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NAZI SABOTEURS ON THE BAYOU

Discussion in 'Book Reviews' started by steven.burgauer, Nov 20, 2016.

  1. steven.burgauer

    steven.burgauer Member

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    [SIZE=medium]“In a war that rips apart entire worlds, who can truly be the winner? Add a dash of romance to the intrigue for a solid World War II thriller that’s intricate, frighteningly realistic, and hard to put down.”[/SIZE]
    [SIZE=medium]— Diane Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review, December 2016[/SIZE]


    [SIZE=medium]Nazi Saboteurs on the Bayou[/SIZE] comes with an intriguing author disclaimer: that the CIA and U.S. Department of Defense continue to deny that the events outlined in this book ever happened — which makes it all the more intriguing a piece of fiction that skirts the line between factual history and a thriller.

    [SIZE=medium]The story centers around an event that took place in 1942. It is not set in the usual military battlefields of Europe or the Pacific but in New Orleans, where the Higgins boat landing craft key to military operations in the Pacific is being manufactured.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]A fictional Nazi plot to disrupt the manufacture of these boats involves world arenas as disparate as New Orleans, San Diego, North Africa, and beyond. Winding this series of events into a short, two-week period may seem ambitious, but in this case it serves to heighten tension, condense the action, and results in a terse story that excels in detailing a tightly-crafted series of events where no word is wasted.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]From a half-drunk aristocratic German’s death in a brothel and the discovery of a book that holds a map of the naval facilities nearby (indicating he might be a spy, to other German presences in America and the forces they represent), chapters unfold with the staccato precision of an intrigue and adventure saga spiced by Louisiana dialect and military encounters alike.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]It’s a desperate race for all sides as time runs out, and readers will find themselves immersed in the desperate search for a hidden book that involves death and individuals who come from disparate backgrounds: “Deputy Marshal Nolan Greeley was new to the Gulf Coast area. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]His previous assignment had been in the Colorado Rockies, not far from where he grew up, the oldest son of German immigrants. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]His parents and kin still spoke the language at home. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]So did he. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]But that job in the mountains had gone south on him when he kept showing up in the field half-drunk. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]So the U.S. Marshal Service transferred him down here, to the Gulf Coast District. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]For the moment, Greeley rented a home from a woman he met in a local bar his first week on the job, a ramshackle house near New Orleans on the so-called ‘German Coast.’ [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]If he screwed this up, the Gulf Coast would be Greeley’s last stop before a forced retirement.”[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]An important strength to this story lies in Steven Burgauer’s ability to not just describe a scene, but to take readers aboard ships and land alike for a kind of action that translates well to “you are there” impacts: “Now the big guns onboard the taskforce ships let go a salvo. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]The cruiser USS San Juan (CL-54), the destroyers Monssen and Buchanan. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]The sound blew away the last vestiges of sleep. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Brock was instantly awake and alert. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Now came the deadly symphony of artillery. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Booming cannon fire. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Banks of deadly rockets. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Shells launched from armored tanks on deck. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]All from a menagerie of Navy ships positioned in and around the LSTs in the sea. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]“CRA-A-ACK!” Again from the San Juan. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Sixteen, five-inch guns. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Sixteen, one-point-one-inch guns. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]The ship heeled over following each discharge from its big guns.”[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]This attention to detail embraces characters, plot, subplots, and different settings, lending an authentic and riveting feel to events. From boat contracts and naval forces to sabotage efforts, genuine World War II history is deftly woven into the story line to the point where it’s hard to separate fact from fiction. In a war that rips apart entire worlds, who can truly be the winner? Add a dash of romance to the intrigue for a solid World War II thriller that’s intricate, frighteningly realistic, and hard to put down.[/SIZE]
     

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  2. steven.burgauer

    steven.burgauer Member

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    Five stars to Steven Burgauer and his tale of historical World War Two fiction. May we never again need to live through such a terrible conflict.
    — November 20, 2016, Publishers Daily Reviews

    [SIZE=medium][By the way, free book giveaway still in effect.][/SIZE]
    [SIZE=medium] [/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]It is 2 a.m. on July 30, 1942, and Heinrich von Brockdorff lies dead in a French Quarter whore’s bed. [/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]It’s a quiet start to a saga that spreads from Mahogany Hall in New Orleans to the war-torn islands of the South Pacific and beyond. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]For von Brockdorff is no ordinary “john.”[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]He is — or was — a strategically placed German spy on American soil.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]This is a sweeping story of heroism and heartache, bravery and betrayal, set against the backdrop of the cataclysmic events forever remembered as World War Two.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]On July 31, 1942, one day after von Brockdorff dies, his grandson stands sweltering in a sandy foxhole on the tropical island of Fiji. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]U.S. Marine PFC Russell Brock never knew his grandfather — and he certainly doesn’t know his grandfather is dead. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]He has other things on his mind — such as how to survive the upcoming amphibious assault on heavily fortified Japanese positions.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]He will be jumping off the steel-reinforced front ramp of a specially made Higgins boat — also known as an LCVP — Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]Coincidentally, the shallow-draft landing craft was made in New Orleans, the scene of his grandfather’s untimely demise.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]In a series of cunningly wrought vignettes, author Steven Burgauer pulls together far-flung people, places and events to tell — through fascinating historical side notes and fiction-based-on-fact — the story surrounding the humble LCVP’s genesis and its crucial role in winning the war. [/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]Interwoven with this central thread are the lives and deeds of many colorful characters: crime boss Nico Carolla; luckless prostitute Kentucky Rose; Andrew Jackson Higgins, namesake of the landing craft; PFC Stanley Whitehorse, one of several Navajo Indians vital to developing a war-winning, unbreakable code; Sebastian Grimm, a young captain in the Waffen-SS, and many others.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]Of particular note is the author’s gift for dialect in dialogue, often using it to paint compelling word pictures of people and places in the Deep South:[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]“He had crooked toes. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]Dey peeped out of shufflin’ shoes. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]His trousers was all torn an’ tattered. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]He wore an old frockcoat. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]It be all threadbare and smellin’ like burnt cinders.”[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]Central to the loosely connected stories is the ingenious development of the LCVP, from a small plywood craft capable of carrying only a few dozen men to one that was built entirely of steel, and which could carry many more men or entire pieces of mechanized equipment, including tanks.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]The author painstakingly details how Higgins and his dedicated team designed and mass-produced the boats, guarded by both U.S. Marines and a deadly cadre of New Orleans Mafiosi.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]It’s a unique arrangement with the mobsters that eventually reaches as far as Sicily and Tunis, where Nico Carolla’s family members, aided by local community residents and fishermen, help the Allies harry and defeat fascist forces on their native land.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]Readers are treated to history lessons at every turn in this outstanding read that blends fictional characters with real-life war heroes. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]Even famed spy novelist Ian Fleming takes a turn in the story, dispensing unique diversionary tactics to be used against the enemy in novel ways.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]But what of von Brockdorff and PFC Brock? [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]And, more importantly, what becomes of the tattered Nazi codebook found sewn into von Brockdorff’s shirt lining? [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]What secret does it carry that is central to the future of the war — and perhaps the entire world?[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]These characters come to life for the reader as they pass through the pages and into the imagination. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]Nico gets a life-changing surprise and barely survives a rival mob hit. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]U.S. Marines firefight their way across several islands, exchanging precious blood for mere feet of Japanese-held soil. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]And the Navajo code-talkers call down a rain of artillery shells on the so-called “Sons of Nippon,” each Native American zealously guarded by heavily armed Marine sergeants.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]There is so much more in this book that cannot be detailed here. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]Suffice to say that fans of both meticulously researched history and little-known wartime events will enjoy it tremendously.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]Five stars to Steven Burgauer and his tale of historical World War Two fiction. [/SIZE][SIZE=medium]May we never again need to live through such a terrible conflict.[/SIZE]
    [SIZE=medium]— November 20, 2016, Publishers Daily Reviews[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]http://publishersdailyreviews.com/nazi-saboteurs-bayou-steven-burgauer/[/SIZE]
    [SIZE=medium]http://justfreeandbargainbooks.com/nazi-saboteurs-bayou-steven-burgauer-review/[/SIZE]
    [SIZE=medium]https://donsloanauthor.wordpress.com/2016/11/21/nazi-saboteurs-on-the-bayou-by-steven-burgauer/[/SIZE]
    [SIZE=medium]http://www.theindieview.com/latest-indie-reviews-from-around-the-web/[/SIZE]
     

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  3. steven.burgauer

    steven.burgauer Member

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    [SIZE=16pt]“A rich and complex plot that’s as compelling as it is entertaining. [/SIZE][SIZE=16pt]Nazi Saboteurs on the Bayou[/SIZE][SIZE=16pt] proves a wholly enjoyable read and one that is highly recommended[/SIZE][SIZE=16pt].”[/SIZE]
    [SIZE=16pt]— BookViral, December 4, 2016[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]Far too many World War II novels try to deliver excitement through an abundance of action and adventure, but Burgauer restrains himself from going too far and in doing so has penned an absorbing and intelligent read that engages from the start. Perhaps more impressive though is the fact that whilst the premise underpinning Nazi Saboteurs on the Bayou[/SIZE][SIZE=medium] promises much, it actually delivers far more. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]It certainly isn’t a prototypical World War II novel as Burgauer takes us beyond a conventional pseudo-historical slant of pivotal events to instead embrace a more clandestine and thought-provoking perspective. Intertwining an eclectic mix of historic persons who are well-conceived and finely-tuned to the story, its setting, and its locale, he weaves a rich and complex plot that is as compelling as it is entertaining and accessible. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]As a military adventure it’s an exciting one laden with double-crossing and unexpected adversities that take us into the world of wartime intrigue. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]It might be a relatively quick read but Burgauer has a fine eye for detail when it comes to setting up plot and characters, with the payback being a novel that captures the spirit and exuberance of a James Bond movie.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]Sure to be met with approval by Burgauer’s followers, Nazi Saboteurs on the Bayou[/SIZE][SIZE=medium] proves a wholly enjoyable read and one that is highly recommended.[/SIZE]

    [SIZE=medium]http://www.bookviral.com/nazi-saboteurs-on-the-bayou/4593247975[/SIZE]
     

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