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Welcome to Calliope's Coffee House the proprietor of this establishment is Jacquie Reaville better known as The Book Imp.

When I started this place it was primarily for book reviews and thoughts on all things literary. Well the book reviews are still here, but somehow it's grown into a place for me and others to practice short fictional writing and of course a place where I can give my thoughts and opinions on virtually any subject that might take my fancy.

Hope you enjoy your visit.

Just to add that I welcome comments, the more the merrier. They don't even have to be related to books or writing just go wild (not too wild though).

Permissions are set so that even anonymous users can answer - but comment moderation is in effect which means I get to say yes or no to letting them appear here.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Book Review for Where Eagles Dare by Alistair MacLean

ISBN: 0 00 615804 8
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers
Website: www.harpercollins.co.uk
Copyright © Devoran Trustees Ltd 1967
343 Pages, Paperback

A group of allied soldiers are dropped by parachute into Germany in order to find a way inside Schloss Adler (the castle of the eagle), the combined headquarters of the German Secret Service and the Gestapo. They have to rescue Lieutenant General Carnaby, an American general who is the overall co-ordinator for Operation Overlord, the Second Front, before he talks.

Someone though is sabotaging their efforts; can a member of the six British and one American Special Forces team be a traitor? The commanding officer, Smith, has brought a woman with him too, a fact unknown to the other team members. Added to that are the problems of the elite Alpenkorps being stationed at the foot of the mountain and the Castle, built on the side of the mountain, being only accessible by cable car.

This book was an extremely enjoyable read, with the twists and turns and plot loops, focussing on one then another as the guilty party. With the finale as exciting and explosive as one could wish for.

Although I already knew the story from watching the movie countless times (staring Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood), it was definitely well worth reading the original, especially for the ironic wit of Schaffer and Smith’s exchanges.

All in all, a World War II thriller, action packed and full of suspense, which I have come to expect from MacLean’s writing. I wasn’t disappointed at all.

4 comments:

  1. Thank you Philip it always makes me feel good when someone comments, especially when it's such a nice comment at that. My blog is kind of like me, jumping around from one thing to another. Glad you like it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Glad to hear it, I'm doing so well with comments today, two compliments LOL

    ReplyDelete

I welcome comments so please feel free to leave a message, the site allows Anonymous users but comment moderation is in effect. Which means I get to vet what you've written before it appears on the page (Oh the power!).

About Me

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Birmingham, West Midlands, United Kingdom
My name is Jac, Jacquie, Jacquelynn, TheBookImp or just Imp. I live in the UK. I love to read as is probably obvious. I also like to write. Anything else you would like to know just ask.

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