The Wings of the Eagle

The Black Orchestra #2

by J.J. Toner, Gildart Jackson (Reading)

A WW2 spy story. 1943. Kurt Muller and a young colleague parachute into southern Germany to rescue a British-Canadian agent. The Allies have won the battle of the Atlantic, and German forces are retreating on all major fronts. The war in Europe is effectively over, but the Nazis will never accept defeat. An Abwehr deserter and member of the German resistance -- the Black Orchestra -- with a price on his head, Kurt quickly finds himself in a deadly race to prevent the Nazis from developing the first atomic bomb and changing the outcome of the Second World War.

Genres: Thriller, World War II, Historical Fiction, Historical

1 pages, Audio CD

First published January 7, 2014

About the author

After 27 years working with computers in a variety of industries: Oil exploration, pharma, hospitals, manufacturing, shipping etc., I retired early and began to write. I've been writing full time since 2007, and have completed hundreds of short stories and self-published 7 novels.

The Black Orchestra, a WW2 spy story set in Berlin.
The Wings of the Eagle (Black Orchestra #2)
A Postcard from Hamburg (Black Orchestra #3)
The Gingerbread Spy (Black Orchestra #4)

The Serpent's Egg (Red Orchestra WW2 spy thriller)

Irish detective thrillers:
Houdini's Handcuffs (Ben Jordan #1)
Find Emily (Ben Jordan #2)

My latest publications are 2 short novellas featuring Kriminalkommissar Saxon in pre-war Munich. Zugzwang and Queen Sacrifice and 2 short SF stories called Murder by Android and Rogue Android.

I live in Ireland.

Reviews

[Karen Perkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

A superb historical WW2 thriller

JJ Toner uses impeccable research to paint the picture of everyday life wartime Germany as the backdrop to a gripping and suspense-packed espionage thriller as Kurt Muller attempts to derail the Nazis’ plans for the first atomic weapon.

If you’re a fan of Len Deighton, Jack Higgins and/or Robert Harris, this is for you!

[Anil Swarup · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another J J Toner special in the backdrop of the 2nd World War. There is action, there is a chase and some suspense as well.

[Joe Stamber · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second in the Black Orchestra series follows on from the first and is more of the same. It’s quite a riot, a sort of WWII James Bond in a Boy’s Own story that skips along at a good clip and is easy to read; or listen to, in my case. As I was listening to it (on a smart speaker whilst cooking or washing up), as with the first one, I couldn’t work out whether or not J. J. Toner was writing with his tongue in his cheek. Then my wife wandered in and said it reminded her of the 1980s sitcom 'Allo 'Allo! And that sealed it. So, if you like your stories to be a Boy’s Own WWII James Bond with a bit of a 'Allo 'Allo! Theme, then you’ve found your next audiobook 7/10.

[Brett Van Gaasbeek · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is the second installment of the series and the characters are still very intriguing and the storyline is in line with the drama of WWII. The problem is the jump of the main character of being an unwitting and novice spy in the first book to being a James Bond style super agent in this installment. Too many far-fetched things happened to really allow for the realism necessary to settle in during this story. Still a quick read and interesting for anyone interested in WWII and spy novels.

[Bonnie Dale Keck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kindle Unlimited, main thing is have trouble getting in to thrillers, even ones so really think there should be a rating that indicates I personally did not dislike it but think others would, maybe this will suffice.Did read through all 3 listed.

The Black Orchestra (WW2 spy thriller)
The Wings of the Eagle (WW2 spy thriller): Black Orchestra book 2 (The Black Orchestra)
A Postcard from Hamburg (WW2 spy story) (The Black Orchestra Book 3)

[Sekhar N Banerjee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read

I did not know that the Nazis were that close to building the bomb - I knew that a team under Heisenberg was working on nuclear fission. The story was quite exciting

[Chaplain Stanley Chapin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another perspective of WW2

The story is part of a series that is told from a Nazi perspective and it concerns their development of the atomic bomb.

[P.R. Oliver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as good as the first book in this series but enjoyable nonetheless. There was one lapse in the plot I found laughable though.

[Neil Spark · Rating 3 out of 5]

British agent Kurt Muller’s task seems clear. Go to Germany with fellow agent Pilgrim and bring home British-Canadian agent, Erika. They find Erika who refuses to leave. She has discovered the Nazi’s atomic bomb program. The trio face enormous obstacles in their efforts to stop the first test.
Kurt’s enemies are not only without. Someone cut his parachute rope and there are other signs someone wants him dead.
The backdrop to the action, set in 1943, is the horror of the Nazi regime and the futility of war.
Second World War fiction and thriller aficionados will enjoy this. It’s the sequel to Black Orchestra. Eagle is a stand-alone work but Orchestra will give you the background. I enjoyed both. Orchestra has a stronger emphasis on relationships and characters’ motivation.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fast-paced story of war and espionage. Kurt is a German living in Ireland with his partner and her ten year old daughter. He is on the run from Germany's Abwehr as a traitor. He feels he needs to return to Germany and serve Britain's Intelligence Service.
Kurt goes to The Cage in London, where he is given basic parachute training, amongst other things. He has a degree in advanced mathematics, which helped him in his first mission in Germany. Kurt has several aliases and is parachuted into Germany along with Pilgrim to find Erika, a British spy who went missing not long after getting into Germany. Erika is rescued from prison, but refuses to go back to London until she's completed her mission. Erika has a degree in Physics and has been tasked to find out about the German plans to build an atom bomb.
Along the way, Kurt and Erika are shot at, captured, chased by the SS and Gestapo and are generally made to feel unwelcome. They eventually find what they're looking for and manage to get back to London.
Kurt reports to the man in charge that there's a mole in their organisation, who is found and Kurt thinks he can then go home on leave. But that's not meant to be as he's offered another assignment.
Well worth reading if you like fast moving wartime/spy story.

[Jose G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Spy Novel

This book was thrilling from start to finish. It was very different from The Black Orchestra, the only similarity being our hero Kurt Muller. I highly commend it for espionage fans.

[tim wendland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better!!

This was more engaging than book #1 in the series. Well paced action that kept the book lively. The "good guys" are just realistic enough...you end up with a sense of relief that the Allies aren't painted too darkly.

[Patricia Anne Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW!!!!!!! It's A Good One

Another good story to read this one is a page Turner, can't wait to see what happens next. JJ Toner did it again. Can't wait to read the next one.