First modern [non-WW2] book on SAS that I have read. Gripping tale of SAS operators and their actions worldwide. As it is always the case with this sort of history books do not expect that all secrets of the trade will be revealed. ( )

First modern [non-WW2] book on SAS that I have read. Gripping tale of SAS operators and their actions worldwide. As it is always the case with this sort of history books do not expect that all secrets of the trade will be revealed. ( )

This was a fairly quick read. I thought the author did a good job keeping the story going. A lot of military biographies are so slow getting to the point in their career where they are doing the stuff that made them famous. They feel the need to go on and on about some point in their life that doesn't really make the book any more interesting. Andy McNab seems to have side-stepped that landmine and gets you to the good stuff pretty quick.

I love reading about the military. I am extremely fascinated with special forces soldiers as the hardships they go through just to become special forces soldiers are more than many people are able to bear.

Having said that, I have to say that my favorite part about this book was not how difficult things were for the author. Yes, there were times in the book where I was glad I was in the comfort of my bed reading about it instead of being in the jungle at night, or in the cold and damp Irish night patrolling for IRA types. That stuff was interesting, but the main thing I enjoyed was the author's honesty about his own shortcomings. Especially, the shortcomings in his personal relationships.

If I recall correctly, he went through 3 different women in the course of the book. However, he makes it pretty clear that he was generally the cause of it due to his own selfishness. I find that kind of brutal honesty lacking in so many biographies. Take for example, Rogue Warrior by Richard Marcinko. That was a good book filled with all kinds of SF type exploits, but good grief! He probably has to drive a pickup truck just to haul around his ego.

If there was one thing I found lacking in this book, it was that it kind of left you hanging at the end. I wanted to hear more about his life in the "regiment". I have yet to read his other book, Bravo Two Zero, about his experience in the 1991 Gulf War. That will probably fill in some gaps for me.

One final caveat for the non-English(as in United Kingdom) reader. There are a lot of terms that are used in the book that are quite odd to the foreigner. There is a glossary in the book, but you'll still possibly get confused by the fair amount of slang thrown around. I spent some time over in England so some of the terms I understood. However, I still found myself trying to make sense of certain terms or phrases that weren't in the glossary. It wasn't enough to make the book unreadable though. ( )

http://www.austcrimefiction.org/node/3256 ( )

A good book. Gives good description of life inside the SAS and the British army in general. ( )