The Last Lieutenant [Paperback]

John J. Gobbell (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: St Martins Pr (1995)
• ASIN: B000OTGHHM
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Escape from Corregidor, August 30, 2000

By 

Cody Carlson (Salt Lake City, UT United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Lieutenant: In The Heat Of A Great Battle, The Fate Of A Country Rests In His Hands... (Paperback)

'The Last Lieutenant' tells the story of the brave men and woman who served on the fortess island of Corregidor in the Phillipines during the brutal Japanese onslaught and a fictional account of a daring escape. Lt. Todd Ingram and rag-tag bunch of navy and army men escape the horror of the Japanese attack in a small patrol boat with which they hope to make it to Austrailia. With the Japanese air force and navy hot on his tail Ingram must use all of his cunning to evade the Pacific aggressors. But Ingram has another mission as well: serving in a US navy uniform is a Nazi spy that knows the details about the Midway offensive. If this spy warns the Japanese in time what's left of the US Pacific fleet is doomed. The story that follows is a thrilling race between the two men to reach civilization. A lot of fun and a wonderful view of the battle for the Phillipines.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Continuous action, January 8, 2002

By 

John T. Campbell (Broomall, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Last Lieutenant: In The Heat Of A Great Battle, The Fate Of A Country Rests In His Hands... (Paperback)

Lt. Todd Ingram is all that stands between a German spy and the revelation of U.S. preparations against the Japanese attack on Midway. This is a fast paced, well plotted story based on the true flight of Americans sailors and soldiers from Corregidor. The description of the bombardment of Corregidor and the ordeal of its defenders was captivating. The details are mostly accurate and the writing competant, but there are a few distracting lapses: a confusion between the words vice and vise, an inexplicable dearth of Aye, aye, sir in a story filled with naval personnel, a navy lieutenant calling an army major by his first name (majors outrank navy lieutenants), and Japanese depth charges detonate within milliseconds of each other. This would be a trick even with today's technology. Also this reader cringed when the author wrote Wham! six times in succession in four different places.
This aside, The Last Lieutenant held my interest when few novels do these days. As you might guess, I'm a tough critic. From this member of the Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club to the author, another member of that club, I say Well Done.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very moving description of the defensive battle & excape., July 23, 1999

By 

David L. Wood, P.E. (North Richland Hills, Texas USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Last Lieutenant: In The Heat Of A Great Battle, The Fate Of A Country Rests In His Hands... (Paperback)

This is July 1999. In Jan this year, I went on tour of Corregidor; Malinta Tunnel, the Batteries Geary, Way, Weever and others, Top Side, Middle Side, and Bottom Side, the 1000 bed hospital, south dock, north dock, and the bombed out hulk remains of the US-Filipino garrison. This very wonderful and moving book brought it all together. I consider it a must reading to any one who remembers anything about the Pacific War. Every thing described about the battle,the bombs, the mortars, and the geographic area is factual, as I have been over half of the trip covered by that brave crew in route to Mindanao, especially the rough Verde Passage. It is a fantastic piece of work and any one wondering about the necessity of "being prepared" should read it very carefully. I've been to Corregidor twice, and will go again next year. The mention of the Filipino family that attended Texas A&M for two generations was interesting. There were 26 former Texas A&M men (Aggies) on the Rock during the battle, the most famous, General George Moore. These Aggies held a Muster on 21 April 1942, under fire, as all Aggies do every year, around the world, to honor General Sam Houston, and the fight for Texas Independance in 1836. General MacArthur wrote a letter of commendation about the bravery of those Aggies and the Muster. It was published natiojnally and in the New york Times. A plaque hangs on the campus of Texas A&M with the names of those brave Aggies who went down with Corregidor. This book brings it all home, full circle.... Thanks!