4 out of 4 stars
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The Warramunga's War written by Greg Kater is a historical war novel set during the later years of World War II. It is centered on the characters of Sergeant Jack O'Brien who is half Warramunga and Captain James Munro. Both men were part of the Australian Force fighting the pro-Nazi Vichy French in the Middle East. They met each other during a battle in the heights of the Wadi Damour in Beirut, July 1941. Then they were recruited as part of an Intelligence Unit to be stationed in Cairo, Egypt. Their goal was to infiltrate the operations of suspected German agents. Amidst the challenges of their tasks, there were a series of brutal rapes and murders in Cairo. Jacko and Jamie tried to help the investigating officer solve the mystery.
Eventually, the guys returned to Australia and were appointed to the Northern Commonwealth Investigation Service. Their first assignment led them on a hunt through the Australian countryside, in search of two men suspected of working for the Germans. The chase escalated when the officers learned that there was a gang of criminals passing through the towns and leaving behind a trail of robberies, kidnapping, and murder.
At first, I was a bit unsure about reading a historical war novel. This book is so much more. The plot was intricate and had a variety of themes. Yes, the story is centered on the war, but then it delves into so many other things. There was a nice mix of humor, intrigue, mystery, and romance which kept the story very entertaining. The scenes were well described and very realistic. The author did a really great job of describing the landscape of Australia. The high level of detail showed that it was obviously thoroughly researched. The grammar was excellent and the story seemed professionally edited.
A few times, the conversations and descriptions did feel a bit drawn out which slowed the momentum of the story. This did not take away from the quality of this book.
Overall, this is a very good novel. I gave this book a rating of 4 out of 4 stars. It can appeal to a wide cross-section of people because there were many different aspects to it. I would recommend this book to those who enjoy historical war stories with drama, espionage, and adventure. I would not recommend this for people who do not particularly like historical war stories.
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The Warramunga's War
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