Tides of Blood: The Minotaur Wars, Volume Two (Dragonlance: The Minotaur Wars)

Tides of Blood: The Minotaur Wars, Volume Two (Dragonlance: The Minotaur Wars)
Average customer rating:

Sometimes You Need a Big Slab of Beef

Great Second Book

Tides of Blood

Tides of Blood: The Minotaur Wars, Volume Two (Dragonlance: The Minotaur Wars)
Richard A. Knaak
Manufacturer: Wizards of the Coast
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0786936371
Release Date: 2005-04-05

Book Description

The second title in a new trilogy from best-selling author Richard A. Knaak, now in paperback.

This direct follow-up to the best-selling War of Souls trilogy deals with the minotaurs, a race with which New York Times best-selling author Knaak is particularly associated in the minds of Dragonlance novels fans. This series moves the minotaur species to the forefront of the Dragonlance world.

Customer Reviews:

Sometimes You Need a Big Slab of Beef.......2006-06-08

Knaak isn't a great writer, like a Martin or even a Jordan, but he is solid. He never shows a great deal of originality or complex characters, but neither does me make bad choices with plot or write bad prose. As I said, he's a solid writer, good but not great.

With this novel, he shows this, continuing his minotaur trilogy with a story that has been told before, but a story that is told well. An Emperor is brought down, a possible heir escapes into slavery, breaks free and along the way he meets a warthog and a meercat and brings down his evil uncle. So it's a common plot. So it's a Disney movie and a Broadway play. Sometimes you need a Big Mac. You need to not think about the story and just read, let the mind wonder, and as far as Big Macs go, this is a really good Big Mac. To steal from another company, it's a Six Dollar Big Mac.

It is also the best of the three novels in the trilogy. The first really didn't have a chance because of the structure. Knaak jumps around every ten pages in this trilogy, so when you start off its kind of annoying having to remember twenty names in the first fifty pages. By the second novel this isn't a problem. You know the characters. On the action scale, it rates very high, but that's not always a good thing. When I was fourteen I remember being entertained by "our hero versus four ogres" but now, in my twenties, I've been there, done that, its just filler, nothing is going to happen nine times out of ten to anyone that hasn't been introduced in the last ten pages. This led to quite a bit skimming through this book, but all the fighting was well-done, and there are a couple nice fights evolving detailed villains. And, the plot is the best of the trilogy, revolving around the temple's growing power, Faros' life as a runaway slave, and the friction of the imperial family.

Final Thought: So far, post War of Souls stuff has been really bad. This is one of the better ones. If you are looking for that time frame, pick this trilogy up, its all in paperback now.

Great Second Book.......2006-03-27

If you like battles and internal strife, this is the book for you. The second book in the minotaur series has the minotaurs already in the midst of invading Ansalon. Faros is trying to escape from imprisonment and exact revenge up his oppressors. Also, to show the unity in the ogre nations should make this worrisome for other races of Ansalon also. A major shake-up of the eastern side of the continent is going to affect the entire continent soon enough....

Tides of Blood.......2006-01-12

Tides of Blood - By Richard A. Knaak
Wizards of the Coast, April 1st 2005, 384 pages
Fantasy
This is the second book of a trilogy about the Minotaur race during the war of the souls. This trilogy belongs to the book series called Dragonlance.

This book takes place in the minotaur empire and in the ogre kingdom. The time is during the war of souls. The gods have left Krynn and magic is nothing more than a shallow husk. Rumors have been spread that the undead can no longer pass on to the after life and now they wander the planet draining people who try to use magic. During this trying time, minotaur emperor Hotak has made a pact with their ancient enemies, the ogres to try to take over the continent of Ansalon. He has also forged a pact with the mysterious Mina and her growing army to try to take over the legendary home of the elves, Silvanesti. But rebels and a growing darkness plague Hotak's kingdom right under his muzzle. As the escaped slave Faros begins to build an army of fugitives in the land of the ogres, Hotak's wife, Nephera continues to be consumed by an unholy darkness. The main characters of this story are Hotak, the throne usurper; Faros, nephew of the late emperor Chot; Nephera, wife of the emperor Hotak and Hotak's two sons, Bastion and Ardnor.
This is an exciting, intriguing book that will have you begging for more. Knaak makes this second book a nonstop thriller of rebellion, love, war and suspicion. His first book in the trilogy, Night of Blood, Knaak had built a powerful story and he continues it in this second installment. I enjoyed this book as much as I enjoyed his previous one, Nights of Blood. If you are a fan of fantasy and Dragonlance, I highly urge you to go and pick up Knaak's trilogy today.

Average customer rating:

Full of humanity and insight
Riveting account of people, places, events and history
Amos Elon KNOWS
Stunning insight into a complex conflict

A Blood-Dimmed Tide
Amos Elon
Manufacturer: Columbia University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Pity of It All: A Portrait of the German-Jewish Epoch, 1743-1933
Founder: A Portrait of the First Rothschild and His Time
Jerusalem, City of Mirrors

ASIN: 0231107439

Book Description

A powerful and evocative collection of essays, A Blood Dimmed Tide gathers nearly thirty years of Amos Elon's work on the Middle East. Skillfully moving from the Intifada to the Gulf War and its aftermath to the Peace Now! movement, these essays provide a nuanced account of relations between Jews and Arabs and among the Israelis themselves. Elon has also written a timely introduction that provides an overview of his work and brings it up to the election of Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister of Israel.

This internationally-known journalist presents sharply observed portraits of the region's key figures: Shimon Peres, Yitzak Rabin, and King Hussein; he interviews Yasir Arafat; and he considers Moshe Dayan's life and legacy. Elon also ranges far to sketch the political climate of the region and its players, from Israeli settlers in Hebron and their uneasy coexistence with Arab neighbors to the foreign policy of Egypt.

Sensitive and powerful, A Blood-Dimmed Tide provides a timely analysis of the conflicts between Jews and Arabs. From the Palestinians' refusal to accept Israel's 1978 offer of "full autonomy" to the Israeli government's insistence that settling the occupied territories would bring security, Elon traces what he considers to be the deadly miscalculations of both groups. As he examines the events and misunderstandings that have made it so difficult for Palestinians and Israelis to establish peace, Elon concludes taht what will finally bring the two sides together will not be moral imperative or personal courage but exhaustion. A Blood-Dimmed Tide is a significant contribution to our understanding of this troubled land.

Customer Reviews:

Full of humanity and insight.......2006-08-11

I don't think this book is only for the "non-radical left-wing Israeli ideologist" as another review put it (perhaps just a throwaway line). For anyone wanting a deeper insight into the mess that Israel-Palestine has become, this book shows just how many opportunities for peace have been missed on all sides.

Written with balance, insight, and humour, it's remarkably entertaining considering the subject. The "Letter from Alexandria" is great, especially the mention of its denizen "Captain Jorge y Nelken-Waldberg ... a Romanian with a Swedish-Spanish name, United States citizenship, and a commission in the Argentine army, who edited the local French newspaper. He was born Jewish, but was a dignitary of the Alexandria Greek Orthodox Church". Certainly was a cosmopolitan place.

But my favourite section is the the inside story on how a "couple of nuts" engineered the 1993 Oslo accord.

A wonderful collection of essays written with wit and humanity, by one who was very much there.

Riveting account of people, places, events and history.......2002-08-30

Elon is gifted writer with an even-handed perspective. His analysis of history, and the people who make it, is rich and personalized. Littered throughout his reports are nuggets of little known facts which greatly enhance the reading experience. His detail of observation and grip on the facts make you trust him. Its a reflection of the author's long association + first-hand experience with the issues, and wisdom. The book variously reads like a report, biography, travelogue, and history. The one I enjoyed most was the piece on Alexandria - made wish I could see the place.

You know how it is when you read editorials of respected newspapers/magazines - hoping to get a wise and real perspective on issues - this book is a bit like that.

Amos Elon KNOWS.......2002-04-15

A blood-dimmed time is a fine and worthwhile book. Amos Elon is an intellectual in the midst of the war zone. Though his book ends before this current war, he is always lucid, always eloquent and full of insights from Jerusalem.

Stunning insight into a complex conflict.......2001-11-08

The introduction alone provides a good starting point for anyone who wants to gain insight into the hundred year old Arab Israeli conflict. Amongst other things, Elon describes the experience of reserve duty in the six-day war, Israels political paralysis in dealing with the West Bank, Gaza and the Palestinians, and economic crisis under the Begin government. The most astounding essays in the book include those on trips to Egypt and Jordan on the verge of the 1978 and 1994 peace treaties. He describes how ordinary Egyptians welcomed him in an extraordinary Cairo bus scene, with cries of "Israel good" and "Peace Good". Later chapters deal with Israels coalition governments, which themselves were a major obstacle to reaching peace, most notably with Yitzhak Shamir's veto of Peres' "Jordanian Option". This book is very "left", but doesnt stink of agenda the way the work of the "New Historians" does. Every non-radical left-wing Israeli ideologist should read it.

The Blood-Dimmed Tide (Penguin Mysteries)

Average customer rating:

More than blood
Good Story, Drab Execution
Disappointing, long-awaited sequel
"A world of savagery and barbarism."
Best of the Best

The Blood-Dimmed Tide (Penguin Mysteries)
Rennie Airth
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Amazon.com

Rennie Airth's first John Madden historical thriller, River of Darkness, found a place on more than a few "best of the year" lists in 1999--with good reason. Set in post-World War I England, it was serial-killer fiction of an unusually exalted order, with Madden, then a taciturn and wearily pragmatic veteran-turned-Scotland Yard inspector, investigating the eerie slaughter of a well-respected family in Surrey.

Fortunately, Airth's first sequel was worth the six-year wait. The Blood-Dimmed Tide (which takes its title from a W.B. Yeats poem) finds Madden now retired and living peacefully on a farm in Surrey with his doctor wife, the former Helen Blackwell, and their two children, 10-year-old Rob and 6-year-old Lucy. The year is 1932, and the precipitous rise of the Nazis in Germany leaves many of their fellow countrymen, as well as no few Brits, worried for the future peace and stability of the European continent. More immediately concerning for Madden, however, is his discovery of the corpse of pubescent Alice Bridger--raped, disfigured, and secreted near a tramps' backwoods campsite. Suspicion falls quickly on a vagrant known as Beezy, who was supposedly visiting the area, but Madden--with his remarkable insight into crime ("Madden's always had a way of seeing things clearly, of seeing through them, or rather beyond them," relates a former police colleague)--thinks this is more than an isolated homicide. Sure enough, a records check turns up similar slayings elsewhere in England, dating back to 1929, as well as an active investigation by German law enforcement into half a dozen dead girls in Bavaria and Prussia. What accounts for both the wide range of these mutilations, and the lengthy lag time between them? Could the police be looking for a psychopathic traveler, or worse, a rogue spy who's managed to maintain a respectable front at his international postings, while satisfying his malevolent appetites in his spare hours? And what is the "devil's mark" that this killer reportedly bears?

Airth is a fastidious plotter, expert in trickling out twists that heighten story tension but don't leave readers awash in red herrings. Although Madden's role here is somewhat less than it was in River of Darkness--a consequence of his strong-willed wife trying to protect him from further hurt, after the horrendous events of that previous tale--the author compensates by giving us a supporting cast of amply dimensioned Yard types, led by Chief Inspector Angus Sinclair, a perceptive Scot whose doggedness pairs well with Madden's gift for inspiration. While Airth fails, oddly, to exploit a couple of opportunities for interesting plot turns at book's end, his psychological portrait of the murderer imbues Tide with a fine pathos, and the backdrop of Nazi power-grabbing sets the stage for what is supposed to be a third and final Madden yarn. Let's hope that novel appears in more expeditious fashion. --J. Kingston Pierce

Book Description

ith the publication of the New York Times Notable Book River of Darkness, Rennie Airth established himself as a master of suspense. The Blood- Dimmed Tide, set in 1932, marks the return of the beloved Inspector John Madden, whose discovery of a young girl's mutilated corpse near his home in rural England brings him out of retirement despite his wife's misgivings. Soon he finds himself chasing a killer whose horrific crime could have implications far afield in a Europe threatened by the rise of Hitler. A riveting, atmospheric, multilayered mystery, this intense and intelligent tale more than delivers on the promise of Rennie Airth's first thriller. BACKCOVER: “Unnerving... from [a] richly textured background, Airth draws a vivid cast of full-bodied characters and a plot that satisfies.”
—The New York Times Book Review

“Airth's first mystery, River of Darkness, was impressive enough to earn him several award nominations and much critical applause. [The Blood-Dimmed Tide] deserves the same treatment.”
—Chicago Tribune

The eagerly anticipated sequel to Rennie Airth's widely acclaimed River of Darkness “rises above the pack”
—The Dallas Morning News

Customer Reviews:

More than blood.......2007-05-12

Airth's second mystery builds inexorably to a chilling climax; along the way he takes on the privilege of government to protect their own and the intricacies of seeking justice while avoiding the displeasure of superiors. Nearly as good as the first, Airth does not seem interested in rushing a book to market each year and dumbing down the genre. It is worth the wait.

Good Story, Drab Execution.......2006-08-22

Airth's River of Darkness introduced John Madden, a psychological casualty of World War I turned police inspector. River of Darkness was set in the early `20s and was a reasonably effective evocation of the echoes in the British countryside of the slaughter of the Great War.

The Blood-Dimmed Tide revisits Madden a decade later. He's retired from police work and become a middling farmer. The case of interest turns on the search for a terrifying killer of young girls. The plot is interesting, but the execution is disappointing. Airth tries too hard to put Madden in the middle of things, endowing him with preternatural instincts that just don't sell. The dialogue is frequently as trite as a Berlitz training record.

The setting could be the saving grace of the work, but it doesn't come to life. Madden's investigations take place within weeks of Hitler's rise to chancellor. Subsidiary and rather unimaginative characters fret about what is going to become of Germany, and every reader knows the answer. The Depression, too, figures in a turn or two of the plot. But, on the whole, Airth does not convey the texture of the times, of the impact of changing technology, of the erosion of British ascendancy, of the place of talking motion pictures and recordings, of the era of radio, not even of the residing nausea with war that became Appeasement. Airth's 1930s Britain is timeless, drab and routine.

Disappointing, long-awaited sequel.......2006-06-16

As a huge fan of Airth's first novel, A River of Darkness, I was severely disappointed with this second John Madden mystery. The author hampers Madden's involvement by having him retire from Scotland Yard to manage a farm in Surrey with his family. His contribution to this mystery, which involves a brutal child killer, is thus marginal at best. He finds one of the first bodies and deals with the killer at the end, but other detectives, associated with Madden in the previous book, do most of the sleuthing. Airth creates a really nasty killer in this outing, and the unveiling of his true identity is a treat. Nevertheless, I wanted more John Madden, and any reader of this book would have to agree that his presence was surely lacking.

"A world of savagery and barbarism.".......2006-06-09

Many authors take great pains to ensure that their protagonists remain unhappy and unattached, and "The Blood-Dimmed Tide" is a prime example of how marriage is sometimes the death knell of a promising series. In Rennie Airth's previous mystery, "River of Darkness," Inspector John Madden of Scotland Yard is a brooding man whose angst stems from the loss of his wife and daughter and his traumatic experiences as a soldier in the trenches during World War I. Much to Madden's surprise, he meets the love of his life, a widowed doctor named Helen Blackwell, during an investigation. In "The Blood-Dimmed Tide," a decade or so has passed, and Madden has retired from the Yard to live the life of a gentleman farmer with his wife, Helen, and their two children.

Madden's peace of mind is shattered when he discovers the battered body of a twelve-year-old girl named Alice Bridger. An unknown assailant abducted, assaulted, and severely beat the child. Although John is a civilian with no official standing as a detective, he winds up playing a key role in the investigation. Airth reintroduces a number of people from the first book, including Chief Inspector Angus Sinclair, Assistant Commissioner Sir Wilfred Bennett, Austrian psychoanalyst Franz Weiss, and Detective Sergeant Billy Styles, who used to work under Madden.

The story in "The Blood-Dimmed Tide" bears a remarkable resemblance to the one in "River of Darkness." In both cases, a deranged serial killer is at work. However, in the first book, the perpetrator specializes in home invasions and kills entire families. This time around he kidnaps and bludgeons young girls and then disappears. In both novels, Airth provides the reader with the killer's identity. This worked better in "River of Darkness" than it does in "The Blood-Dimmed Tide." Here, knowing who the killer is too soon leaves the reader with few surprises to sustain his interest.

Once again, Airth exploits the historical climate of the period to give his novel depth. In this case, the backdrop is Europe between the wars. Dr. Franz Weiss is being forced to relocate with his family to England because of the rise of Nazism and its accompanying anti-Semitism. There are political issues relating to the governments of Germany and England that have a bearing on the case, and, as in "River of Darkness," Weiss profiles the killer, using his knowledge of psychiatry.

"The Blood-Dimmed Tide" is competently and smoothly written, and Airth brings rural England to life with his vivid descriptive writing. However, the Maddens have become a staid married couple and the plot is a bit too predictable. If Airth is going to continue this series, he would do well to breathe life into it by coming up with some original ideas and intriguing new characters.

Best of the Best.......2006-05-04

I love to read Mysteries and am from a mystery reading family. This book "The Blood-Dimmed Tide" is one of a trilogy whose author and title I have passed on to my family and they to theirs. I have two problems with Rennie Airth; First he writes this series too slowly; Secondly it is one of only three novels. I own several signed copies of his first and second books and knowing that the last of the trilogy probably will not be out for several years is vexing to us all. Not enough stars have been given to this book. The era is just after World War I, dark murder abounds and psychological angst runs throughout this book. If you have an addiction to history, enjoy a plot that both makes you want to finish because it is impelling and yet put it down because you don't want it to end, then this book, this series, is for you. By the way, if you just like a suspenseful read, this is it! I will add that the end of both books in this series of three make you jump out of your skin, just as the shower scene did in the movie "Psyco", and this is a book, a visual of the mind, not of sight.

Tides of Blood (Dragonlance: The Minotaur Wars, Vol. 2)

Average customer rating:

Very Good Bridge Novel
Solid fantasy adventure
AWesome, I've always likes Minotaurs
Starts Interweaving the Series

Tides of Blood (Dragonlance: The Minotaur Wars, Vol. 2)
Richard A. Knaak
Manufacturer: Wizards of the Coast
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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Dragons of a Vanished Moon (Dragonlance: War of Souls, Book 3)

ASIN: 0786932511
Release Date: 2004-04-01

Book Description

This second title in The Minotaur Wars trilogy continues the tale of the fallout from the end of the New York Times best-selling War of Souls series. Author Richard A. Knaak is particularly associated with minotaurs in the minds of Dragonlance novel fans, making him the ideal author to move the minotaurs to the forefront of the Dragonlance novel storyline.

Customer Reviews:

Very Good Bridge Novel.......2005-08-20

Tides of Blood is the second book in the Dragonlance: The Minotaur Wars, by Richard Knaak. The first book in this trilogy was dark by Dragonlance standards and this novel is no different. I am enjoying the 'darkerside' of Krynn if you will. It seems the books that have been released as of late in the Dragonlance world have been sub-par to say the least. With his first novel in this trilogy Night of Blood, Knaak broke that mold and delivered a very solid book. This second book keeps that theme going and is well written and well thought out story.

I have been a fan of Knaak's since I read Kaz the Minotaur and he doesn't disappoint here. It is evident that Knaak has planned out this story in great detail and taken the time to think everything through as far as what he would like to happen.

As far as the story there is a good deal of action mixed in with the politics of the Minotaur empire. For a Dragonlance novel I was a little surprised of the politics as that's not usual for DL novels.

Overall this is a very solid second book and one that will surely carry right into the final book in the trilogy.

Solid fantasy adventure.......2004-07-22

After overthrowing the corrupt Minotaur King Chot, usurper King Hotak forges an alliance with the ogres and sets off on a war of conquest against the elves. With the help of his evil wife, a priestess of a death-cult, Hotak has eliminated much of the opposition but a few bands of rebels remain. While his daughter serves in the war against the elves, Hotak trusts his younger son and heir to the task of wiping out resistance. His older son, Ardnor, serves his mother and secretly hates both his father and his brother for failing to make him heir.

As part of his alliance with the ogres, Hotak handed over minotaur prisoners to work in the ogre mines. Faros, an escapee from one of those mines, decides to strike back. Despite himself, he begins to gather a group of followers, other minotaurs and others, who share his hatred for the ogre overlords. Meanwhile, the rebellion is slowly being crushed, and the elf forests, long protected by a magic shield, suddenly becomes vulnerable.

TIDES OF BLOOD is largely the story of Faros. Made cynical by captivity first by his fellow minotaurs and then by the ogres, Faros doesn't want to trust anyone and certainly doesn't want responsibility. Yet responsibility is thrust on his shoulders as he becomes the one being who can stand against the ogres and their oppression. Author Richard A. Knaak makes Faros's attitude sympathetic, if frustrating.

In NIGHT OF BLOOD (see our review), the earlier novel in the series, Hotak made a powerful and sympathetic figure. By now, Hotak retreats to a more minor and less emotionally compelling role. Similarly, the rebels who played an important part in NIGHT are now largely on the run.

Knaak's writing is strong enough to sustain reader interest but I found TIDES less compelling than the excellent NIGHT. As the middle book in a series, TIDES suffers from having to pick up--and end--the story in the middle. Although weaker than NIGHT, the book grabbed my interest and hooked me. The ending serves as an exciting hook for the final novel in the trilogy--I can hardly wait.

AWesome, I've always likes Minotaurs.......2004-07-03

Awesome book, Knaak is a very great author, one of my favorites. WoS and the MW come together in this novel, explaining that take over of Silvanesti. Besides that, the rebellion against Hotak grows, with some unexpected deaths, new characters, treachery (sp), and new alliances. I loved this book and cant wait for Empire of Blood to come out. Props on this series Knaak

Starts Interweaving the Series.......2004-06-22

This books is the second in the Minotaur Wars series and to me was a way to finally start bringing this trilogy into the Dragonlance setting. If you haven't read the War of Souls Trilogy, then you need to to understand some of what is going on in the rest of Ansalon especially with regards to how Mina's war is interweaved with the war that the Minotaurs are undertaking with the Ogres.

In addition, this book continues on with the stories of the rebellion against Hotak. Though it tries to build up the rebellion, I often felt at a lost where the story was going, maybe because this is the 2nd book in the trilogy. Also, we get more in tune with what the Forerunners actually are and where their power comes from, which is very interesting when you think to the War of Souls Trilogy (though the ending of this novel is really kind of a good setup for the end of the trilogy from several standpoints as now we are getting to a point that everyone, especially followers of the series, is going into unknown waters).

All in all, this is a great book for fans of the series and Dragonlance as a whole. If you are a casual reader, then you might get bored at points as the story seems to drag or not be as interesting as it could have been. If you like hardcovers, go for it (I do and did!), but if you don't, wait for the paperback (trust me, nothing so crucial happens that you need to buy it this second).

A Blood-Dimmed Tide: The Battle of the Bulge by the Men Who Fought It (Dell World War II Library)
Average customer rating:

Could easily get 5 stars

So so

Great first hand experience put into historical perspective

No maps, but lots of oral history

Blood Dimmed Tide

A Blood-Dimmed Tide: The Battle of the Bulge by the Men Who Fought It (Dell World War II Library)
Gerald Astor
Manufacturer: Dell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0440215749
Release Date: 1993-12-03

Customer Reviews:

Could easily get 5 stars .......2007-05-05

This oral history is a very readable look at the Battle of the Bulge and could get 5 stars in many respects. The first hand accounts are excellent and these vets who discuss their wartime experience is captured in an engrossing account by Astor, who, after a somewhat slow 50 to 70 pages at the very beginning weaves a quite interesting look at the fighting, sometimes focusing his interest in "Operation Grief", the failed campaign engineered by Skorzeny (who did not participate) to confuse the Allies by English speaking Germans dressed as U.S. soldiers to other campaigns, like "Operation Auf", the botched German parachute drop behind the lines.

Also, towards the very end of the book, the author takes a detailed look at Jochim Peiper, who, unlike Skorzeny, did participate. A captured Major was interviewed by Astor, this same Major was a POW who discussed the war with Peiper on a few occasions.

Boring this book is not, as some have reviewers have called it, and at over 500 pages it contains a wealth of information from veterans who fought in this battle. I was shocked at their reports of inexperienced German troops marching into murderous crossfire and dying in heaps. However, in the intial days of this counter offensive, thru sheer numbers the Germans managed to overtake those units most exposed, capturing tens of thousands, while small groups, some often just joining whomever they ran into, often were quickly reorganized and thrown back into battle. The confusion and disorder is well researched and the author gives a detailed look at numerous soldiers, who's paths are followed throughout the entire book.

Astor's story gets better as the book progresses and never loses momentum and is a good look at the Bulge from the men who fought it, including brief contributions from a few Wehrmacht vets for added perspective

So so.......2006-08-25

Yes, this is a collection of stories, some of which are interesting and nice to read. Annoying, however, are the many mistakes which make one doubt Mr. Astor knows what he's talking about (Waffen SS infantry wear black? Panzer IV Panther?). Some select individual get to tell us about their life before the war, who they married, what their father did, etc etc, rarely anything interesting to know. One wonders why this privilege is granted to some and not all, although I would personally preferred none of this.

Great first hand experience put into historical perspective.......2005-10-17

I loved reading this book! Even though the reader can never have the sense, smell or hands-on experience of warfare during W.W. II....this book does a fantastic job of putting the reader directly into the thrilling, heart-pounding action from someone who has lived it. I would highly recommend it to anyone that seeks what the men were thinking, feeling and experiencing during this dramatic time in history.

No maps, but lots of oral history.......2004-10-07

How can you write a book about the Battle of the Bulge and have no maps. I knew when he said oral history there would be no detailed analysis of the battle.

Blood Dimmed Tide.......2004-04-13

Extremely readable! This is one of the best first hand accounts of World War II that I have read. Mr. Astor follows the stories of both American and German soldiers, officers and enlisted alike. One can really get a sense of what it must have been like to try to dig a trench in frozen ground and then of the sudden terror of a night attack. The reader can also get a sense of the complacency that had crept into the American army at the point in the war even after the terrible battle of the Huertgen Forest. But what really makes the stories interesting are the accounts of captivity in the German Stalags and the impressions of the Americans as they move behind German lines in the closing days of the war. This is not a "big picture" book, readers looking for strategical analysis should look elsewhere. There is also a lack of good maps, to get a sense of where you are reading about it. But overall a great read.

Average customer rating:

Barcomb captures the Magical feel of SW FL
The Perfect Vacation Book
So much more than a well-written mystery

Blood Tide
Wayne Barcomb
Manufacturer: Hot House Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

Suspense | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

General | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0970047622

Book Description

Hero Sam Wallace collaborates with female Homicide Detective Diane Lewis to solve the case in this deftly paced novel.

Customer Reviews:

Barcomb captures the Magical feel of SW FL.......2006-04-07

I bought this book because I'm from Sarasota and now live in GA and I have to admit I sometimes get homesick. I was hoping for a book that would catch the wonderful feeling of my hometown and describe the beautiful places I miss. Barcomb's book does not only that but also has interesting characters involved in an entertaining and plausible murder mystery.

Barcomb writes of what has happened countless times before...a Northerner visits Sarasota and falls in love with the place and the interesting mix of people. Developers, marine scientists, little old ladies that make and follow condo owner rules, and more are all found in this great story.

What doesn't happen everyday is that the main charater Sam Wallace gets involved in investigating a murder of someone he just met upon arriving in town. Several suspects with various motives keep you guessing throughout the book.

This is a great first book in what will hopefully be many more that are about Sam Wallace's adventures in Sarasota. In Barcomb's next book, Undercurrent, Wallace gets his Private Investigator License.

If you have been to Sarasota, this book will take you back. If you haven't been to Sarasota, you may find yourself booking a trip in the near future.

P.S. With apologies to Randy Wayne White, I think I have found my new favorite Florida mystery writer.

The Perfect Vacation Book.......2003-12-08

Have a plane trip to take? Or a few days of relaxation planned? Then "Blood Tide" is the perfect book to take with you. The characters and places depicted in the novel are as believable at the descriptions are accurate. Living Sarasota, Florida where all the action takes place, you feel you are right there with Sam as he unravels the secrets of Sarasota "Society". This would make a great holiday gift for the mystery buff on your list.

So much more than a well-written mystery.......2003-11-04

Blood Tide is a wonderful mystery full of interesting characters, including the most adorable dog I've ever met in print. Sam, the main character, is a likeable fellow who happens upon Sarasota, Florida after a bad turn of luck in his home city. Once he's here, he meets up with many of Sarasota's unique residents (author Barcomb hits the nail on the head in this respect; I know many people just like the ones he writes about). In the book as in life, this diverse group of people needs each other to survive, though many of them would never admit it. The mystery part of the book moves along and keeps you guessing until the end. There are two other elements of the book that I personally found interesting: it's almost like a Sarasota area travel book, mentioning real locations and taking the reader on a tour of this beautiful city as the mystery progresses; and it offers a curious way to learn about red tide, which, if you live in this area, you know can be devastating to human and animal life. Blood Tide offers an insight into another way red tide can wreak havoc, one I never thought of. All three of these elements are beautifully combined in one fascinating book. I found Blood Tide hard to put down.

Average customer rating:

Blood Tide (Executioner)
Don Pendleton
Manufacturer: Gold Eagle
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Men's Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Serpent's Lair (Executioner)
Triangle Of Terror (Don Pendleton's the Executioner)
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Edge Of Hell (Executioner)
Assault Force (The Executioner)

ASIN: 0373643268

Average customer rating:

Blood Tide: The Telling of William Kidd
Jamie Elliott
Manufacturer: Bookman Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1594531013

Book Description

It is 1645. William Kidd is born in Scotland in the middle of the bloodiest century in history. England is at various times allied with or against France, Spain and Holland. Alliances change overnight, but always there is a war. The situation at home in Britain is no better. Scotland and Ireland are in constant rebellion against the crown. The king is at odds with Parliament, the Tories are battling the Whigs, and the Puritans are at war with the Anglicans and Catholics. Kidd takes to sea but still cannot escape. He is sailing the tides of war.

Captain William Kidd's whole life is like the times he lives in: a long, unending battle,where friends and foes change sides at will at sea, death is always one step away - on land, it's closer than that. The hunter quickly becomes the hunted. From swashbuckling adventure on the high seas to gothic romance on land, Captain Kidd finds himself pursued by pirates, merchants, the Eglish Navy, women, lawyers and politicians. His chances don't look good.

Blood Tide (Omega Sub, No 4)
Average customer rating:
Blood Tide (Omega Sub, No 4)
J. D. Cameron
Manufacturer: Avon Books (Mm)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Men's Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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Omega Sub

Command Decision (Omega Sub, No 2)

ASIN: 0380763214

Blood Tide
Average customer rating:
Blood Tide
Robert F. Jones
Manufacturer: Atlantic Monthly Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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