Customer Reviews

Follow Me To Glory

5 star:		(11)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

A PLEASUREABLE READ WITH UNMATCHED HISTORICAL ACCURACY. THE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT IS SUPERB. THE EXPLORATION OF THE MILITARY VIRTUES HARKENS BACK TO AN EARLIER TIME. THE POLITICAL CONTEXT OF THE NOVEL RINGS TRUE AND THROUGH TO TODAY. HUTCHISON IS TRUE TO HIS SCOTISH ROOTS WHILE BRINGING HONOR TO THE GENRE OF THE HISTORICAL NOVEL.

Yes, this book goes beyond a good read, it's engaging, accurate and enthralling. Any book that entraps and commands continuance is a book well researched and well written. From the first page through to the final close I was totally involved in what has to be one of the better works I've read in a long while.

Wow! I must've read a different book than Greg W. I thoroughly enjoyed Follow Me To Glory. I received it as a gift and, as a female, my first thought was, "A war book??" But I have to say Hutchison had me from the opening paragraph with the sights, sounds and smells of war. His attention to detail is second to none - I could see in my mind a perfect picture of the uniforms, the facial expressions and the scenery. His character descriptions I thought were anything but 'cutouts' - I found them brought to life enough for me to feel some kind of emotion for each one - be it love, disdain or dislike. And I truly enjoyed the relationship aspect of the story. All's fair in love and war. I felt the love scenes to be far more than just gratuitous sex and I really enjoyed the turnaround that Hutchison used with the female as the story progressed. (I don't want to give away any secrets!) I'm not an English major either but I found this book to be compelling. It's definitely on my gift list.

This is a thrilling and historically accurate novel that takes place during the Crimean War. It is a wonderful character study of a Scottish Guards soldier and his struggle toward greatness. The historical aspects are flawless and the story is dramatic, and one that lingers with you long after you turn the last page.

US Army and Marine Corps officer Will Hutchison engaged in extensive research and interviews with serving and retired Scots Guards officers while writing Follow Me To Glory, an exciting novel about high-spirited Scottish nobleman who, despite the odds stacked against him, battles to become a skilled fighting officer in one of the most prestigious regiments of the British Army during the Crimean War. He wanted nothing more in his life than to lead men to war - but the glory he craved would come at a horrific price. A tautly written saga of the valor and bloodshed of combat, penned with meticulous attention to historical detail.

I love this novel; it's a great escape from the modern world as well as an entertaining and enlightening European military history lesson. There are a variety of colorful characters including Jasmine, who is an unusual woman for the 1800's. Ian, the hero of the story is intriguing in his own right as he defies the rules of society and the wishes of his father, to follow his own dreams on the battlefield.

It is obvious that Mr. Hutchison is schooled in military strategy though he conveys his knowledge in language a civilian can easily understand and appreciate. Detailed maps and illustrations further enlighten the non military reader, while the erotic love affair woven throughout the story keeps Ian and the reader guessing. I would strongly recommend this novel.
Dani Brown author "An Untimely Death"

FOLLOW ME TO GLORY

Lieutenant Ian Carlyle springs instantly to life and keeps you reveling in the minute details of combat with the Scots Fusilier Guards. You can feel the fear, self-doubt, eventual sense of accomplishment, and joy of survival right alongside Ian Carlyle and the other ranks under his fine command. This is a wonderful historical novel; a coming of age story set smack-dab in the middle of the major engagements of the Crimean War.
Hyper-realistic portrayals of courage in its many forms make for a cracking-good tale that keeps you turning pages long into the night.

This is a gritty tale that superbly mixes historical figures with authentic characters. You can experience the combat through their eyes and emotions. The action is riveting and coupled with lusty diversions that unerringly depict the period. A natural story-teller, Will Hutchison lets you see Crimean War combat through Lieutenant Ian Carlyle's eyes; direct, immediate, muddy, and powder stained. Nobody has created a more detailed and intimate look at personal and small unit fighting in the Crimea.

Wow! I must have read a different book than the rest of the reviewers. The book I read, while historically accurate, seemed to be written at a 5th grade level. I truly appreciate the author's attention to historical detail and his battle maps, but that is about it. The characters were cardboard cutouts with "standard" roles:- the handsome always-right officer who really cares for his troops; the hooker with a heart of gold; the over-bearing aristocratic buffoon company commander; the big hearted corporal who becomes the colour-sergeant; and so on. But none are fleshed out and all are one-dimensional.
I am not an English major and no expert in novel writing. I just know that when the book flows I stay interested and can't put it down. This book gathered a lot of dust before I forced myself to finish it. The writing is choppy, the descriptions of places and events lacking. It was the reading equivalent of watching a old "B" grade movie in black and white. Good idea for a story but poor execution. There were a few other things I found disconcerting. What is with the three page chapters? Why the gratuitous sex?
If you want to read some really good stories in this genre you need to read Patrick O'Brien or even Bernard Cornwell. Their characters have flaws, and personalities, and emotions, and just seem real.

This was a new genre for me: Historical Military Fiction. Unexpectedly, I was wowed by the personal story of the young officer, Ian Carlyle, the historical detail, and the multitude of well-developed and fascinating characters. Some were flamboyant, some heroic, some loathsome - just as you would expect in such a novel. The stress and extreme hardship of military service in the 1850's brings out the best and worst of character traits, and the author peppered the story with a wide range of characters embodying the gamut of these. They are not caricatures, but really well-fleshed out men giving their absolute best and worst in battle. This is not a boring account of the Crimean War - far from it. It is an up close and personal time capsule and you are there with the Scots Fusilier Guards. It is sometimes heartbreaking and poignant, sometimes glorious and uplifting, sometimes actually funny and always worth turning the page. The author is working on a sequel to the Ian Carlyle story, which I look forward to reading.

I have read many, many novels concerning the history of the British Isles from pre-Roman Britan through the Second World War and Will Hutchison's "Follow Me to Glory" contains the best descriptions of the mechanics of battles, hands down, that I have ever read. Through Ian Carlyle's eyes for the first time I really feel I understand how a battle really works, how the movements of individuals, of groups of soldiers, riflemen, cavalrymen actually interact and affect the outcome of a battle. In this regard he bests even Cornwell, O'Brian, Forester and Scarrow. Bravo, bravo, bravo! I look forward to buying and reading all future Ian Carlyle novels.