Sons of the Black Hand [Paperback]

Carolyn Kvajic (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 4, 2004

In the early 1990s, the war in Yugoslavia is reaching its climax, and the political landscape is overrun by profiteers of war. The international community is outwardly stymied on action in the Balkans, yet key players are pulling the political strings behind the scenes and gambling with the most profitable of modern-day, international commodities—arms and ammunitions. Alexandra Miletic is a young journalist of Croatian origin working for a newspaper in Miami and investigating a series of recent mail bomb attacks. Alex’s investigation uncovers the deadly link where the past collides with the present, embroiling her in an international web of Serbian assassins, a secret arms running operation filtering guns and ammunition to Bosnia and the U.S. government’s desire to keep it all secret. In her quest to discover the truth, she stumbles into a centuries-old tradition of revenge and blood lust and finds herself yet another player in a complex, international game of friend or foe.

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: PublishAmerica (May 4, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 141372051X
• ISBN-13: 978-1413720518
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,496,663 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Non-stop, can't put it down thriller, August 4, 2004

By 

Nancy S "Ridergirl" (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sons of the Black Hand (Paperback)

The French call it a Macedonian salad....meaning, a little bit of this and a little bit of that, all mixed up in a salad bowl. Well, take that Macedonian mixture and toss it up with a few Serb assassins, a Croat heroine, a German bad guy, a few too many American tow-the-partyline FBI and politician-types and plant them all in the midst of the Balkans war in the 1990s. What you have is a glaring indictment of the powers that BE holding a lighted match in the land of the cultural tinderbox.

Sons of the Black Hand is a non-stop, political thriller, taking aim at the profiteers of war. At the heart of the conflict is Alexandra Miletic, a young journalist of Croatian origin working for a newspaper in Miami and investigating a series of recent mail bomb attacks whose investigation uncovers a deadly link of Serbian assassins, a secret arms running operation filtering guns and ammunition to Bosnia and the U.S. government's desire to keep it all secret.

Simply put, the book is a page turner and you might learn something about a part of the world that has been purposefully complicated for political purposes. Highly recommended for those interested in going beyond front page headline news.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Debut Novel., June 15, 2004

By 

Roger Marsland (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sons of the Black Hand (Paperback)

Sons of the Black Hand by Carolyn Kvajic is an excellent debut novel that I found difficult to put down. The story is steeped in history from two World Wars and conflicts between ethnic groups in the Balkans that unravels in the USA. With such a good debut novel I cant wait for her next book.

5.0 out of 5 stars Sons of the Black Hand, January 13, 2012

By 

Helene Rochstein - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sons of the Black Hand (Paperback)

This is a great book for several reasons.

It introduces the reader into a very complex and poorly understood history of the area which was historically of vital importance for

central Europe as well as for world peace. The area is the Balkan peninsula. It is divided between several ethnic groups, and several major religions. Living in there is like living on the top of a volcano... may erupt anytime.

The last major eruption was in the early 90's. The world became nervous because it was reminded of the 1st. and the 2nd. World Wars.

Major countries became major players on diplomatic as well as on conflict fields.

The writer of the Sons of the Black Hand created an account which is historical, fictional, thriller-like, and solution-seeking, where the only solution points to seeking the world peace. How does one find peace if there is no love?

Absence of love is absence of peace. How does one find love?

The writer tries to explore the problem of love. However, love on purely physical level creates more problems.

The novel The Sons of the Black Hand may be applicable to any War and Peace condition of any time and of any place. What have we learned as the world falls into new wars and ever new conflicts?

Therefore, the problem of war in the world continues until... ?