My Review
I must be a sucker for sad books. Historical fiction is my favorite genre to read and it mirrors true historical events that have happened. There are a lot of tragic events that have happened in past history. I enjoy reading the description of events leading up to a historic event,
even a sad one.
The history is past and I can't change it but I sure would like to take the characters and say don't do that, or run away, so and so is going to happen to you if you don't do a certain thing. They say hind sight is 2o/20, whoever they are.
Not sure it does any good anyway.
I have read a lot of books about World War II but what fascinated me about this is the book deals with little known events during World War II. I have heard of war pigeons but in this book you will find the full scope of how useful they were .
I felt a compassion for the pigeons especially the main one,
Duchess who is based on an actual war pigeon.
With bombs raining down and war shelters debatable if they even offered proper shelter this story of the London Blitz is amazing . So many men,women and children perished under the Nazi reign.
The Long Flight Home is about outstanding courage during one of our darkest times. Such strength and resilience despite the odds being against them! I strongly recommend this book!
Published June 25th 2019 by Kensington Publishing Corp. I was given a complimentary copy of this book. Thank you. All opinions expressed are my own.
GoodReads Summary
Inspired by fascinating, true, yet little-known events during World War II, The Long Flight Home is a testament to the power of courage in our darkest hours—a moving, masterfully written story of love and sacrifice. It is September 1940—a year into the war—and as German bombs fall on Britain, fears grow of an impending invasion. Enemy fighter planes blacken the sky around the Epping Forest home of Susan Shepherd and her grandfather, Bertie. After losing her parents to influenza as a child, Susan found comfort in raising homing pigeons with Bertie. All her birds are extraordinary to Susan—loyal, intelligent, beautiful—but none more so than Duchess. Hatched from an egg that Susan incubated in a bowl under her grandfather’s desk lamp, Duchess shares a special bond with Susan and an unusual curiosity about the human world. Thousands of miles away in Buxton, Maine, a young crop-duster pilot named Ollie Evans has decided to travel to Britain to join the Royal Air Force. His quest brings him to Epping and to the National Pigeon Service, where Susan is involved in a new, covert assignment. Codenamed Source Columba, the mission aims to air-drop hundreds of homing pigeons in German-occupied France. Many will not survive. Those that do make the journey home to England can convey crucial information on German troop movements—and help reclaim the skies from the Luftwaffe. The friendship between Ollie and Susan deepens as the mission date draws near. When Ollie’s plane is downed behind enemy lines, both know how remote the chances of reunion must be. Yet Duchess’s devotion and her singular sense of duty will become an unexpected lifeline, relaying messages between Susan and Ollie as war rages on—and proving, at last, that hope is never truly lost.
About The Author
Born
The United States
Website
https://www.alanhlad.com/
AlanHlad
Genre
Historical Fiction, Fiction, World War II
Alan Hlad is a corporate executive turned writer. He is a member of the Historical Novel Society, Literary Cleveland, and the Akron Writers' Group. Alan lives in Ohio with his wife and children. The Long Flight Home is his first novel. You can find him online at alanhlad.com, Facebook.com/AuthorAlanHlad and on Instagram @AlanHlad.
Thank you for visiting my blog today.
Please subscribe and don't miss any posts.
