Into the Cauldron (After Dunkirk, 7)
In the immediate aftermath of D-Day 1944, the Littlefield siblings are still scattered – each fighting the enemy on unique battlegrounds. War-weary yet defiant, they face inner and outer turmoil to best the Axis countries to finally reach an Allied victory.
Jeremy takes on a near-impossible task to lead refugees through the dangerous Vercors Mountains, while his brother Lance is determined to liberate Paris from the Wehrmacht. Claire leads a team of decryptors at Bletchley Park, providing vital intelligence to the military on the ground. Pilot Josh must pull from his innermost strength and courage in a pivotal sea attack far from home. Their mother, the Dame of Sark, fights loneliness and starvation without her family on German-occupied Sark Island.
This 7th instalment in the After Dunkirk Series will not disappoint readers with its ongoing war tension. Jackson has done an excellent job of introducing the main characters without the detailed duplication found in many series. His military research shines through in every battle scene, keeping the reader turning the page – to find yet another cliff-hanger as another sibling’s story takes center stage. Masterful!
The reader would connect better with the characters’ temperaments and motivations with more realistic dialogue. At times it is a bit stilted or forced for the wartime setting and time period. The descriptions are rich and evocative; seeing them through the eyes of the main characters would bring them even more to life.
Overall, I loved the book and found myself drawn into wartime history that I had never read or researched before. The momentum builds at a great pace, and Jackson’s writing style is engaging and meticulous. Readers will finish hungry for the next book in the series.
