Discover the Best Sellers Audiobooks in History, 20th Century

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Title: Voices of the Pacific

Subtitle: Untold Stories from the Marine Heroes of World War II

Author: Adam Makos

Narrator: Tom Weiner

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-02-13

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 139 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

Chronicling the United States Marine Corps actions in the Pacific theater of operations, Voices of the Pacific presents the true stories of heroism and honor as told by such World War II veterans as Sid Phillips, R. V. Burgin, and Chuck Tatum - whose exploits were featured in the HBO miniseries The Pacific - and their marine buddies from the legendary First Marine Division.

Following 15 marines from the Pearl Harbor attack and intense boot camp training through battles with the Japanese on Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Peleliu, and Okinawa to their return home after V-J Day, Adam Makos and Marcus Brotherton have compiled an oral history of the Pacific War in the words of the men who fought on the front lines. With unflinching honesty, these marines reveal harrowing accounts of combat with an implacable enemy, the friendships and camaraderie they found - and lost - and the aftermath of the wars impact on their lives.

With unprecedented access to the veterans and unpublished memoirs, Makos and Brotherton have forged Voices of the Pacific into an incredible historic record of American bravery and sacrifice.

Critic Reviews:

These are the true - and terrifying - stories of combat marines struggling against a fanatical enemy on the far-flung islands of the Pacific. A powerful new book. (Dale Dye, military advisor for

Band of Brothersand

The Pacific)

A fantastic, deeply moving collection of stories told by the men who were actually there. (Alex Kershaw,

New YorkTimesbest-selling author)

Imagine a last conversation with your father or grandfather who fought in World War II, only this time he tells you the stories he always held back. Thats

Voices of the Pacific. (Larry Alexander,

New YorkTimesbest-selling author)

Members Reviews:

A good story line

It showed the exact thing Mari Es went through and what the pacific environment was like

Narrator of a Thousand Voices!

Top notch audio book! I was engrossed in the soldiers' stories, and amazed by all the great voices of the narrator! Great book! I loved it, and highly recommend it!!!!

A fantastic book

A fantastic book. Every American needs to read or listen to this book.

There is not enough taught about the war with theJapanese. This history must be preserved and passed on to new generations. This book does an excellent job of telling the stories of these Marine veterans.

Touching, poignant, stirring vignettes & memories.

I read a lot of WWII memoirs, but this set of dovetailed stories, in the words of those who lived them, brings perspective and detail to what I knew. At the same time, each vignette, each small memory, is a witness to the shared bigger story. It is wrenching and thrilling, grevious and glorious, as only the stories of individual but interrelated acts of courage, trauma, fear, heroism, loss, and victory can be.

Wonderful

Fascinating. Hits one very hard...One of those books that puts your life into perspective.

Reading was quite good, with a different voice actor for each person.

Will be listening to it again.

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Title: Finland's War of Choice

Subtitle: The Troubled German-Finnish Coalition in World War II

Author: Henrik Lunde

Narrator: Tom Parks

Format: Unabridged

Length: 14 hrs and 48 mins

Language: English

Release date: 03-29-13

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 47 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

This book describes the odd coalition between Germany and Finland in World War II, and their joint military operations from 1941 to 1945. This is a topic often missing in English, though in stark contrast to the numerous books on the shorter and less bloody Winter War. That conflict represented a gallant fight of a democratic David against a totalitarian Goliath that caught the imagination of the world. The story of Finland fighting alongside a Goliath of its own has not brought pride to that nation and was a period many Finns would rather forget.

The prologue of this book brings the listener up to speed by briefly examining the difficult history of Finland, from its separation from the Soviet Union in 1917 to its isolation after being bludgeoned in 1939-40. It then examines both Finnish and German motives for forming a coalition against the USSR, and how - as logical as a common enemy would seem - the lack of true planning and preparation would doom the alliance. This book posits that it was mind-boggling how the highly professional German General Staff allowed itself to accept the militarily unsound and shaky coalition that resulted. The war aims were not discussed or harmonized, there were no campaign plans with tasks and missions spelled out past the initial assault, no effective main effort established, inadequate force levels, and an unsound command structure with various headquarters. Practically every rule in the book was broken. The objective of linking up with the Finns in the Leningrad area was an important factor in Hitler opting for three main drives into the Soviet Union rather than an earlier OKH plan that called for only two.

After describing the operations during and after Barbarossa, this book describes how the Finnish theater became a blind ally for the Germans. Their strongest and best army was trapped both operationally and geographically in central and northern Finland, making virtually no contribution to the war effort. The Germans could not bring to bear enough forces to accomplish their objectives without substantial Finnish assistance, and that was not forthcoming.

The final chapters deal with the Soviet counteroffensive against the Finns in 1944. The Finns lost all their gains and quickly concluded a separate armistice. This left the German forces in Finland to simply vacate the territory, fighting between the Finns and Soviets alike as they tried to return to the main war. Jointly suffering 291,000 casualties, the only consolation was that the coalition had inflicted some 830,000 on the Soviets.

In this book, Henrik Lunde, a former US Special Operations colonel, and the renowned author of Hitlers Pre-emptive War: The Battle for Norway, 1940, once again fills a profound gap in our understanding of World War II.

Members Reviews:

Stay away from this incompetent junk

If you are looking for a good account of the Continuation War and Finnish-German alliance in WWII, please look elsewhere! This is a work of bad and polemical popular history. The author is utterly incompetent as he does not read neither Finnish nor Russian. He focuses on the military operations and avoids everything related to politics. How he can make judgements about Finnish perceptions, choices and alternatives, is beyond me. Audible should not release junk like this.

I gave up

I gave up, I wish the narrator had too.

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Title: The Moro War

Subtitle: How America Battled a Muslim Insurgency in the Philippine Jungle, 1902-1913

Author: James R. Arnold

Narrator: Mark Ashby

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins

Language: English

Release date: 03-01-13

Publisher: Audible Studios for Bloomsbury

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 40 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

As the global war on terror enters its second decade, the United States military is engaged with militant Islamic insurgents on multiple fronts. But the post-9/11 war against terrorists is not the first time the United States has battled such ferocious foes. The forgotten Moro War, lasting from 1902 to 1913 in the islands of the southern Philippines, was the first confrontation between American soldiers and their allies and a determined Muslim insurgency.

The Moro War prefigured American wars in Iraq and Afghanistan more than superficially: It was a bitter, drawn-out conflict in which American policy and aims were fiercely contested between advocates of punitive military measures and proponents of conciliation.

As in today's Middle East, American soldiers battled guerrillas in a foreign environment where the enemy knew the terrain and enjoyed local support. The deadliest challenge was distinguishing civilians from suicidal attackers. Moroland became a crucible of leadership for the U.S. Army, bringing the force that had fought the Civil War and the Plains Indian Wars into the twentieth century. The officer corps of the Moro campaign matured into the American generals of World War I. Chief among them was the future general John Pershing-who learned lessons in the island jungles that would guide his leadership in France.

Rich with relevance to today's news from the Middle East, and a gripping piece of storytelling, The Moro War is a must-read to understand a formative conflict too long overlooked and to anticipate the future of U.S. involvement overseas.

Members Reviews:

EXCELLENT!

I'm biased, b/c i'm a history buff who also happens to have been raised as an American in the Philippines, born 1959 in Manila, father born in 20's in Iloilo. but this is a great story, great storyteller and great narrator (who handled filipino place names and names better than most other palefaces I've heard try). GREAT BOOK!

a little dry but good info

I would say I'm part of the anti imperialist.

the background is after the spanish american war, in the treaty of paris, spain gave america control of the philippines (apparently you can do that) so most of the philippines had already surrendered to spanish rule with the exception of some southern islands of the philippines and the inhabitants were mostly muslim.

now the muslim filipinos thiught why if spain ever had control of us would we let america, and america couldn't understand why someone wouldn't want a foreign nation to control them.

so the book goes over the major events of the war and the key players.

was it important that the insurgents as they call them, someone who rebels against the govt were muslim? not really, maybe to sell books but the muslims in the philippines may have had more resolve then the non muslims when 1st the spanish came and then america.

I couldn't help but make the parallel with the propaganda of today with the propaganda of this war.

the conclusion was better then most with lessons learned and greater impact of the war.

American history you never learned about in school

Very interesting story about amazing people and a forgotten war.

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Title: The Queen and Di

Subtitle: The Untold Story

Author: Ingrid Seward

Narrator: Emily Gray

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-28-13

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 57 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

In this work, best-selling author Ingrid Seward, the longtime editor of Majesty magazine and perhaps the most authoritative writer on the royal family, takes the listener behind the palace gates of Buckingham, Balmoral, and Sandrigham, and shows us how the royals really live and operate among themselves.

Elizabeth herself as a young bride had to learn how to deal with all sorts of personal problems, including a sometimes difficult and wayward husband, so she was especially sympathetic to Diana's many idiosyncrasies and difficulties. From an insider's perspective, the author charts Di's ups and downs: her difficult childhood, bulimia, depression, and sometimes even paranoia, offset by her innate charm, compassion, and common touch. Diana just wanted to be loved . . . but love isn't part of the royal vocabulary. A few weeks before her death, Princess Diana called and invited Ingrid Seward to come to her house.

Drawing on her long association with Diana and what turned out to be Diana's last conversation with a member of the press, Seward provides astonishing insight into the Camilla Parker Bowles affair, as well as the views and opinions of one of the most adored and vilified women of the 20th century.

Editorial Reviews:

The Queen and Di: The Untold Story begins with an intimate interview between Ingrid Seward and Princess Diana, herself. Using firsthand sources such as this, Seward has managed to provide new perspective on a relationship that has been the obsession of paparazzi and gossip columnists for decades: the conflicted bond between Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth. Emily Gray's prim performance perfectly conveys the style and elegance so often associated with stories of the Princess. The Queen and Di is a delightful listen for anyone interested in the stories and gossip of Royal Society.

Members Reviews:

The Queen and Di

I found this book to be an engaging narration of the relationship between two remarkable women. In most books on the marriage of Prince Charles and Diana the author has a bias so obvious that you know immediately who's "side" they are on. I think the whole story is tragic and so sad I think it is a case study in how not to. behave in an unfortunate marriage and divorce. Although the princess had endured the trauma of growing up in an unstable family and carried it all her life ironically she seemed to put her own sons through that same trauma. Worst than that she put especially William in the role of confidant and counselor on his young shoulders, children do not need nor should they be placed in such situations.

Charles is also not placed on a pedestal by the author. It seems as if being Prince of Wales is not an enviable position. Edward VII as Prince of Wales was a play boy who seemed to have very loose morals and got involved in scandals all the time. Edward VIII as Prince of Wales was even worse. It is definitely worth your time to listen to this book

Quite one sided.

It is not surprising that the Queens legacy will always outshine Diana's. However, I doubt even the palace would want the former Princess' name to be smeared to this level. She was not perfect. But this book offers Diana no allowances, if for nothing else, than for her naivete and youthful antics when first entering the palace gates.

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Title: The King Years

Subtitle: Historic Moments in the Civil Rights Movement

Author: Taylor Branch

Narrator: Leslie Odom, Jr.

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 33 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-01-13

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 25 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

The essential moments of the civil rights movement are introduced and set in historical context by the author of the magisterial America in the King Years trilogy: Parting the Waters, Pillar of Fire, and At Canaan's Edge.

Taylor Branch's three-volume history endures as a masterpiece of storytelling on American race, violence, and democracy. With this brief volume, which brings to life the pivotal scenes, he relates the dramatic story of how the movement evolved from a bus strike to a political revolution, and brings this historic achievement to a wider audience.

Members Reviews:

Excellent

What other book might you compare The King Years to and why?

This is the author's best hits from his trilogy.

What does Leslie Odom, Jr. bring to the story that you wouldnt experience if you just read the book?

He did a perfect job.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Too many to mention.

beautiful and very informative

I learned so much of what I realized my education of this time lacked and it inspired me to further pursue more information.

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Title: Dog Company

Subtitle: The Boys of Pointe Du Hoc - the Rangers Who Landed at D-Day and Fought Across Europe

Author: Patrick K. ODonnell

Narrator: John Pruden

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 16 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-06-12

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 159 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

In the tradition ofBand of Brothers, acclaimed combat historian Patrick K. ODonnell cinematically tells one of World War IIs greatest untold stories.

It is said that the right man in the right place at the right time can mean the difference between victory and defeat. This is the dramatic story of 68 soldiers in the US Army's Second Ranger Battalion, Company D - "Dog Company" - who made that difference, time and again.From D-day, when German guns atop Pointe du Hoc threatened the Allied landings and the men of Dog Company scaled the sheer 90-foot cliffs to destroy them; to the slopes of Hill 400, in Germanys Hürtgen Forest, where the Rangers launched a desperate bayonet charge across an open field; to a "quiet" section of the Ardennes, where Dog Company suddenly found itself on the tip of the spear at the Battle of the Bulge; the men of Dog Company made the difference.

America had many heroes in World War II; however, few can say that, but for them, the course of the war would have been very different. The right men, the right place, the right time - Dog Company.

Patrick K. ODonnell is the award-winning author of eight books, including the highly acclaimed account of the Battle of Fallujah We Were One. He has provided historical consulting for Band of Brothers and multiple documentaries. He lives in Austin, Texas.

Critic Reviews:

"A great American writer." (Clive Cussler)

"The authors most important accomplishment among many is to put a human face on the troops who are fighting against some of the fiercest enemies America has ever encountered. Read ODonnells excellent book." (

New York Post on

We Were One)

Members Reviews:

On par with the best; Band of Brothers, etc

A quick introduction to my ratings...everyone has their own views so you should know what mine are so my review may be of help

***** - 5 Stars, an all time great that I would want to read every year

**** - 4 Stars, a good book that I would be willing to read again

*** - 3 Stars, an average book, glad I read but would not read again

** - 2 Stars, I finished but was sorry I did and would not recommend it

* - 1 Star, i could not even finish it

I list my recommendation if you were my friend, my overall thoughts and then list the 2 things I liked best and the 2 things I liked least about the book. This is not conclusion, rather a 1 min review.

Recommendation - If you like military history, i.e. books like With the Old Breed, Band of Brothers, etc, I highly recommend this book.

Overall,this book is another tribute to the brutality of war and the hearts of the WWII generation. They speak of many battles as the summary describes. It is not sugar coated, the author pulls no punches in romanticizing war.

Best

1. The description of life in battle pulled no punches. The author also expanded on the quotes, attributing them to the interview or source, so the reader knows they were not the author's narrative, they were from interviews, 1st hand accounts. I appreciate that as many authors like to add to it.

2. I enjoyed the ending when the author spoke of what came of the members of Dog Company, it is good to hear how their lives ended up!

Least

1. There is little to say here.

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Title: Savage Continent

Subtitle: Europe in the Aftermath of World War II

Author: Keith Lowe

Narrator: John Lee

Format: Unabridged

Length: 15 hrs and 17 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-24-12

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 229 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

The Second World War might have officially ended in May 1945, but in reality it rumbled on for another 10 years....

The end of the Second World War in Europe is one of the 20th century's most iconic moments. It is fondly remembered as a time when cheering crowds filled the streets, danced, drank and made love until the small hours. These images of victory and celebration are so strong in our minds that the period of anarchy and civil war that followed has been forgotten.

Across Europe, landscapes had been ravaged, entire cities razed and more than thirty million people had been killed in the war. The institutions that we now take for granted-such as the police, the media, transport, local and national government-were either entirely absent or hopelessly compromised. Crime rates were soaring, economies collapsing, and the European population was hovering on the brink of starvation.

In Savage Continent, Keith Lowe describes a continent still racked by violence, where large sections of the population had yet to accept that the war was over. Individuals, communities and sometimes whole nations sought vengeance for the wrongs that had been done to them during the war. Germans and collaborators everywhere were rounded up, tormented and summarily executed. Concentration camps were reopened and filled with new victims who were tortured and starved. Violent anti-Semitism was reborn, sparking murders and new pogroms across Europe. Massacres were an integral part of the chaos and in some places-particularly Greece, Yugoslavia and Poland, as well as parts of Italy and France - they led to brutal civil wars. In some of the greatest acts of ethnic cleansing the world has ever seen, tens of millions were expelled from their ancestral homelands, often with the implicit blessing of the Allied authorities.

Savage Continent is the story of post WWII Europe, in all its ugly detail, from the end of the war right up until the establishment of an uneasy stability across Europe toward the end of the 1940s. Based principally on primary sources from a dozen countries, Savage Continent is a frightening and thrilling chronicle of a world gone mad, the standard history of post WWII Europe for years to come.

Critic Reviews:

"Authoritative but never dry, stripping away soothing myths of national unity and victimhood, this is a painful but necessary historical task superbly done." (

Kirkus)

Members Reviews:

Better in print?

I think this book might be better in print -- as an audio book it comes off more as just a listing of events with X number of victims and Y location, repeat. I've read a ton of WWII books and I've read (listened) to all the available post-WWII books on Audible, this is not one of my favorites. I have a pretty high tolerance for facts and figures in audio format and even with that this book came off as dry with the exception of a few chapters. If you're a very tough listener and very interested in this period of time give it a listen -- also check out other reviewers and see what they think and don't just rely on this opinion alone.

I don't cry but this book made me

Eastern Poland was my home until collage years, as kids we find unused ammunition quite often, once whole 9 yards of anti aircraft bullets. What took place there during my parents generation is so horrible, so unimaginable and yet somehow real.

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Title: Afghanistan

Subtitle: A Cultural and Political History

Author: Thomas Barfield

Narrator: Robin Bloodworth

Format: Unabridged

Length: 17 hrs and 22 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-21-12

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 79 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

Afghanistan traces the historic struggles and the changing nature of political authority in this volatile region of the world, from the Mughal Empire in the 16th century to the Taliban resurgence today. Thomas Barfield introduces listeners to the bewildering diversity of tribal and ethnic groups in Afghanistan, explaining what unites them as Afghans despite the regional, cultural, and political differences that divide them. He shows how governing these peoples was relatively easy when power was concentrated in a small dynastic elite, but how this delicate political order broke down in the 19th and 20th centuries when Afghanistan's rulers mobilized rural militias to expel first the British and later the Soviets.

Armed insurgency proved remarkably successful against the foreign occupiers, but it also undermined the Afghan government's authority and rendered the country ever more difficult to govern as time passed. Barfield vividly describes how Afghanistan's armed factions plunged the country into a civil war, giving rise to clerical rule by the Taliban and Afghanistan's isolation from the world. He examines why the American invasion in the wake of September 11 toppled the Taliban so quickly, and how this easy victory lulled the United States into falsely believing that a viable state could be built just as easily.

Afghanistan is essential listening for anyone who wants to understand how a land conquered and ruled by foreign dynasties for more than a thousand years became the "graveyard of empires" for the British and Soviets, and what the United States must do to avoid a similar fate.

Critic Reviews:

"In this riveting study, Barfield does a splendid job of informing us why Afghanistan is the way it has always been." (Daily Star)

"This book is an authoritative and well-written summary of what we might call the majority view. There is a streak in this book, however, of more radical thinking. . . . It leads him near the end of the book to some startling predictions for Afghanistan's possible futures." (Gerard Russell Foreign Policy)

"Thomas Barfield's new book offers a remedy for Americans' pervasive ignorance of Afghanistan. . . . Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History is an invaluable book. Mr. Barfield does not give the United States a way out of Afghanistan, but he does provide the context necessary for good policymaking." (Doug Bandow, Washington Times)

Members Reviews:

Great overview of Afghanistan's history

What made the experience of listening to Afghanistan the most enjoyable?

Interesting perspective on tribal/cultural dynamics. Goes more in depth into actual Afghan historical politics vs. the more traditional US foreign policy-perspective books which are more widely published.

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Title: Intrepid Aviators

Subtitle: The True Story of U.S.S. Intrepid's Torpedo Squadron 18 and Its Epic Clash with the Superbattleship Musashi

Author: Gregory G. Fletcher

Narrator: Don Hagen

Format: Unabridged

Length: 16 hrs and 58 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-03-12

Publisher: Gildan Media, LLC

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 80 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

On the morning of October 24, 1944, in the Sibuyan Sea amidst the Philippine Islands, VT-18, a close-knit squadron of six young American torpedo bomber pilots, departed the aircraft carrier USS Intrepid on a search and destroy mission. Their target: the super-battleship Musashi, the pride of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The pilots were tasked with preventing the immense enemy warship and the huge naval armada of which she was a part from inflicting unspeakable damage on the transports and supply ships that were supporting the American amphibious landings within nearby Leyte Gulf. Little did these young men know that they had embarked on the opening rounds of historys greatest - and last - epic naval battle.

Two bomber crews launched in the first wave of attackers were shot out of the sky. Only pilot Will Fletcher survived the crash landing. Adrift at sea, Will made his way to land and escaped into the jungles of the Philippines, where he eluded capture by the Japanese with the help of Filipino guerrillas and joined their ranks against their common enemy.

Intrepid Aviators is the thrilling true story of the brave bomber pilots, their daring duel with the Musashi, and Will Fletchers struggle to survive as a guerrilla soldier. The sinking of Musashi inflicted a crucial blow in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, and would mark the first time in history that aviators had sunk a Japanese battleship on the high seas.

Critic Reviews:

Gregory Fletcher's enthralling Intrepid Aviators beautifully recreates the epic clash between the USS Intrepid's Torpedo Squadron 18 and the Japanese battleship Musashi, one of the most important engagements of World War II. A thrilling, deeply moving literary memorial to the American flyboys whose immense sacrifice and courage really did change the world. (Alex Kershaw, New York Times best-selling author of The Longest Winter)

Contact me for any questions: [email protected]

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Title: Double Cross

Subtitle: The True Story of the D-Day Spies

Author: Ben Macintyre

Narrator: John Lee

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-31-12

Publisher: Random House Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 500 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

In his celebrated best sellers Agent Zigzag and Operation Mincemeat, Ben Macintyre told the dazzling true stories of a remarkable WWII double agent and of how the Allies employed a corpse to fool the Nazis and assure a decisive victory. In Double Cross, Macintyre returns with the untold story of the grand final deception of the war and of the extraordinary spies who achieved it.

On June 6, 1944, 150,000 Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy and suffered an astonishingly low rate of casualties. D-Day was a stunning military accomplishment, but it was also a masterpiece of trickery. Operation Fortitude, which protected and enabled the invasion, and the Double Cross system, which specialized in turning German spies into double agents, deceived the Nazis into believing that the Allies would attack at Calais and Norway rather than Normandy. It was the most sophisticated and successful deception operation ever carried out, ensuring that Hitler kept an entire army awaiting a fake invasion, saving thousands of lives, and securing an Allied victory at the most critical juncture in the war.

The story of D-Day has been told from the point of view of the soldiers who fought in it, the tacticians who planned it, and the generals who led it. But this epic event in world history has never before been told from the perspectives of the key individuals in the Double Cross System. These include its director (a brilliant, urbane intelligence officer), a colorful assortment of MI5 handlers (as well as their counterparts in Nazi intelligence), and the five spies who formed Double Crosss nucleus: a dashing Serbian playboy, a Polish fighter-pilot, a bisexual Peruvian party girl, a deeply eccentric Spaniard with a diploma in chicken farming and a volatile Frenchwoman, whose obsessive love for her pet dog very nearly wrecked the entire plan. The D-Day spies were, without question, one of the oddest military units ever assembled, and their success depended on the delicate, dubious relationship between spy and spymaster, both German and British. Their enterprise was saved from catastrophe by a shadowy sixth spy whose heroic sacrifice is revealed here for the first time.

With the same depth of research, eye for the absurd and masterful storytelling that have made Ben Macintyre an international bestseller, Double Cross is a captivating narrative of the spies who wove a web so intricate it ensnared Hitlers army and carried thousands of D-Day troops across the Channel in safety.

Critic Reviews:

"Ben Macintyre's spellbinding account features an improbable cast of characters who pulled off a counter-intelligence feat that was breathtaking in its audacity. Their deceptions within deceptions - known as the Double Cross - were critical to the success of the D-Day invasion, and continued to mislead the Germans long after Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy. A truly bravura performance, as is Macintyre's fast-paced tale." (Andrew Nagorski, author of Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power)

"Ben Macintyre and I work in the same period, and I should be reading him because he is such a scrupulous and insightful writer - a master historian. But, with Double Cross and his other excellent works, I always wind up reading him for pleasure.