Last train from Kummersdorf by Leslie Wilson

Pretty much a nail-biting, cliff-hanging read all the way to the end. This is the story of two young Germans - Effi a spirited girl in the Resistance, and Hanno, an erstwhile Hitler Youth member who deserts the Army in the last days of the crumbling Thousand Year Reich.

Both of them are runaways fleeing westwards from the horrors of the advancing Red Army - Effi dreams of finding her father and a new life in America, while Hanno, traumatised by the death of his twin brother, simply wants to go home. Slowly, they learn to trust each other, and traversing the nightmarish landscape of war-torn Germany, they meet other refugees, each with his or her own tale of sorrow to tell.

This is one of the rare stories told from the perspective of German civilians during WWII, and is perhaps the author's attempt at atonement for the apathy of many and a celebration of the unsung courage of a few.

Bring on the sequel!

(Book cover photo: http://www.faber.co.uk)

The Spear by Louis de Wohl

A great read! Not my usual choice of book because of the overtly religious themes, but it ranks comparably with "Ben Hur" and "Quo Vadis" and outdoes both for pace, drama and action. Having said that, I wouldn't call it Booker Prize material!

De Wohl does an unusual take on the last days of Christ, seen from the eyes of a little-known historical/Biblical character: the young and disillusioned Roman Centurion Longinus who would be immortalised as the one who pierced the Lord's side with a spear. It's gripping to the end, and never feels preachy or fake, even though de Wohl quotes liberally from scripture.

4 stars because I can't stand the heroine Naomi, who faints at least 3 times and needs perpetual rescuing (usually by the dashing and handsome Cassius). Inspiring reading, and a real page turner!

(Book cover photo from: www.ignatiusinsight.com

Here Lies Arthur by Philip Reeve

An excellent and hilarious deconstruction of the Arthurian legend. No fair maidens, castles or mediaeval Lancelots and Guineveres prancing about - instead, Arthur is a violent, greedy Dark Age warlord and his companion Myrddin (Merlin) is a slick spin doctor minus a moral compass. The tale is told by Gwyna, a plain-faced young girl rescued by Myrddin, and together they create the most iconic, unforgettable story of the Arthurian legends - the gift of Excalibur to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake. The title of the book comes from a Latin phrase carved on Arthur's tomb at Glastonbury: "Here lies Arthur the once and future king." (Hic Jacet Arthurus Rex Quondam Rexque Futurus)

Moving, unputdownable, and an interesting counterpoint to Malory and other more traditional Arthurian tales where chivalry, love and honour dominate - this is a modern Arthurian retelling for a more cynical modern world. This book is a Carnegie Medal winner, and it's not difficult to see why!

(Book cover photo from: www.timeout.com)

Frontier Wolf by Rosemary Sutcliff

This isn't one of Sutcliff's best books, but nonetheless a firm favourite of mine.

After making a costly error that almost ends his career in the Roman army, Alexios is banished to the wilds of Scotland to rot among the Frontier Wolves, a pack of insubordinate half-barbarian troops with a thoroughly bad rep. There, he makes unlikely friends and dangerous enemies, and learns to love his unruly, hard-nosed men.

But fortune soon plays a cruel joke on Alexios, and he is called upon to make the very same decision that ruined his life. What will he do? Buy the book and find out!

(Book cover photo from: http://www.amazon.com/)

The Lantern Bearers by Rosemary Sutcliff

This is the best of all of Sutcliff's young adult novels, and comes a very close second to her sequel "Sword At Sunset" for adults, which is my all time favourite.

"The Lantern Bearers" is the final book in Sutcliff's Three Legions Trilogy and begins when the last of the Eagles have flown from Britain, leaving it to the mercy of the Saxon invaders. The main character, Aquila (a descendant of Marcus in the "Eagle of the Ninth") deserts the Roman army to defend his home and family in Britain. But tragedy strikes, his household is massacred, save for his sister Flavia who is carried off by the Saxon raiders. Aquila's fate leads him to thralldom in Jutland, but years later he returns to Britain, and unexpectedly encounters Flavia, now the wife of a Saxon warrior.

This is a novel that starts ind darkness and ends with light - a story of hatred and forgiveness, heroic resistance and hope against all odds: hence the title.

It took me very long while (and many re-readings) to warm up to Sutcliff's bitter, taciturn Aquila, but I still found the story incredibly moving and full of a poignant sense of loss. A book not to be missed - Sutcliff is a true master of the historical novel; she has no equal - unless it's Dorothy Dunnett... but as they say, that's another story!!

(Book cover photo from: www.macmillan.com)

The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff

"Eagle of the Ninth" was my first Sutcliff novel read in my early teens - and turned me into a die-hard fan (which I still am, nearly 20 years later!). This is the first book in her Three Legions Trilogy which follows the fortunes of the Aquila family from the 1st century AD to the advent of the Dark Ages.
Marcus Flavius Aquila, a young Roman Centurion is invalided out of the Legions during a British tribal uprising and struggles to find a new purpose in life while convalescing at his uncle's home in Calleva. There, the homesick Marcus makes new friends - a slave gladiator Esca, and Cottia, the adopted daughter of his Romano-British neighbours. Together, Marcus and Esca set out to find the lost Eagle of the Ninth Legion - and thus the story of Marcus' father, who vanished into the northern mists together with his men, unfolds. This is a classic bildungsroman in which Marcus grows to love Britain and to understand where he truly belongs.

Sutcliff's language is as always, lyrical and true to the period - by that I mean without any modern anachronisms - and she effortlessly evokes the sights, sounds and smells of Roman Britain as well as the untamed tribal lands beyond the pale. Although this is traditionally regarded as a "young adult" book I would say that it's a book for everyone, aged 9 to 90!

I own 2 copies of this wonderful book - a lovely Folio Society reprint from the 1950s first edition (still available at the time of posting), and an old, discarded hardcover from my school library.

(Book cover photo from: http://www.puffin.co.uk/)