Customer Reviews

Sands of Sakkara

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Overall I enjoyed this book. Yes, much of the book was unbelievable, and how Jack Halder and Rachel Stern continued to elude capture throughout the book was a bit overdone. I overlooked these factors, however, and just tried to enjoy the storyline and the thrilling conclusion. The characters, both heroes and villians, were very interesting and the setting was exotic. If you are looking for history, forget it. However if you enjoy espionage thrillers, particularly those set in WWII, this may be for you. A bit of advice, don't overanalyze. Just relax, the story will take you along and give you an enjoyable and thrilling ride.

It's the fall of 1943. Allied bombing is slowly destroying the city of Berlin, and the Third Reich is drawing to an end. In desperation, SS General Walter Schellenberg comes up with a brilliant plan to assassinate the United States president when both Roosevelt and Churchill attend the conference in Cairo to discuss the invasion plans for Europe. With the approval of Hitler, the plan is to have Jack Halder (a man of German/American descent and the Abwehr's best field agent) infiltrate Cairo and prepare the way for a crack team of German SS paratroops to fly in and carry out the assassination. Jack has to find out exactly where Roosevelt is staying and then figure out how to get around the security measures to kill him. He'll have the help of Rachel Stern, a woman he once loved and who has been in a concentration camp for the past four years. Both Jack and Rachel lived in Cairo during the late Thirties and know the city like the back of their hand. They have also been told that if they don't succeed in this vital mission, members of their families will be killed as punishment. There's no turning back for the two of them. In Cairo, Harry Weaver, an officer in U.S. military intelligence, gets wind of the plot to assassinate the American president and is determined to stop it at all cost. What Harry doesn't realize is that he may have to kill the man who was once his best friend and the woman who stole his heart in order to prevent the assassination. Harry, Jack and Rachel have no way of knowing the strange path that destiny has chosen for them to follow, nor how they will react when the moment of truth arrives. THE SANDS OF SAKKARA by Glenn Meade is a crisp, cat-and-mouth thriller that brings back fond memories of the early novels of Alistair MacLean and Jack Higgins. Though the final outcome of the novel might be predictable to some readers, the actual fun is the journey of getting there. Both Jack and Harry are honorable and brave men who must overcome insurmountable odds to accomplish their missions, not to mention having to eventually choose between duty and friendship. The two men are also still in love with Rachel Stern and will do whatever it takes to keep her from harm's way. I found myself really liking the characters of Harry Weaver and Jack Halder, and was surprisingly moved by the ending of the book. I also enjoyed the play of historical facts with fiction and how Mr. Meade was able to weave them together into a suspenseful novel, while at the same time perfectly capturing the atmosphere of both wartime Cairo and Berlin. All in all, THE SANDS OF SAKKARA is an excellent weekend read that's filled with adventure, heroism, treachery, and romance.

Glenn Meade's novel 'The Sands of Sakkara' is a well thought out page turner that fans of World War Two spy fiction will love. The story revolves around two friends, Harry Weaver and Jack Halder, who find themselves on opposite sides of a plot to kill the President of the United States. Set during the Cairo conference of 1943, Halder is sent to scope out the security surrounding Roosevelt so that Otto Skorzeny's crack SS commandos can move in. But British intelligence soon learns of the plan and tries to stop him with the help of American Lt. Col. Harry Weaver. In the center of the action, and these two men's lives, is Rachel Stern, the woman they both love. Though the plot does bog down at times, it nevertheless captures the spirit of some of the best World War Two spy thrillers. A lot of fun.

Read all 3 Meade books. This is the best. Blend of Cussler,Higgins and Ludlum. Nice combo of archaeology, intrigue and an ending that even caught me off guard. I'll re-read this one!

A am approximately half way through this novel. It is the first book I have read by Mr. Meade and I am enjoying it immensely, I cannot wait to read his earlier offerings. That said, I am somewhat of an ameteur history buff and it bothers me when I see easily researched historical fact presented incorrectly. For example, Mr. Meade refers to Paulus's 5th army at Stalingrad when in fact Paulus comanded the 6th army. In addition, President Roosevelt did not suffer from childhood polio he caught it as an adult.

I know I am being picky about an otherwise wonderful novel, however it is possible to learn quite a bit about history by reading good historical fiction. Accordingly I believe an author has a responsibility to his or her readers to present such facts accurately, particularly if such facts do not get in the way of the story.

Having read all three of Glenn Meade's books, his latest represents a slump for this talented author. The Sands Of Sakkara is not a bad book; in fact, it is an entertaining read, though fairly predictable. Comparatively, however, an unfortunate trend appears to be emerging with Meade. His latest is not as good as his previous book, Brandenburg, and Brandenburg is not as good as his first,Snow Wolf. To me, Snow Wolf is one of the best historical thrillers I''ve read in many years.

This is the first Glenn Meade book I've read and it definitely won't be the last. As an English and History grad, the period particularly interests me, and Meade did not disappoint, not by a long shot. Wonderful setting, dramatic, dynamic characters, a terrific twist at the end, and a story based on fact. Having read some of the reviews that cribbed about the implausabile plot, I can only direct them to read the real story Meade loosely based his tale upon--I came across it some years ago in a book about the history of the NKVD (The Soviet Union's Secret Police, pre KGB)--yes, Sands of Sakkara really is based on a true story) And the actual true story of how the Nazis attempted to kill Rossevelt and Churchill--called Operation Longjump--is wildly unbeliveable--so much that I doubt any reader would believe it for a minute. Yet it happened. I think Meade, in his wisdom, has actually made the story more credible, and told it wonderfully--with drama and emotion. He's also a terrific writer. I look forward to reading his other novels.

Sands of Sakkara is set in 1943. The war is starting to go bad for the Nazis, so they decide to launch an audacious plot to murder U.S. President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, as he meets British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, for a conference, in Cairo. They hope this assasination will turn the tide of war back in their favour.

Enter the books main characters, Harry Weaver, Jack Halder, and Rachel Stern. Three people from different backgrounds, who became close friends, during an archelogical dig, in Egypt, back in 1939. However, the fortunes of war sees them on opposing sides, and their friendships tested to the limit.

I found this book an enjoyable read, with a relentless pace, particularly towards the end. Character development is good, and I really felt for two of the protaganists, in particular, and the desperate situation that they had been forced into, by the Nazis.

The only drawback to the book, I felt, was that there was an element of 'Keystone Cops' at times, when the authorities were trying to chase down the spies. Overall, though a good read.

This is a wonderful World War II story. It is unique in that it details the attempted assassination of Roosevelt and Churchill by the Germans, during their Cairo Conference in Egypt. There are three key characters in the book, Jack, Rachael and Harry, who were friends, and at times lovers, before the outbreak of the war. Each is extremely well developed, as are the convoluted and at times desperate relationships between the three of them. The story essentially deals with a contest between Jack, who has been dispatched to Cairo by the SS with the task of carrying out the assassinations, and Jack, who has been assigned (by US military intelligence) the task of preventing the assassinations from happening. This novel is a wonderful combination of suspense and adventure, set in wartime Berlin and Cairo, and I believe that Meade has done an excellent job of describing the atmosphere of those two locations during World War II. The novel is classical Glenn Meade and I wholeheartedly recommend it.

Being a big fan of the WW II espionage thriller and not having read one in a while, I looked forward to reading this book. Not far into it I realized that I read it already some 20 years ago when it was called THE EAGLE HAS LANDED. While SANDS is reminiscient of EAGLE it doesn't hold a candle to the Higgins classic.

It took me four weeks to finish this book. Four weeks!!! That's how un-suspenseful and un-compelling I found this story. I read SHOGUN in less time.

Meade's 3 main characters are paper thin, unsympathetic and just downright DULL. The back cover leads one to believe that you are going to read a thrilling cat and mouse pursuit between two friends who wind up on opposite sides of the war. Nothing like this happens. Weaver, the American "intelligence" officer, merely tags along behind Sanson, the British intel officer who figures out the threat, interprets all the evidence and does all the leg work. Halder, the German "super spy" thinks he can win the war without getting his, or anyone else's hair mussed. If you keep reading looking for the dramatic showdown when these two friends and the woman they both love confront each other, save yourself some time, it never really happens.

Skip this one and pick up a copy of THE EAGLE HAS LANDED by Jack Higgins or EYE OF THE NEEDLE by Ken Follet.