Formidable

Formidable is a new book by published author Steve R. Dunn.

It is the third in a trilogy of naval history books.

It is a well-researched book that shows how, because some senior officers in the Royal Navy were using rules of engagements that had, in the main, stayed the same for 100 years, the Royal Navy suffered some jaw-droppingly ridiculous losses of ships and men during World War 1.

Rule of engagement that were suitable for the days of Lord Nelson and fighting set piece battles under full sail were worse than useless when one faced a modern enemy using modern equipment including submarines.

Dunn points out that, because a Vice Admiral thought it "unmanly" for his ships to seek shelter during storms that the ships under his disastrous command were forced to remain at sea, as he ignored the ever-present threat of attack by U-boats because to his sclerotic thought processes, the use of U-Boats to attack enemy ships from beneath the surface of the water would be utterly unthinkable due to the fact that it would be ungentlemanly behaviour.

Because of his tactical blunders Formidable, captained by Noel Loxley (accompanied by Bruce, his  terrier) went down with a completely inexcusable loss of nearly 600 men and boys.

Captain Loxley decided to remain on board Formidable as it sank, accompanied by his faithful companion, Bruce.

Dunn not only explains what happened but also explores why it happened and also makes a careful examination of the stories of some of the individuals involved in this utterly senseless loss of so many lives. And of the hardships that was the fate of their hapless wives and children during a transitional period which Dunn has dubbed the "Vicwardian" era.

It is a highly moving and very well researched book which will appeal to history buffs and to people who are interested in the First World War and will make an ideal Christmas present.

It is published by www.bookguild.co.uk at £12.99.

Opposable Truths

Opposable Truths is a new book by highly skilled and experienced journalist and TV presenter, Martin Young.

You'll remember Martin Young from Nationwide, Newsnight to Panorama and Rough Justice.

It is his autobiography and dips into his near half-century spent working in television, during which time he was involved in every major news and current affairs programme broadcast by the BBC.

It also has a great deal to say about the fights he became involved in with the political and legal establishments caused by his seminal series "Rough Justice" which brought about the release of five people all who had been falsely accused and wrongly convicted of serious crimes they had not committed.

Martin Young will also be remembered by viewers for his work as a foreign correspondent where he covered such troubled hotspots as Iran during the Iranian Revolution, Gaza and the West Bank.

He also, bravely, reported on the Mafia in both the USA and Sicily. Where he was very nearly murdered.

He writes as eloquently as a skilled journalist could be expected to and his style is witty and also, sparse and pacey. This is what modern journalists do, we have to write and rewrite our stories so 500 words can be reduced to 250 words so we can get more content told in fewer words.

We read of his experiences covering the Iranian Revolution, his time with the Rough Justice programme (which eventually earned him a Special Award for Journalism from the Royal Television Society) how he suddenly fell from grace and needed to earn some money quickly when the BBC (unfairly) suspended him without pay.

Work which brought him into contact with the Ford Motor Company (rewrite a manual, that'll be £600, please!) and with the world of the Soho voiceover industry, where actors are on a perpetual treadmill from one voice over studio to another and make a reasonable living by using the one skill that can't be taken from them, their voice.

In fact, not only did he make up the £9,000 he lost in salary from  the BBC, in the three month period of his suspension he actually made a very satisfying £27,000, made up of voice overs, media training of MPs and the like.

He also reveals what is was like on Nationwide, how he got his start in Independent TV before moving over to Nationwide at the BBC and various other incidents throughout his career, including nearly being murdered in Sicily.

It is an interesting book, my only minor criticism of this book is that it is not in any way sequential and does tend to flit backwards and forwards through time and from subject to subject.

It costs £15.99 and is published by Matador.

A Ticket to Oblivion: A Railway Detective novel by Edward Marston

A Ticket to Oblivion: A Railway Detective novel by Edward Marston is a novel featuring the Railway Detective Detective Inspector Robert Colbeck and his assistant Detective Sergeant Victor Leaming are called upon by Superintendent  Tallis to take control of an urgent investigation in the county of Worcestershire.

For the daughter of a man selected to become the next Secretary of State for India has disappeared from a non-stop train from Worcester to Oxford.

It is 1858 and Imogen Burnhope is betrothed to an up-and-coming MP,  Clive Tunnadine, when she and her faithful maid, Rhoda vanish from a train taking them to visit relatives in Oxford.

But when the train arrives, they are missing. Her father, Sir Marcus Burnhope calls in some favours and gets Scotland Yard's top detective team put on the case.

As the case progresses, some dark secrets start to emerge. Is Clive Tunnadine MP all he appears to be? And why is Rhoda's hat discovered in a railway tunnel?

It is alleged by Clive Tunnadine that members of Imogen's own family are involved in the disappearance. But what proof does he have?

Colbeck realises that he is involved in a race against time to find out what happened to the two women, where they are and who they are with.

And what, exactly, is the involvement of a private detective Alban Kee (dismissed from Scotland Yard for corruptly receiving bribes from Criminals) in the case? He is withholding information, Colbeck is certain, but why? What has motivated him to do this?

Before the case is solved there are several murders,  a brutal attack on an innocent woman and  is more than one murder and Imogen and Rhoda find themselves in the clutches of some very dangerous and desperate individuals.

But can Colbeck and Leaming save them from a fate worse than death?

This is a very gripping novel written by a master storyteller.

It is published by Alison and Busby at £7.99 and will make a superb Christmas present for the lover of detective fiction.

Who Will Be Your Judge

Who Will Be Your Judge is a new novel by Edie Watney Judd.

Who Will Be Your Judge tells the powerful and tragic stories of two brothers.

It begins in the midst of World War Two and continues down through time to 1960s gangland London.

It is a historical mystery thriller that traces the lives of Billy and Richard, of how they were evacuated from London during the Blitz.

What should have been shelter from the Nazi bombs in the care of the House of Nazareth saw them under the "care" of some vicious nuns.

Desperate to leave their violent and tyrannical 'prison'  they make their way back to their London home.

But the war delivers them a cruel blow when it takes the lives of both of their parents.

They are again taken into the care of Barnardo's until fate deals them another savage blow and they are split apart again, this time by adoption.

Richard is taken into a family that rigorously enforces strict Victorian-style rules, Billy goes to live with a couple who live in the heart of the East End of London. They are poor and, until they adopted Billy, without children.

Billy has a constant dream, to become a professional boxer, yet this, too, is taken away from him when he develops epilepsy, which bars him from the sport that he loved.

He becomes bitter and slides into a life of crime, beginning to become involved in smash and grab raids as a way to escape the poverty that has dogged him all his life.

After working his way up through the ranks, Billy eventually becomes the owner of a club in the West End.

Richard, who became a priest, attempts to reason with his brother to attempt to get him to leave his life of crime.

But suddenly a letter is found. A letter that contains an old secret that has the power to change everything not only for Billy but for Richard, too.

The book is published on 28 September 28 by Matador at £14.99 and will make a super present.

It is available from the That's Books and Entertainment bookshop on the righthand side of the site.

Agincourt 1415

Agincourt 1415 is a novel that tells the story of the famed battle of Agincourt.

It tells it in the format of a graphic novel.

The author is Will Gill and the artist is Graeme Howard.

The historical consultant is Anne Curry.

The book tells, in accurate detail, the true story of Agincourt, of how a simple mistake by the leaders of the French forces put the French at a distinct disadvantage even before the battle had begun.

How the deadly and accurate bow work of the English and Welsh archers decimated the flower of the French Knightly classes in their dozens.

It a;sp tells how treachery against the chivalric values of the Medieval times tainted, for some people, the victory of King Henry V over his French rival.

Will Gill was already knowledgeable about  the battle of Agincourt, but Will and Graeme undertook meticulous research under the expert guidance of Professor Anne Curry, who is the world's leading expert on the battle of Agincourt which makes this book highly accurate.

Professor Curry has written the introduction to the book.

It costs £9.99 and will be available well before Christmas, as it is due to be published by Troubador on 25 October.

This book is a "must buy" present and, in my opinion, at least three copies should be in every school and college library.

It will be available via the That's Books and Entertainment bookshop which is on the righthand side of the site.

An Eye for a Tooth and a Limb for an Eye

An Eye for a Tooth and a Limb for an Eye is the latest crime novel by Eleanor Berry.

It is a taut psychological thriller that explores what happens when someone, apparently a perfectly ordinary, normal someone, is suddenly pushed beyond their limits.

Rhoda Buckleshott is a bright and fashionable young English teacher at a private school based in London's West End.

The unloveable and vile headmistress, Mrs Beddington, has, for reasons of reverse snobbery and innate nastiness, has decided to sack Rhoda without any warning.

Rhoda decides that she will have her revenge on Miss Beddington and so she launches a campaign of revenge on Mrs Beddington, swearing to destroy her.

It begins in a fairly minor way, but it progresses and the acts of revenge against Mrs Beddington become harsher, more cruel and more outrageously outlandish with every step.

Rhoda's need for revenge against Mrs Beddington becomes an  all consuming mania. Things begin to spiral out of control, and as a result of the impact of her growing reign of terror, fault lines begin to develop in the psyche of Rhoda.

Is she going mad?

When will the revenge cease? Or will it?

This book is a godsends for those who enjoy books that are seriously written, yet with the black humour of the author shining through on just about every page.

An entertaining book by a well-established author it costs £9.99 and is available from www.bookguild.co.uk.

It si available from the That's Books and Entertainment bookshop on the righthand side of this site.

Saint George: Rusty Knight and Monster Tamer

Saint George: Rusty Knight and Monster Tamer is a new book for children by John Powell.

It's a tough life. Well, it is if you live in a world that is beset by a wide variety of various monsters who are all intent on harrasing the populous and frightening the livestock of the farms.

So, in order to deal with these monsters, you would need a hero, yes?

You need someone who could be made Patron Saint and Minister for the Environment. So, step forward, George.

Unfortunately, George is vertically challenged, poor and the owner of some rusting armour.

However, there is one ting that is very much in George's favour. Whist touring the tyrol one year he discovered a cake which is unlike any other cake in the world. For the recipe to which this cake is made tames monsters.

For the first time in his previously less-than-appealing life, George us wanted and welcomed by everyone, to the extent that he is declared a government minister by King Freddie and his Prime Minister, Merlin

Even though George becomes famous throughout the land, he is still pretty poorly off in financial terms.

But he does succeed in repelling a Scottish invasion, improving relations with France, launching the world's first trades union and becoming involved in the game of cricket.

Although this book is aimed at children 7 and up, the biting social satire and acidic with will please adults of all ages, too!

It is published by www.bookguild.co.uk at £9.;99 and will be an excellent Christmas gift.

It is available from the That's Books and Entertainment bookshop to the right of this site.