Customer Reviews

CW2

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is one of the most honest and enlightening stories I have read from the 'Nam era. It's also highly readable and enjoyable. If you read this book and do not want to scrape the money together to become rotary-winged qualified, then your hormonal glands must have atrophied.

First-rate flying sequences mixed with brief and terrifying combat images make this a "can't put it down" book. Billy Roark is one of us, and during the course of reading this story we become like him. The author does an outstanding job of putting you into the skin of this young man who is learning aspects of life & death that most of us will never have to face. The ending is almost a foregone conclusion, and after reading this book for the third time I realize viscerally exactly how Billy Roark felt, and understand completely the course of action he took. It's scary how easy it is to empathize insanity.

I believe this book is the single most over-looked and under-appreciated story in modern conflict fiction.

I cannot recommend it too highly.

This is such a great book. I've read it several times over the years and lost my copy... Luckily, I looked here at amazon and found it. Hoping this book goes back in print and that it gets a kindle version. This is one of the finest books on helicopter warfare that you'll ever read and I recommend it wholeheartedly.

I was in the Navy at sea when I read this book. The book was given me by a shipmate after he had read it. I never even noticed the author's name. But went the book started with the description of Billy Rourkes home familiar pictures began to fill my mind and when he spoke of the hang out at the end of main street I knew he was talking about Grapevine Texas, my home of 1203 people that I had left in late 1963. I then saw who the author was and realized this was the kid from the class just behind me. The kid that I am pretty sure one of my sisters used to go out with. I was hooked.
The more I read the more I knew this man had been there and knew what he was speaking of. To me it was as engrossing as reading a Tom Clancy novel. All the equipment was there and it was being used correctly. When I was reading the book there was none of the thought of "There is no way that could happen", there was none of the frustration that those that have been there and done that feel when they read about things that have happened in their lives and it is all wrong.
Once I was into the book I found it very hard to put down. No matter where I was at in the process of reading the book I was always wanting to know what was going to happen next.
I loved the way that Layne went from his first tour in the slicks and transitioned into his second tour flying the scouts. That is the way it happened for many so again there was none of that shaking one's head and saying no way. The second got into the nitty-gritty of how the nativity that was there on the first tour was gone. There was no more of the John Wayne, I am the good guy attitude. Mr. Heath made it clear that he now knew that war was hell and that ones primary function besides destroying the enemies will and ability to wage war, was to stay alive and do what you could to keep your buddies alive.
The book was entertaining, the book was real, and the book was all but impossible to put down once you started reading it. The book was OUTSTANDING.

I read Layne's next book The Deep Blue and was just as taken with it as I was with the first. I have since looked for more books from Mr. Heath but have not found any. I have checked with my hometown resources to attempt to discover what happened to him and can find no information. I even ask my mother and if she does not know, then there is nothing to know.
MP Cooper AMHC (AW) USN Retired 1963-1988
100% service connected Disabled Veteran

What can I say - this book is magnificent! There is no substitute for the wealth of detail and the authenticity of technical and historical knowledge that can be brought to bear by a person who has actually been there and done the things of which he writes. Layne Heath combines his knowledge and experience with an obvious writing ability to produce a spellbinding story of the day-to-day experiences of a helicopter pilot in Vietnam. His storylines are plausible, supplemented by a rich attention to detail which allows the reader to virtually share his experiences. Although the ending is designed to accommodate a sequel, it was never written - most likely because the author put everything he had into one blockbuster of a novel that you will find very hard to put down until you are finished. Utterly superb!

This is my all-time favorite book about the VietNam War! Scary and very real.

... this worthy addition to the Vietnam canon might want to read Days of Atonement, by Walter Jon Willams. There are striking similarities, especially toward the end. (No spoilers here.)

My son gave me this book since I'm a retired CW2, although NOT a pilot. However, I served during the Viet Nam conflict, never serving in country. I volunteered for duty there in June 70, only to be turned down. Enough about me! I have to concur with the two previously written reviews, this book not only put me back in that time frame, I felt like I was actually there, feeling his fears, his emotions, his frustrations! It's not a book that is written like a third person novel, but is written to make you feel there... a part of the action! It's a must read again!!! My son wants to read it now, but he will have to wait for my second read !! Get it, you won't be disappointed, one hell of a great read! This author is great!!!

Not sure when or where I picked this up, but it is one of those novels that really pulls you in and leaves you effected after your through. Chronicles the tour of a Chief Warrant officer (helicopter pilot) and the air tactics of Vietnam. Historical fiction with a strong impact on the
reader as he sees how the experiences of the war in Vietnam impact the main character and helps one understand how the survivors of that conflict may not ever leave the war behind.

Read First paragraph of Chapter 14. Every time I read that I can remember that thrill. Fearless,crazy, wild, stupid, brave,"prepared to do something fantastic"? Right... and More.