressed is character development. In fact, fairly frequently he misidentifies who is speaking or acting. I don't read these for deep character studies, but I would like more understanding of the men who fought in the PTO.

[Thomas D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moving From Defence to Offense in Southwest Pacific WWII

Continuation of Excellent Series. Describes the process of bringing inexperienced pilots & crew to skilled pros & adapting to improved aircraft & weapons, while stopping & reversing a strong enemy that outnumbered them. Lots of action & emotion getting to know the players, new & old.

[L. R. Hintonl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Follow On Story!

Enjoyable and believable story about part of the WWII that was not covered like the Naval Operations. My father flew with the Black Cat PBY’s. His only real comment about his time was hours of boredom and minutes of shear terror. He made it back, but lost 3 planes and one time for 45 days!

[Sandra Brezina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story line

This series and this book has excellent story lines, very interesting reading, interesting characters. Certainly worth 5 stars if not for the absolutely HORRIBLE fowl language....

[CATHY BARBER · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing

Another well written and exciting episode of fighting the Japanese around Fabulous. Great characters and realism like you are with the pilots in the cockpit. Waiting for the next one!if

[Ronald E. Morin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captivating

I started reading and couldn’t put it down. It’s so detailed and realistic I could feel the motions of the planes hear the sounds! It’s like reading the diary of someone who was there.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Action Galore

One of the better novels about the ass end of nowhere and some of the bravest, craziest warfighters ever known. Big fan of General Kenney and what he and his “boys” accomplished to help repel the sons of Nippon from invading Australia.

[Phillip Mclaughlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Read back to The Pacific War

Still using what finds its way through Australia, the characters continue fighting the Japanese, with some improvement and the reader can sense the events turning.
Waiting for the next book anxiously.

[Dianne P. Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good, but I just plain good!!!

One of those books that make you wish it would not end. Lots of great descriptions, varying actions, and many great characters. And, of course, we win in the end.

[Norman P. Blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exciting read

Action in the South Pacific..if you like flying, you will enjoy the book. It provides excitement, detailed descriptions of the aircraft, and the attributes of being a great flyer. Very enjoyable.

[Laurel A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good yarn

Good writing, pretty accurate historically. Description of flying and the "shoestring" nature of operations in New Guinea done well. Continues development of the series. Worth reading

[Charles Slingluff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Length

Book way to long. Characters not appealing or interesting. Did not end well. So I guess the story dragged. How many times can you fly up the coast and back again. I finished reading it.

[David E Nunberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great series!

I really enjoyed reading this series from start to end. Wish it was continued right now! Great action descriptions and human emotions mixed in. The Greatest Generation were an incredible lot. Proud to have had parents who were a part of it.

[Herbert W Kallusch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful series. Does this book complete the series? Is there another in this series?

I enjoyed this series immensely. Historical and technical detail was very well stated. I look forward to more books by this author.

[Gerald Montgomery · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written novel on little known part of WWII in the pacific

I have read all six of the novels covering the characters in this series. They are well developed and keep the reader’s interest. Technically the story is well done. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

[Cecil DeMonbrun · Rating 5 out of 5]

Continuing a great read

Mr Burkhalter knows his prose. I am enjoying this anthology and am looking forward to the US based training story(s) to follow. I feel like I'm reading from a movie script. Only wish more spaces when we change scenes.

[Jeffrey A Fong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good read

Well written, the right blend if action, history and character development. Has not (yet) outlived its story line, as is the fate of many other serials.

[Chaplain Stanley Chapin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A continuous saga

I have followed this series from the beginning , however as with most series the newness, excitement and plots seem to become blurred.

[Warren Osborne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

Bruh interesting, never heard much about skip bombing. The characters were real and fascinating. The turmoil and fatigue that the flyer and crews was unimm.aginal

[Kathleen Korth · Rating 5 out of 5]

You feel like you are there.

Great book, close to real as you get! I have read all Burkhalter books. I hope he continued to write more.
Peter Korth

[Don Fletcher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ififjfb ogoni jr7r

Of if
Jdjfifififig it9t oy9y9 v868 5 I'll 6 86 it it it ut i6 it it it it it j5 yotitit

[Tom sage · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read.

[Mac Bogert · Rating 5 out of 5]

The saga blossoms

Yet more well-delineated characters, nice mix of action and introspection and sense of time, place, and flying. The whole series is worth it and great fun.

[Lyle C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well told and articulate

Tom alway put the right balance of technical and humanity to reach through. You get a connection to the characters, good or bad.