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Review
'Nicholas Rankin's fascinating book reads like a Boy's Own's story, so flamboyant are the characters and so vivid Rankin's accounts of [the commandos'] deadly scrapes and firefights. The research is prodigious and lucid.' --William Boyd, Guardian
'Arrestingly well researched and rich in detail.' --Sam Kiley, The Times
'Entertaining, informative and insightful.' --Saul David, Daily Telegraph
'Arrestingly well researched and rich in detail.' --Sam Kiley, The Times
'Entertaining, informative and insightful.' --Saul David, Daily Telegraph
Review
"It is, first of all, chock-a-block full of wonderful stories and odd characters, and secondly awash in wonderful, arcane knowledge of the seamy and secret side of World War Two...suavely blended, like one of Bond's Martinis." --Michael Korda, The Daily Beast
"A kind of cousin to Rankin's own A Genius for Deception: How Cunning Helped the British Win Two World Wars, this will appeal to all readers interested either in Ian Fleming or World War II secret operations." - Library Journal
"Nicholas Rankin's fascinating book is an account of the 30AU's progress through the war. From time to time it reads like a Boy's Own story, so flamboyant are the characters and so vivid Rankin's accounts of the deadly scrapes and firefights the commandos found themselves involved in. The research is prodigious and lucid - now I finally understand how an Enigma machine works - and one gains a real sense of how these maverick units functioned, very much akin to the Long Range Desert Group and
--This text refers to the
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Nick Rankin has delivered a must-read! "Ian Flemings Commandos: The Story of 30 Assault Unit in WWll" is a fantastically concise yet comprehensive account of the team of British elite soldiers and Naval officers who were picked for some of the most risky yet important wartime missions. The book is a sprawling saga covering the run up to war, the contexts in which the need for German intelligence arrived and the formation of a specialist team who were overseen by Ian Fleming, later the author of James Bond who next year celebrates 50 years of cinematic exploits.
This is not to say that the exploits that this book goes on to detail are focussed around Bond's creator, whose story has been expounded upon elsewhere and because "although Fleming originated the idea of what he first called an `advanced intelligence unit', then an `intelligence assault unit', he himself was forbidden to go in with them on their first mission because his wartime job in Naval Intelligence made in privy to many secrets... that could never be allowed to fall into enemy hands" [P.3]. The book goes on to provide an even more enthralling story of the men themselves who throughout the war were sent in to the front lines to "pinch" enemy intelligence.
"Ian Fleming's Commandos..." is a hugely engrossing page turner that mixes historical fact, with humour (a recruit in training's confused midnight peeing in the wardrobe of guesthouse) and pathos that comes from the toll of war (30 AU members on the Dieppe raid witness their comrades shot down before their eyes.) This is an impressive book that puts into perspective the vital intelligence and everything that went into acquiring it during the war. Recommended.
This is not to say that the exploits that this book goes on to detail are focussed around Bond's creator, whose story has been expounded upon elsewhere and because "although Fleming originated the idea of what he first called an `advanced intelligence unit', then an `intelligence assault unit', he himself was forbidden to go in with them on their first mission because his wartime job in Naval Intelligence made in privy to many secrets... that could never be allowed to fall into enemy hands" [P.3]. The book goes on to provide an even more enthralling story of the men themselves who throughout the war were sent in to the front lines to "pinch" enemy intelligence.
"Ian Fleming's Commandos..." is a hugely engrossing page turner that mixes historical fact, with humour (a recruit in training's confused midnight peeing in the wardrobe of guesthouse) and pathos that comes from the toll of war (30 AU members on the Dieppe raid witness their comrades shot down before their eyes.) This is an impressive book that puts into perspective the vital intelligence and everything that went into acquiring it during the war. Recommended.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
As someone who has a sort of vested interest in the commandos of ww2, my grandfather being one of them. So I purchased a copy just to see if there was anything it added to what I already knew in general and I was interested in 30 assualt unit as I had never delved into thier history.
Great rewarded by the style of the book, its engaging from the off and found myself sneaking off to read pages when I should have been doing other things, finishing in three days. It begins with the how Ian flemings career came about in naval intelligence, also how the commandos are created alongside. Then its onto the importance of technology and acquiring of said technology from the enemy. and Finally it reads like the war diary of 30 Assault unit for the final third. All the way through Fleming and his writing of bond are alluded to as the history of 30 AU and its members as well as other people pop up in the books.
Mr Rankin knows his subject and delivers with great poise and consistency of narrative. There are even flashes of humour that while amusing do not detract from the seriousness of the issues. he covers all the bases as far as popular military history is concerned even going to a greater technical detail than some and even analysing quite deftly some of the aspects covered by the book.
All in all one for military historians of all ilks- the casual reader will enjoy the pace and narratives where as the more serious reader will enjoy the former as well as the depth in which Mr Rankin deals with the subject matter and his treatment being very even handed.
anyone who enjoyed Operation Mincemeat last year or Operation Fortitude this year will love this book and will be a little sorry when its finished but will look forward to more from The author
Great rewarded by the style of the book, its engaging from the off and found myself sneaking off to read pages when I should have been doing other things, finishing in three days. It begins with the how Ian flemings career came about in naval intelligence, also how the commandos are created alongside. Then its onto the importance of technology and acquiring of said technology from the enemy. and Finally it reads like the war diary of 30 Assault unit for the final third. All the way through Fleming and his writing of bond are alluded to as the history of 30 AU and its members as well as other people pop up in the books.
Mr Rankin knows his subject and delivers with great poise and consistency of narrative. There are even flashes of humour that while amusing do not detract from the seriousness of the issues. he covers all the bases as far as popular military history is concerned even going to a greater technical detail than some and even analysing quite deftly some of the aspects covered by the book.
All in all one for military historians of all ilks- the casual reader will enjoy the pace and narratives where as the more serious reader will enjoy the former as well as the depth in which Mr Rankin deals with the subject matter and his treatment being very even handed.
anyone who enjoyed Operation Mincemeat last year or Operation Fortitude this year will love this book and will be a little sorry when its finished but will look forward to more from The author
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Following on smartly from his success with `Churchill's Wizards: The British Genius for Deception 1914-1945' Nick Rankin has once again delivered a must-have/must-read book with his `Ian Fleming's Commandos: The Story of 30 Assault Unit in WWII' (Faber & Faber). I found the book totally engaging and very hard to put down. The value of extensive researching has certainly paid off with a book which is a punchy, pacey, comprehensive account of a very specialist and elite group of men that were tasked to pinch German and Italian technologies as well as vital documentation. Following the story from Dieppe to the end of hostilities, Rankin's passion for the subject as well as his engaging narrative, use of maps, quality images and descriptive nouns makes for a cracking read and we can readily see that Ian Fleming's concept to create an intelligence assault unit was certainly a war-winning idea. It is also clear from the men that Fleming employed is where he found the many and varied inspirations for the character of James Bond'. Rankin also injects occasional, yet welcome humour and irony in to his script without detracting from the accomplishments and brave deeds of those who fought. It is also worth mentioning that once again a Rankin book has an eye-catching jacket; the designer of the covers should be congratulated. In short, I thoroughly recommend this book without reservation as well as Nick Rankin's Faber & Faber stable mate, Tony Hugill's recently re-released and superb book `The Hazard Mesh' (originally published in 1946 and restricted to 500 copies) to anyone with an interest in World War Two and in particular 30 Assault Unit.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Cracking Read
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Well paced and comprehensively researched, I was impressed by the manner in which Nicholas Rankin has interwoven so many different aspects of the... Read more
Published 20 days ago by C. H. Maginniss
Remarkable
I was given this book to read by the last living member of 30 AU and once started found it hard to out down. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Old and knackered
Man behind the Bond Mask!
More than the Bond films, for which I fell head-over-hees in 1964, the writer of those stories have fascinated me. That kind of fiction is born of lifetime experiences. Read more
Published 3 months ago by S. Vidyarthi
True, but could have been better
I don't profess to be a reader. Be this the case, the author gives a good factually correct story, but does not go into a story telling format. Read more
Published 4 months ago by P. Mills
Excellent present for Uncle
I bought this for my Uncle's Christmas. He's in his late sixties, retired and an avid reader. He was delighted with the gift. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Stingrae
Not bad at all
The book is marketed as a Fleming book but in reality Fleming appears little and Bond even less. I found this a pity as both Fleming and his fictional alter ego remain fascinating... Read more
Published 5 months ago by cuir de russie
A Terrific Read
If a reader who had not the slightest interest in Special Forces units who operated in World War Two picked up this book, I venture to suggest that they would not be able to put it... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Mr. R. D. M. Kirby
Another untold story of WW2
This is another story that would have interested many who lived in the 40's and 50's, and especially those who enjoyed Ian Flemings' 007 books and films. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Tiller
excellent
A really interesting and informative account of NID, Fleming and the 30AU. The book s well-researched and engagingly written. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Mr. I. J. Mccartney
Grandfather would have loved this book
I only picked this up in a London bookshop because it was the sort of thing my late grandfather would have loved. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Miss
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