Book Reviews

The Gestapo: The Myth and Reality of Hitler’s Secret Police by Frank McDonough

2017-07-30 An interesting study of the Gestapo from remaining source materials, which mainly covers routine police and investigative work. In that regard it’s highly recommended and thorough in its coverage, and it’s put me onto a few interesting titles and autobiographies for further research. However, the one big criticism is that it is unable to describe in any real detail the relationship between the Gestapo... Continue reading

My Past Life by Frieda Belakhova

2017-06-03 I picked this up because I wanted to find out more about life in Soviet Russia, and while there is some fine detail here, there wasn’t as much as I’d hoped. At times it could be a bit rambling, and could have been better structured to flow better. However, I appreciate it wasn’t written to be widely read. Probably it’s strongest point was giving... Continue reading

Bones of the Hills (Conqueror, #3) by Conn Iggulden

2017-02-27 The 3rd book in Conn Iggulden’s Conqueror series about Genghis Khan, and a fantastic novel. Partly because Genghis is more of a character in his own books again; partly because the tensions we’ve seen built up in the previous two books reach some conclusion; and partly because the Mongols spread east into the lands of Islam, which is an area I’ve long held an... Continue reading

The Crimson Campaign (Powder Mage, #2) by Brian McClellan

2017-01-29 3 1/2 stars. If ever there was an argument for the second book in a trilogy sagging, this is an example. Main characters, especially Taniel, seemed to lack direction and just drifted through the story. All too often characters seemed to reach plot points for no other reason than the author wanted them there – being knocked unconscious, so other characters could take them... Continue reading

The Autumn Republic (Powder Mage, #3) by Brian McClellan

2017-01-29 4 1/2 stars. If The Crimson Campaign stuttered a little, Brian McClellan gets back on form with The Autumn Republic, by grabbing everything he has and taking it forward at a furious pace. The story develops well and overall this is both a strong novel and good conclusion to the Powder Mage trilogy. It’s left namely to Tamas and Adamat to really push the... Continue reading

The King Beyond the Gate (The Drenai Saga, #2) by David Gemmell

2017-01-29 It’s hard to go wrong with Gemmell – his books make for smooth and easy reading. There are grim heroes with a hard – but reasonable – outlook on life, who despite their sometimes amoral arguments, usually find themselves fighting against a clear evil. The King Beyond the Gate is little different, and there’s yet-another-siege that the heroes must stand in. What makes it... Continue reading

The Goddess Project (Fire Stealers, #1) by Bryan Wigmore

2017-01-29 This is a really unique, intriguing, and well-written fantasy. For a start, the main story centres around a pair of young divers – Cass and Orc – who can’t remember who they are, or even if they were siblings or lovers. They believe that exploring sunken ziggurats will lead them to an artefact that will reveal all. Then there’s Tashi, something akin to a... Continue reading

Genghis: Lords of the Bow (Conqueror, #2) by Conn Iggulden

2017-01-29 At times I was disappointed with this book. After Iggulden spent so much time in the last one building up the character of young Genghis Kahn – and making him sympathetic – there was surprisingly little personal development here. We had a couple of scenes with him and his sons, but little more. I also struggled to understand why we followed Temuge for so... Continue reading

Wolf of the Plains (Conqueror, #1) by Conn Iggulden

2017-01-29 The greatest achievement of this book is that is makes the young Ghengis Khan a very sympathetic character. Drawing on historical notes, Iggulden does a great job not only of building the character up and making us care, but also fills it will those wonderful little background details that make a work of historical fiction stand out. Apparently, the author spent some time living... Continue reading