Night of Flames by Douglas W. Jacobson

The nice folks at Library Thing helped me get an advance reading copy of this fine World War II historical fiction: Night of Flames: A Novel of World War II. This is a plot-driven tale, not a character-driven one, so if you are longing for carefully crafted and embellished characters this is not your book. But, if you enjoy taking your dose of history nicely wrapped in a story, this is an excellent choice.

Jacobson's tale follows a husband and wife through Germany's occupation of Poland. The husband is an officer in the Polish cavalry; the wife gets drawn into the Polish resistance. The readers get an intimate view of the lives of ordinary people forced into extraordinary situations.

It is well-researched and detailed, without becoming tiresomely weighted down with historical facts and figures. The pace is brisk -- it was hard to put down -- and the ending was very satisfying (if not a wee bit predictable).

book review

:: one year ago today: still kicking

:: two years ago today: church

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