The Day the Devils Dropped In

The Day the Devils Dropped In
Author: Neil Barber
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2008-10-17
Genre: History
ISBN: 1844150453

The first hours and days following the Allied invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944 have a strong claim to be amongst the most crucial in world history. Spearheading this vast undertaking were crack British and American airborne forces. The Day The Devils Dropped In examines in fascinating detail the pivotal role of the 9th Battalion of the Parachute Regiment over the first week of the landings. Tasked with neutralizing the mighty Merville Battery, capturing Le Plein and the Château St Côme on the Breville Ridge, failure by the Paras to achieve any of these key objectives could well have unraveled the whole OVERLORD operation with catastrophic consequences. In his quest to uncover the true story of the early days of the landings, Neil Barber has successfully tracked down surviving participants in the operation. As a result he is able to tell the full story of the fierce fighting that characterized the early days of the landings largely in the very words of those who lived through the experience. This adds much to the credibility and immediacy of this enthralling book, which paints a superb picture of what soldiers care to call 'the fog of war'. The result is an inspiring and revealing read and a fine tribute to those whose contribution must never be forgotten.

The Day the Devils Dropped in

The Day the Devils Dropped in
Author: Neil Barber
Publisher: Pen & Sword Military
Total Pages: 232
Release: 2002
Genre: History
ISBN:

This book examines the pivotal role of the 9th Battalion of the Parachute Regiment over the first week of the Normandy landings. Much of the story is told in the words of those who lived through the experience.

The Pegasus and Orne Bridges

The Pegasus and Orne Bridges
Author: Neil Barber
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2014-05-31
Genre: History
ISBN: 1473830095

This WWII history chronicles a daring airborne mission that was vital to the success of Operation Tonga, D-Day, and the liberation of France. When the British Army landed on Sword Beach in Normandy, their only exit eastward required passage across the River Orne and the Caen Canal. But the two bridges fording these waterways—the Pegasus and Orne Bridges—were heavily guarded and wired for demolition in case of a Germans retreat. Capturing these bridges would be next to impossible. Operation Deadstick, conducted by Major John Howard and his company of Oxford and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, was a superbly daring, brilliantly executed 'coup de main' assault. The glider-borne troops not only seized both bridges but faced a ferocious and prolonged German counterattack. Neil Barber, a military historian and expert in British airborne operations, uses extensive personal accounts to tell this incredible story of Allied victory. Covering events and operations from Ranville in the East to Benouville in the West, Pegasus and Orne Bridges chronicles the combat of the 7th, 12th and 13th Parachute Battalions and reinforcements such as the Commandos, seaborne engineers and the Warwicks.

The Devils of D-Day

The Devils of D-Day
Author: Graham Masterton
Publisher: Open Road Media
Total Pages: 135
Release: 2016-06-07
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1504025571

Unsealing the hatch of a rusty old WWII tank will unleash a demonic nightmare in this novel by “the master of modern horror” (Library Journal). Thirty-five years have passed since the Allied invasion of Normandy on D-Day turned the tide of World War II against Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Reich, and it’s been more than three decades since the residents of the tiny French village of Le Vey witnessed the horrific slaughter of hundreds of German soldiers by thirteen black tanks. One of the tanks remains on the outskirts of town—its hatch mysteriously sealed, trapping its controller inside—only to be discovered by American surveyor and cartographer Dan McCook. Driven by curiosity and an inexplicable compulsion, McCook is about to do the unthinkable and release what lives within the tank upon an unsuspecting world. And once the monstrous occupant reunites with others of its demonic kind, a new world war will begin, one that threatens to wash the earth in blood and drag every man, woman, and child through the fiery gates of hell. A chilling and ingeniously original tale of demonic possession and apocalyptic possibilities, The Devils of D-Day is classic horror at its best, from the award-winning author of The Manitou.

The First Wave

The First Wave
Author: Alex Kershaw
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 386
Release: 2019-05-14
Genre: History
ISBN: 0451490061

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Alex Kershaw, New York Times bestselling author of Against All Odds, returns with an utterly immersive, adrenaline-driven account of D-Day combat. “Meet the assaulters: pathfinders plunging from the black, coxswains plowing the whitecaps, bareknuckle Rangers scaling sheer rock . . . Fast-paced and up close, this is history’s greatest story reinvigorated as only Alex Kershaw can.”—Adam Makos, New York Times bestselling author of Spearhead and A Higher Call Beginning in the predawn darkness of June 6, 1944, The First Wave follows the remarkable men who carried out D-Day’s most perilous missions. The charismatic, unforgettable cast includes the first American paratrooper to touch down on Normandy soil; the glider pilot who braved antiaircraft fire to crash-land mere yards from the vital Pegasus Bridge; the brothers who led their troops onto Juno Beach under withering fire; as well as a French commando, returning to his native land, who fought to destroy German strongholds on Sword Beach and beyond. Readers will experience the sheer grit of the Rangers who scaled Pointe du Hoc and the astonishing courage of the airborne soldiers who captured the Merville Gun Battery in the face of devastating enemy counterattacks. The first to fight when the stakes were highest and the odds longest, these men would determine the fate of the invasion of Hitler’s fortress Europe—and the very history of the twentieth century. The result is an epic of close combat and extraordinary heroism. It is the capstone Alex Kershaw’s remarkable career, built on his close friendships with D-Day survivors and his intimate understanding of the Normandy battlefield. For the seventy-fifth anniversary, here is a fresh take on World War II's longest day. Praise for The First Wave: “Masterful... readers will feel the sting of the cold surf, smell the acrid cordite that hung in the air, and duck the zing of machine-gun bullets whizzing overhead. The First Wave is an absolute triumph.”—James M. Scott, bestselling author of Target Tokyo “These pages ooze with the unforgettable human drama of history's most consequential invasion.”—John C. McManus, author of The Dead and Those About to Die

The Devil Is Here in These Hills

The Devil Is Here in These Hills
Author: James Green
Publisher: Open Road + Grove/Atlantic
Total Pages: 447
Release: 2015-02-03
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0802192092

“The most comprehensive and comprehendible history of the West Virginia Coal War I’ve ever read.” —John Sayles, writer and director of Matewan On September 1, 1912, the largest, most protracted, and deadliest working-class uprising in American history was waged in West Virginia. On one side were powerful corporations whose millions bought armed guards and political influence. On the other side were fifty thousand mine workers, the nation’s largest labor union, and the legendary “miners’ angel,” Mother Jones. The fight for unionization and civil rights sparked a political crisis that verged on civil war, stretching from the creeks and hollows of the Appalachians to the US Senate. Attempts to unionize were met with stiff resistance. Fundamental rights were bent—then broken. The violence evolved from bloody skirmishes to open armed conflict, as an army of more than fifty thousand miners finally marched to an explosive showdown. Extensively researched and vividly told, this definitive book about an often-overlooked chapter of American history, “gives this backwoods struggle between capital and labor the due it deserves. [Green] tells a dark, often despairing story from a century ago that rings true today” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette).

The Devil's Teardrop

The Devil's Teardrop
Author: Jeffery Deaver
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 400
Release: 1999-08-10
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 068485659X

A classic thriller from New York Times bestselling author Jeffery Deaver featuring the intricate forensic detail, masterful plot twists, and harrowing breakneck pace that made A Maiden’s Grave, The Bone Collector, and The Coffin Dancer national bestsellers. It’s New Year’s Eve, December 31, 1999, and Washington, DC, is under siege. Early in the day, a grisly machine gun attack in the Dupont Circle Metro station leaves dozens dead and the city crippled with fear. A note delivered to the mayor’s office pins the massacre on the Digger, a robotlike assassin programmed to wreak havoc on the capital every four hours—until midnight. Only a ransom of $20 million delivered to the Digger’s accomplice—and mastermind—will end the death and terror. But the Digger becomes a far more sinister threat when his accomplice is killed in a freak accident while en route to the money drop. With the ransom note as the single scrap of evidence, Special Agent Margaret Lukas calls upon Parker Kincaid, a retired FBI agent and the top forensic document examiner in the country. Somehow, by midnight, they must find the Digger—before he finds them.

D-Day: The First 72 Hours

D-Day: The First 72 Hours
Author: William F Buckingham
Publisher: The History Press
Total Pages: 339
Release: 2004-05-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 0752496417

The Allied invasion of occupied France began by delivering three airborne and six infantry divisions onto a 60-mile stretch of the Normandy coast. Accomplishing this involved over 1,200 transport aircraft, 450 gliders, 325 assorted warships and more than 4,000 landing vessels. The first 72 hours of the D-Day invasion were pivotal – from the initial airborne landings in the early hours of Tuesday 6 June 1944 we follow the Allied attackers and their German opponents hour-by-hour as they fought until fresh units began to take over from Thursday 8 June 1944. William F. Buckingham's astounding history finally lays to rest the myths surrounding the Normandy invasion. He contradicts the popular perception that the American OMAHA landing force suffered disproportionately. In fact, the fighting on the British and Canadian beaches (GOLD, SWORD and JUNO) was no less intense, and the cost was much closer to that of OMAHA than is commonly thought. The reality of D-Day was that a devastating number of men from all sides of the Allied forces who landed on the beaches that day would never set foot on their native soil again.

D-Day

D-Day
Author: Martin Gilbert
Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
Total Pages: 185
Release: 2011-05-12
Genre: History
ISBN: 1118130944

"The Allied landings in 1944 had all the prospects for disaster. Churchill thought he would be woken up to be told of massive casualties. Eisenhower prepared a somber broadcast announcing that the enterprise had failed. The specter of failure was always present. After a failed landing the Nazi regime would have regained the ascendant. New, terrifying bombs and rockets were ready to be launched. Long-distance submarines were in the final stage of development. The last million Jews of Europe were listed for deportation and death. Failure at Normandy could have given Hitler the chance of continuing to rule western Europe, particularly if the United States, bloodied and defeated in Normandy, had decided-after two and a half years of focusing on Europe-to turn all its energies to the ever-growing demands of the Pacific, leaving Europe to its own devices. Had that happened, I doubt if I would have been alive to write this book, or free to express my opinions without fear of arrest." --Martin Gilbert

Hunt for the Devil's Dragon

Hunt for the Devil's Dragon
Author: Marianne Hering
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
Total Pages: 145
Release: 2013-04-19
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 1624051111

Over 1 million sold in series! If you’re brave, follow cousins Beth and Patrick to Libya in the 13th century. The town of Silene is being terrorized by a vicious animal that is eating livestock. The townspeople believe it’s a dragon sent by the devil. In order to appease the beast, the people believe they must offer a human sacrifice—a young girl named Sabra. When Beth tries to help Sabra escape, she too is tied up as an offering for the dragon. Meanwhile, Patrick and a new friend named Hazi join Georgius, a Roman knight who is serving in Africa to keep peace. Georgius decides to find the dragon and kill it. Georgius’s plans go awry when Beth and Sabra beg him not to kill the dragon. The girls know the true secret of Silene—the dragon isn’t its worst enemy.