The Eagle has Landed (BBC Radio Presents) [Abridged, Audiobook] [Audio Cassette]

Jack Higgins (Author)

Book Description

Series: BBC Radio Presents | Publication Date: March 1, 1993

In November 1943, a small group of German paratroopers land in Britain, on a mission to kidnap Prime Minister Winston Churchill, in a full-cast dramatization of the international best-seller. Book available.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"First rate...a fascinating adventure story." -- San Francisco Chronicle

"The master's master of World War II spycraft storytelling.... A superb and mysterious tale." -- United Press International --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

About the Author

Since The Eagle Has Landed—one of the biggest-selling thrillers of all time—every novel Jack Higgins has written has become an international bestseller. He has had simultaneous number-one bestsellers in hardcover and paperback, and many of his books have been made into successful movies, including The Eagle Has Landed, To Catch a King, On Dangerous Ground, Eye of the Storm, and Thunder Point. He has degrees in sociology, social psychology, and economics from the University of London, and a doctorate in media from Leeds Metropolitan University. A fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and an expert scuba diver and marksman, Higgins lives in Jersey on the Channel Islands. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

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Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Random House Audio; Abridged edition (March 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553471430
• ISBN-13: 978-0553471434
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (68 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,835,689 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jack Higgins is among the world's most popular authors. Since the publication of The Eagle Has Landed--one of the biggest-selling thrillers of all time--every novel he has written has become an international bestseller, including The White House Connection and Day of Reckoning. He has had simultaneous number-one bestsellers in hardcover and paperback, and has been published in thirty-eight languages worldwide. Many of his books have been made into successful movies, among them The Eagle Has Landed, To Catch A King, and The Valhalla Exchange. He lives with his wife on Jersey in the Channel Islands.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Higgins' classic WWII thriller stands the test of time......, February 17, 2004

By 

Alex Diaz-Granados "fardreaming writer" (Miami, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Eagle Has Landed (Liam Devlin) (Mass Market Paperback)

It is November 1943, and the Second World War is in its fourth year. Adolf Hitler's Third Reich is fending off Allied advances in the Eastern Front and in Italy. German cities are being bombed "around the clock" by the American and British air forces. Across the English Channel, the Anglo-American forces are marshaling troops and making plans for history's greatest amphibious operation, which is tentatively scheduled for May of 1944.

But even though Germany has suffered great defeats in North Africa and the vast territories of the Soviet Union, Hitler still has hopes of winning the war. Desperately seeking a significant propaganda victory and inspired by the rescue of fellow dictator Benito Mussolini by a team of German special forces, the Fuhrer (egged on by SS chief Heinrich Himmler) orders the head of Military Intelligence (Abwehr) to carry out an even more daring special forces mission: to capture British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and bring him to the Reich.

At first, it is an offhand remark, "a joke," as Abwehr Col. Max Radl notes, "...something the Fuhrer threw out in an angry mood on a Wednesday, to be forgotten by Friday." Soon, though, as Himmler orders a feasibility study and Radl ponders it, what seems like a fantastic notion soon starts looking as something that can, with the right men and conditions, be done.

This dangerous mission is assigned to Lt. Col. Kurt Steiner, the son of a German general and his American wife, and a small group of paratroopers. Their mission: to drop into East Anglia near the town of Studley Constable, where Abwehr agent Joanna Grey and IRA operative Liam Devlin are waiting to assist in the capture of Britain's wartime leader, and snatch Churchill from the estate where he is staying while on an inspection tour.

And so, in the early morning hours of November 6, 1943, as soon as Steiner's small band of paratroopers floats down onto English soil, Heinrich Himmler receives the coded message he has been waiting for with great anticipation: "The Eagle has landed."

Jack Higgins' bestselling novel was published almost 30 years ago, but its taut storyline and inventive blend of fact and fiction place this World War II thriller in the ranks of the best books of the genre. His descriptions of historical characters -- such as Adolf Hitler -- and his references to actual historical events give the whole scenario verisimilitude. All the characters -- hero, anti-hero, and even villains -- are well-developed and believable. Higgins also has the creative chutzpah of injecting a first-person narrator named Jack Higgins, making the book sound like a reporter's expose of a German mission so daring that it had to be covered up by the Allies.

The novel launched Higgins' career into almost instant fame, and in turn inspired a 1977 film version starring Michael Caine, Robert Duvall, Donald Sutherland, and Joanna Miles. It was followed in the mid-1980s by a sequel, The Eagle Has Flown.

28 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Classic WW2 suspense novel, December 23, 1999

By 

Jeff Cordell - See all my reviews

This review is from: The EAGLE HAS LANDED (Paperback)

The Eagle Has Landed is probably Jack Higgins best work. For almost fifteen years prior to this novels publication in 75 he had been turning out potboilers that took place among the London mob, the IRA, the Sicilian mafia, ex-Nazis hiding in South America. His books were solid, enertaining, and rather forgettable. But with Eagle Higgins found his stride. It's a classic WW2 suspense novel which takes all the cliches and combines them to make a rather fresh and exciting work. You actually find yourself hoping the German commandos pull it off. The book raised a few eyebrows when it came out because it was written predominately from the German point of view and the Germans were - for the most part - portrayed positively. I've read the book several times over the past sixteen years and have viewed the movie - also well done - several times as well. It moves quickly and is very engrossing. Unfortunly Eagle was Higgins high point - one which he has been working hard to recover ever since. His following books have been allright reading but he's never approached the quality of The Eagle Has Landed. If you're new to his work start off with Eagle and then try Storm Warning. After those two you're on your own. Eagle is excellent though.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars CAN'T PUT DOWN TYPE OF THRILLER, March 23, 2003

By 

Denis Benchimol Minev "Amazonia" (Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Eagle Has Landed (Paperback)

In my opinion, this is the very best Higgins book. It is the type of novel that once into it, the reader simply cannot put down, especially after the team lands in England.

The premise of the story is a group of Germans that have a mission to kidnap Churchill. The leader, Kurt Steiner, a paratrooper, is a very compelling character, which makes th readers simpathize with him. On the other side is Liam Devlin, a former IRA fighter, helping the team in England.

The story unfolds seamlessly, with the German team recruiting help in England of nazi simpathizers, then moving in and planning the kidnap at Churchill's country estate.

As they are almost ready for the kidnapping, two children almost drown and one of the Germans tries to help them, blowing his cover. Then I should say no more, as the story becomes a thriller that the reader just cannot put down. It ends in an unexpected climax.

Though early in Higgins' career, I think this remains his very best, though it does not mean his later books are bad, just that this one is really good.