Winner Lose All by William F. Brown

Winner Lose All. William F. Brown. Amazon Digital Services, Inc., March 2013. 544 KB.  ASIN #: B00CEOKUR8.  

WWII is almost at its brutal, ruthless end.  Our story begins with Ed Scanlon, an American OSS officer, and a British   SOE officer about to travel to Germany where they will parachute out of a warplane and begin a mission that they're told will be "a piece of cake."  Not quite! Instead he is wounded, saved by a Russian-German agent, Hanni Steiner.  They fall in love but Hanni knows theirs is an impossible relationship as she is the daughter of a famous Russian government official, one who would be heavily punished if she were to abandon her mission.  She's one gritty, tough gal and Scanlon is a fine match.

Scanlon is caught by Nazi soldiers under the leadership of Otto Dietrich, the Gestapo Chief of Leipzig, Germany, who relishes torturing enemy combatants.  Scanlon is broken by the torture before being rescued by Hanni and her colleagues and then forced to return to recover in England.  At first he refuses to consider any further mission, wanting "out" for good.  Why?  

The ultimate mission Scanlon is ordered to complete is to accompany five German scientists to England.  These scientists are brilliant, having invented a might warplane without the need for a propeller and other aspects that are revolutionary and would change the face of war forever, guaranteeing victory for whoever possessed such knowledge.  After a brief physical altercation with another officer, Scanlon is given a choice to spend the rest of his life in a military jail cell or complete the mission. The choice is obvious and he returns.

The caper turns out to be more complex as it seems there's quite a bit of competition with Russia, Germany, Great Britain and America all vying for these German scientists and the information they own, and the nations have no compunction about using each other to attain their devious goals.  

Winner Lose All is a tightly written thriller story that never stays still in one place for the reader to get complacent or even semi-bored.  One gets a good look at the machinations of world leaders like Stalin, his government and military leaders, Churchill of Great Britain and others who think out loud about each other and play their cards close to the vest until the right moment for pivotal action!  If you love war stories, political thrillers, adventure tales, and just straight, well-plotted action novels, this is your next read!  Nicely done, William F. Brown!

Thursday at Noon by William F. Brown

Thursday at Noon. William F. Brown. Published by Worldwide in 1989 and republished by William F. Brown on major E-Book publisher sites. June 2012. 316 pages. ISBN #: 9780373970803.

Richard Thomson is in big trouble with the CIA for whom he works.  He flubbed his last case and now has been assigned to Cairo, Egypt where he is treated like a virtual pariah.  One night while he's drowning his sorrows in a bar, he's approached by an Arab fellow who says he has some significant information that he needs to get to a particular person.  But Thomson thinks he's part of a grand trap to finish off Thomson's career for good and tells him to scoot.  The Arab is petrified but Thomson's not buying the story. So imagine his thoughts and feelings when he later finds that the man has been decapitated and that Thomson is believed to be either the murderer or the one responsible for his murder.  Here the terror really begins!

This is a story where Arabs and former SS Germans are seeking one goal, the destruction of Israel.  How will they do it?  When will it happen, if at all?  Why?  

Are the Arabs and Germans cooperating?  What do they think of each other?  Readers will be riveted as the skills and depths of cruelty vie with each other for these two groups.  And add to that there are Arab groups with different motives and goals and the same for the Germans.  Thomson who has been previously pickled in his own alcoholic pity party, now awakens to find out why the Israeli Landau has disappeared and perhaps been killed and more what he was after that seems to have caused his demise.

William F. Brown never disappoints!  His espionage/spy/political thrillers are very different and so very well-written.  A thrill to read and deserving of best-seller status!  Thursday at Noon is no exception!

Amongst My Enemies by William F. Brown

Amongst My Enemies. William F. Brown. Publisher - William F. Brown as E-Book. 348 Pages. ISBN #: 9781617506710.

Mike Randall is an American pilot shot down during World War II over Northern Germany, treated mercilessly as a German POW to do labor in conditions where one wondered whether one would freeze or starve to death first. While there, his buddy is dying and Mike makes a choice that will haunt him for the rest of his days. As if that were not enough, he is taken on a job and stows away on a ship carrying valuables stolen by the Germans from the captured and murdered Jews. A German officer allows Mike to go free but what follows literally minutes after he is placed in a boat to go ashore is a burden that causes Mike to have a physical and mental breakdown! War is indeed hell for Mike Randall!

After being cared for by a kind Swedish family, Mike years later sees a news story that he knows he must follow-up on - the identification of a German officer who is not who he says he is. Not to spoil the story, a journey begins in New York and continues in Germany that involves an American detective, former German military who are hidden but ever-plotting, Russians who are looking to guarantee the spread of Communism, and numerous other sharks who will maim and kill just like all the others to guarantee their own wealth and power.

No, this is not just another war story! William Brown takes the reader to the heights and dregs of the human condition, giving glimpses to the motives and relationships that are ruled by head and heart, sometimes but not always balanced or whole. On the other hand, there are many characters who understand what Mike has endured and why he must bring some type of closure to the past and perhaps redeem the ghosts that haunt him on a daily basis. He surprisingly is drawn into a relationship with a spunky female whom he fears because of his secret that she doesn't know, but even there the author credibly leads them into a compassionate and passionate place.

This is a story that speeds along like a Ken Follett or Eric Ludlum novel of old. For those who love adventure, thrills, and mystery with a tinge of romance, this novel will leave you breathless and wanting more from this skillful writer. Splendidly written!

The Undertaker by William F. Brown

The Undertaker. William F. Brown. Published by William F. Brown as e-book. January 2011. ISBN #9781617505119.

Peter Talbott is mourning the death of his wife and hardly beginning to move forward as so many things remind him of the loss of his love and best friend. Imagine his shock when he finds himself facing a mobster, Gino Parini's gun and the hood's insistence that he read his own obituary. So begins the race toward the truth when he decides to find out who has killed him off and why!

Peter's quest takes him first to a small town where he attends what is his own funeral, a sad affair attended by no one other than the town sheriff. More investigation amazes him as not only he and his wife's obituary are there but also other couples and a few individuals. As he enters this weird arena, he discovers a group of select people are behind something shady and even sick. Those people, the sheriff, the owner of a prestigious law firm connected to the government, a mortician, a senator, and others who are trying to stop Peter from finding out the truth and when that doesn't work they will try to kill him.

"Zero Defects" is a strong clue to the machinations of these sleezy characters whom even the Mob want to see disappear. But why? To tell more would be a spoiler, but be assured the nerve-wracking tension of this espionage novel is full of surprises, attacks, revelations, and a feisty, feminine gal unafraid to not only discover the truth but seek justice, no matter what the cost. You'll travel from Ohio to Chicago to Washington and more places all tied together in this sinister world of death after death. No one is innocent - not even the FBI!

No, you won't be able to guess the end of this tale until well toward the end - one that will startle you and leave you wanting more from this writer who knows how to spin a great, action-packed, crime-driven, thrilling story!

Well done, indeed, William F. Brown!!!