Black Cross
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4.5 • 697 Ratings
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Penn Cage series comes a gripping World War II thriller that “vaporizes almost every cliché about the limits of the genre...[it’s] good enough to read twice”(Kirkus Reviews).
It is January 1944—and as Allied troops prepare for D-Day, Nazi scientists develop a toxic nerve gas that will repel and wipe out any invasion force. To salvage the planned assault, two vastly different but equally determined men are sent to infiltrate the secret concentration camp where the poison gas is being perfected on human subjects. Their only objective: destroy all traces of the gas and the men who created it—no matter how many lives may be lost...including their own.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Henceforth, any recommended reading list of thrillers about commando raids behind enemy lines will have to include this second novel by Iles (Spandau Phoenix), who has come up with an action-packed yet thoughtful yarn about a mission to stop the Nazi development of two new poison gases, Sarin and Somin, in a small concentration camp. Mark McConnell, a pacifist American doctor and poison-gas researcher, and Jonas Stern, a Zionist assassin, are chosen by the British to attack the camp. They are instructed to kill all its occupants (including the inmates) by unleashing Britain's own meager supply of Sarin, and to return with information about the manufacture of the gases. The story of McConnell and Stern's training and raid alternates with that of several people interned in the camp, among them Stern's father. The two strands come together in a swift and moving story about mercy, sacrifice and the horrors of war. The mission's purpose is problematic: Would Britain's use of Sarin to kill everyone at the camp really have convinced Himmler to discontinue further research and to persuade Hitler never to use poison gas for fear of Allied retaliation? But Iles builds suspense around the mission itself, not its aftermath, and winds up with an unusually resonant, gripping thriller that's a strong bet for bestsellerdom. Literary Guild alternate; audio rights to Penguin HighBridge; author tour.
Customer Reviews
Wow. Best read this year for me.
Action packed adventure. I could not put it down. Also had many nicely developed characters and obviously a heavy theme of WW2 and the human costs of war.
Review For Black Cross
This was an absolutely spine-chilling book & one I would definitely recommend to any WW II
book lover. It will be one of those books that are definitely hard to put down. It is really one of the best I have ever read & I've a lot over the years.
WW II was horrific as any war is but in more than a few reasons was the worst the world has ever known due to the murder of over 6 million Jewish, and other peoples of the world. For that reason it was the worst that ever was & hopefully will be the last that ever happens but of that there is no guarantee. Today's world is so uncertain.
Completely marvelous book. Hard to put down.
A bit long in the tooth but a very good WWIi story!
Great characters that you care about. The story is exceptional and engaging to read! I highly recommend reading this book!