Good to pass the time with
Lions of the Desert: A True Story of WWII Heroes in North Africa
by Samuel Marquis
Winner Foreword Reviews' Book of the Year
Winner Readers' Favorite Book Awards
Winner Beverly Hills Book Awards
Winner National Indie Excellence Book Awards
Award-Winning Finalist American Fiction Best Book Awards
LIONS OF THE DESERT is the true story of the WWII 1941-1942 Desert War in North Africa and Operation Condor, a story that has captivated the minds of authors, historians, and filmmakers for three-quarters of a century.
The story is told through the eyes of six legendary historical figures that lived through the epic events: Scottish Colonel David Stirling, leader of the Special Air Service, a brigade of eccentric desert commandos that raided Axis airfields and supply lines; German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, commander of the vaunted Africa Corps, who very nearly succeeded in driving the British out of Egypt; Egyptian Hekmat Fahmy, the famous belly dancer, regarded as a Mata-Hari-like German agent in previous accounts but in fact a far more intriguing and ambiguous character in real life; Major A.W. Sansom, head of the British Field Security unit that hunted down Axis spies and pro-German Egyptian nationalists operating in Cairo; Johannes Eppler, the notorious German spy of Operation Condor whose real story is finally told; and Colonel Bonner Fellers, the U.S. military attaché in Cairo, who was privy to Allied secrets in the North African theater and inadvertently played an important role in intelligence-gathering activities for both sides in the campaign.
Fans of Beneath A Scarlet Sky, The English Patient, and the WWII novels of Ken Follett (The Key to Rebecca, Jackdaws, Eye of the Needle) will enjoy this timeless tale of WWII espionage, romance, and derring-do in the North African desert--with the knowledge that this is how it all really happened.
Winner Readers' Favorite Book Awards
Winner Beverly Hills Book Awards
Winner National Indie Excellence Book Awards
Award-Winning Finalist American Fiction Best Book Awards
LIONS OF THE DESERT is the true story of the WWII 1941-1942 Desert War in North Africa and Operation Condor, a story that has captivated the minds of authors, historians, and filmmakers for three-quarters of a century.
The story is told through the eyes of six legendary historical figures that lived through the epic events: Scottish Colonel David Stirling, leader of the Special Air Service, a brigade of eccentric desert commandos that raided Axis airfields and supply lines; German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, commander of the vaunted Africa Corps, who very nearly succeeded in driving the British out of Egypt; Egyptian Hekmat Fahmy, the famous belly dancer, regarded as a Mata-Hari-like German agent in previous accounts but in fact a far more intriguing and ambiguous character in real life; Major A.W. Sansom, head of the British Field Security unit that hunted down Axis spies and pro-German Egyptian nationalists operating in Cairo; Johannes Eppler, the notorious German spy of Operation Condor whose real story is finally told; and Colonel Bonner Fellers, the U.S. military attaché in Cairo, who was privy to Allied secrets in the North African theater and inadvertently played an important role in intelligence-gathering activities for both sides in the campaign.
Fans of Beneath A Scarlet Sky, The English Patient, and the WWII novels of Ken Follett (The Key to Rebecca, Jackdaws, Eye of the Needle) will enjoy this timeless tale of WWII espionage, romance, and derring-do in the North African desert--with the knowledge that this is how it all really happened.
Reviews
Great Story
Accurate and Riveting
This thriller is also an excellent history of the WW2 North African conflict between British and German armies, well supported by recently declassified official documents. Its swashbuckling British hero operates daringly behind enemy lines while battling for supplies and equipment from backstabbing brass hats in Cairo. General Rommel, commander of the German Afrika Corps, appears as a humane and honorable man, as well as the brilliant tactician who confounded the Brits for two desperate years. British held Cairo is an exciting hotbed of intrigue, replete with German spies and locals of ambiguous loyalties. Heroes and traitors, they are all here, and best of all, I think, the author includes an appendix letting us know what happens to key figures after the war. Loved this book!
Gripping story
Great historical fiction that is hard to put down.
Great read about the battle for North Africa
I found this author's story both fascinating and easy to read, giving great insight into the people and actual events.
It is obvious this story has been rigorously researched and written.
A very good read!
Fantastic reading!
Previously I had read the paperback about The Desert Rats. I bought this one for Kindle on my smartphone. I started reading and almost could not stop. I recommend it to anyone with an interest in WWII.
suspene and detail
Great overview of strife in cario during ww2
Spy thriller but within the context of a theater of WW2 considered a sideshow.
Great read. Good historical context.
Great author
Always a pleasure to read....
