The Soldier Spies [Large Print] [Paperback]

W. E. B. Griffin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 2000

"Griffin's plot stays hot and moves at quicksilver speed." --Kirkus Reviews

Two Americans in the just-born Office of Strategic Services take on their most important assignment during World War II: to extract--or eliminate--those Germans with the expertise to develop the atomic bomb.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The third installment and first hardcover printing of Griffin's series of WWII espionage novels (originally published under the pseudonym Alex Baldwin) once again conjures up the year 1942, an era when men were boys and women were, well... large breasted. Between bed hopping and libidinous musings, intrepid secret agents Major Richard Caniday (who's really not a major) and Eric Fulmar, members of the fledging OSS, aim to smuggle out of Germany the scientist whose knowledge of metallurgy holds the key to the Third Reich's development of jet engines. The professor has a lovely daughter, of course, who is being sexually used by the sleazy Nazis; she is also used by double agents in the German high command as a tool to help undermine Hitler's mad schemes. Other plot lines explore Fulmar's mission in Morocco and the Allies' attempt to develop a "flying bomb" of their own. Cameos by such historical figures as William "Wild Bill" Donovan, Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., David Niven and Peter Ustinov lend color to a story so cluttered with specific detail concerning uniforms, automobiles, airplanes and women's silk undergarments that readers may wonder how the war was won by people so obsessed by military protocol and mammary glands. Anachronisms in speech further mar the story, but after one gets past the multiple PG-13-rated sex scenes and hackneyed plot, there are suspenseful scenes of subterfuge and derring-do. Unfortunately for those who didn't read the previous volumes and who may miss the next, this book stops rather than concludes, leaving many painstakingly embroidered subplots unresolved.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Originally published as paperbacks under the name Alex Baldwin, Griffin's "Men at War" series is now being released in hardcover. In this installment, World War II has hit North Africa, and Lt. Joe Kennedy Jr. has some ideas about pilotless bombs.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 562 pages
• Publisher: Large Print Press (August 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568959788
• ISBN-13: 978-1568959788
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,971,480 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

W.E.B. Griffin is the author of more than thirty epic novels in five series, all of which have been listed on The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly and other best-seller lists. More than forty million of his books are in print in more than ten languages, including Hebrew, Chinese, Japanese, and Hungarian. Mr. Griffin grew up in the suburbs of New York City and Philadelphia. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1946. After basic training, he received counter-intelligence training at Fort Holabird, Maryland. He was assigned to the Army of Occupation in Germany, and ultimately to the staff of then-Major General I.D. White, commander of the U.S. Constabulary. In 1951, Mr. Griffin was recalled to active duty for the Korean War, interrupting his education at Phillips University, Marburg an der Lahn, Germany. In Korea he earned the Combat Infantry Badge as a combat correspondent and later served as acting X Corps (Group) information officer under Lieutenant General White. On his release from active duty in 1953, Mr. Griffin was appointed Chief of the Publications Division of the U.S. Army Signal Aviation Test & Support Activity at Fort Rucker, Alabama. Mr. Griffin is a member of the Special Operations Association, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, the Army Aviation Association, and the Armor Association. He was the 1991 recipient of the Brigadier General Robert L. Dening Memorial Distinguished Service Award of the U.S. Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, and the August 1999 recipient of the Veterans of Foreign Wars News Media Award, presented at the 100th National Convention in Kansas City. He has been vested into the Order of St. George of the U.S. Armor Association, and the Order of St. Andrew of the U.S. Army Aviation Association, and been awarded Honorary Doctoral degrees by Norwich University, the nation's first and oldest private military college, and by Troy State University (Ala.). He was the graduation dinner speaker for the class of 1988 at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He has been awarded honorary membership in the Special Forces Association; the Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association; the Marine Raiders Association; and the U.S. Army Otter & Caribou Association. He is the co-founder, with historian Colonel Carlo D'Este, of the William E. Colby Seminar on Intelligence, Military, and Diplomatic Affairs. Mr. Griffin's novels, known for their historical accuracy, have been praised by The Philadelphia Inquirer for their "fierce, stop-for-nothing scenes." "Nothing honors me more than a serviceman, veteran, or cop telling me he enjoys reading my books," Mr. Griffin says. Mr. Griffin divides his time between the Gulf Coast and Buenos Aires.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Delivers the goods., August 9, 1999

By 

Norman L. Olsen ([e-mail]) (Jakarta, Indonesian) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Soldier Spies: A Men at War Novel (Hardcover)

The Soldier Spies is classical but not great W.E.B. Griffin. It has what is fans have come to expect. Heroic characters in an engrossing plot. Language that at its best compares favorably with Herman Wouk and Scott Turow, and at its worse would draw reprimands from most conscientious eight grade English teachers. His faith in the moneyed classes continues unabated as does his rather juvenile view of women. The finish, traditionally weak in Griffin's books is especially limp in this volume. It reads as if he was late for an important social event and chose to stop in mid paragraph. But one reads Griffin for the flow not the finish, and for those of us who are fans, Soldier Spies once again delivers the basic goods. Bottom line: If you started the Men at War series you will enjoy reading the Soldier Spies and will happily purchase the next volume; if only to learn the fates of the spies and soldiers left stranded from Budapest to Manila. If you are new to Griffin start with the Marine Corps series.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars OK, October 26, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Soldier Spies: A Men at War Novel (Hardcover)

Not as good as The Corps books, or written in the searing '90's war fiction style of The Triumph and Glory or the more generally popular Schaara Civil War novels--but Griffin is still Griffin, he knows his stuff.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Poor showing from a good writer, August 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Soldier Spies: A Men at War Novel (Hardcover)

I normally like war time novels. I have read every one of W.E.B. Griffin's books, some several times. The Men at War series was originally written under his pen name Alec Baldwin, and came before all of his other series. This sequel to those two books is a poor follow-up to the first two. I felt the author was just going through the motions to make another buck after the re-release of the first two books in this series ( under his real name this time). Mr. Griffin, don't take this personally, but you can do a lot better.