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The Burning Blue
  • Published: 2 August 2004
  • ISBN: 9780099436478
  • Imprint: Arrow
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 544
  • RRP: $39.99
Categories:

The Burning Blue




An epic story of love, loss and friendship, set against the powerful backdrop of World War Two, from the dogfights of the Battle of Britain to the deserts of North Africa. A gripping war book from the Sunday Times bestselling author of Fortress Malta: An Island Under Siege, The Burning Blue is a must-buy for fans of Sebastian Faulks and of Rosamunde Pilcher's Coming Home.

Joss Lambert has always been a loner, constrained by a secret from his past, until he finds friendship and solace firstly with Guy Liddell, a friend from school, and then with Guy's family, who welcome him into their farmhouse home. Joss increasingly comes to depend upon the Liddells and treats Alvesdon Farm as the one place where he feels not only appreciated but also truly happy. But in late 1930s England, the idyll cannot last.

With war looming, Joss is forced to confront the past. He escapes through flying, becoming a fighter pilot in the RAF. But with the onset of war, even the Liddells' world is crumbling. As Joss is fighting for his life in the Battle of Britain, so he begins to fall madly in love with Stella - Guy's twin - but with tragic consequences. Leaving England and the Liddells far behind, he continues to fly amid the sand and heat of North Africa's deserts, flying above the 'Desert Rats' of the 8th Army, until his hopes and dreams are seemingly shattered for good...

  • Published: 2 August 2004
  • ISBN: 9780099436478
  • Imprint: Arrow
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 544
  • RRP: $39.99
Categories:

About the author

James Holland

James Holland is an internationally acclaimed and award-winning historian, writer, and broadcaster. The author of a number of best-selling histories including Battle of Britain, Dam Busters, Burma ’44 and, most recently, Big Week, he has also written nine works of historical fiction, including the Jack Tanner novels.

He is currently writing an acclaimed three-volume new history of the Second World War, The War in the West. He has presented – and written – many television programmes and series for the BBC, Channel 4, National Geographic, History and Discovery Channels.

He is also co-founder of the Chalke Valley History Festival and co-founder of WarGen.org, an online Second World War resource site, and presents the Chalk Valley History Hit podcast. A fellow of the Royal Historical Society, he also has a weekly podcast with Al Murray, We Have Ways of Making You Talk: Al Murray and James Holland Talk World War II. He can be found on Twitter as @James1940.

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Praise for The Burning Blue

This beautifully written book is a work of exceptional authenticity. The descriptions of life in the late 1930s and the intensity of the air battles revive many recollections and make for compelling reading.

Geoffrey Wellum, former Battle of Britain pilot and author of First Light

Full of wartime atmosphere. Once again I could see the vapour trails, hear the Spitfire engines and the lofty crackle of machine guns

Leslie Thomas, author of Waiting for the Day

The ear-popping action sequences are tremendously exciting ... the pastoral scenes reveal a deep and genuine love of the countryside and its age-old traditions. Holland leaves one in no doubt what ordinary British folk were fighting for

Sunday Telegraph

There can seldom have been a better, nor more detailed, evocation of exactly what it was like to fly - and die - in the clear blue skies above the English Channel in those heady days in the summer and autumn of 1940

Daily Mail

He has joined the few who can bring history to life

Guardian

A satisfying, old-fashioned story of one man’s struggle to overcome his past and find true love

Woman and Home

Clearly, Holland has a deep knowledge of life in the 1930s and 40s, both civil and military, because every page oozes with authenticity ... a heartwarming homage to courage, honour, friendship and love ... Highly recommended, and five stars out fo five

Ben Kane, author of Spartacus: Rebellion