Tag archives for book review - Page 23
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Book Review – Spies Under Berlin by David Stafford
Spies Beneath Berlin by David Stafford My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is a very well put together story of the Berlin spy tunnel, and some of the context that lead up to it being dug. It looks at the contemporary views and also re-evaluates the impact of the tunnel and whether or not it could be considered a success. The tale is an interesting one, because the existence of the tunnel was betrayed to the Soviets before it was even dug. Blake took the minutes of meeting that decided to build it, and told his Soviet handler about it. Despite this the KGB didn't share the information as they wanted to protect Blake as a source, so they couldn't stop the tunnel until there was a reasonable excuse from another source. For two years the British and Americans…
A215 – Life Writing – Initiative at Night
Here's the second of the pieces I wrote for the A215 Creative Writing online tutorial on life writing. Saturday 13th December 1991 It’s 3am on a Saturday before Christmas 1991, I’ve only been awake for 21 hours. After a day of lectures I went with the UOTC to Redford Barracks in Edinburgh for a training camp. Since 1830 I have been on the Pentland Hills doing orienteering and solving problems with a team of third year cadets. We’ve not been good at following the approved DS solutions. To change the tire on a land rover without a jack we ignored the planks and mik crates and instead rolled the vehicle onto its side before righting it after we’d changed the tire. Our time was the fastest, but the officer wasn’t pleased. To take a casualty across a minefield (laid with…
Book Review – Command Decision by Elizabeth Moon
Command Decision by Elizabeth Moon My rating: 4 of 5 stars I read this very quickly. It was a great continuation of the series and managed to have a few twists in it as well as some usual predictable pieces too, which is good because it made it satisfying as a story. I like that there is a wide range of aspects to the series. More than just a series of space battles and shipboard routine. There are legal elements, corporate governance, organised crime and government. On top of all of that there is a good layer of human interaction and emotion from some flawed characters that you can empathise with. So this is a very good space opera that is fun and enjoyable to read. Not up there with Banks, but still well worth a go. View all my…
Book Review – First There Wasn’t, Then There Was by Troy Blackford
First There Wasn't, Then There Was by Troy Blackford My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is a very strange tale, and definitely the sort of thing you'd expect to hear from someone who'd lost everything and was living on the streets. The premise is that four young guys, all smokers, see an old man shambling around every day when they are out on their smoke breaks. The old man is always talking, never stops or addresses anyone directly and refuses money or any other attempts to engage. He never stands still long enough for them to hear what he says. One day one of the young smokers has an idea, they pop a digital dictaphone in his pocket and record what he says for a few hours. When they listen back they find an unexpectedly coherent story, told consciously…
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Book Review – Moving Target by Elizabeth Moon
Moving Target by Elizabeth Moon My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is the second in the series, and I think it is better than the first. The universe has been expanded, amid the destruction of the Vatta family there is a whole load more political stuff going on that is revealed. Or more accurately it is strongly hinted at and clues dispensed, there isn't a big reveal, other than that there is a wider and more twisty world than the one that Ky Vatta had been living in before. View all my reviews