The Philippines, 1943: As the ragged remnants of the American forces stand against the might of the Imperial Japanese Army, a determined cadre of OSS agents becomes their only contact with the outside world-and their only hope for survival.
Amazon.com Review
In The Fighting Agents, W.E.B. Griffin retells the story (previously told in Behind the Lines) of Wendell Fertig, a U.S. Army officer who promoted himself to general and led a ragtag guerrilla force against the Japanese after the fall of the Philippines in 1943. This time, however, Griffin focuses his attention on the OSS, which, among other things, was tasked with resupplying Fertig and reinforcing his efforts to undermine the Japanese war machine. In this fourth volume of a bestselling series featuring the American intelligence service during World War II, James Whittaker, a rakish, romantic army air corps captain who happens to be a close family friend of OSS chief Wild Bill Donovan, is assigned to sneak into the Philippines by submarine and bring gold, arms, and war materiel to the renegade general.
Simultaneously, another OSS team tries to carry out a critical mission: getting a German atomic scientist out of Budapest and into allied hands before Hitler's armies can perfect and unleash the weapon that could win the war for the Axis powers. And in Cairo, a quiet, unassuming pilot named Darmstadter is drafted by the OSS for another highly unlikely mission. Griffin spices up his realistically drawn scenes of military operations, weapons, and training with a somewhat improbable love story focusing on Whittaker and a female OSS operative, but one suspects it's merely a ruse to draw in distaff readers. Still, the action ranges from Washington to California, Egypt to London, and all points in between, and Griffin's knowledge of military hearts, minds, and missions has won him a devoted following through five separate series of novels of men (and some women) in battle. --Jane Adams
From Library Journal
Stephen Lang narrates this fourth installment of Griffin's "Men at War" series, which began with The Last Heroes. In this episode, the action concerns the extraction of an important German atomic scientist out of Hungary and the establishment of direct contact with the American guerrilla leader in the Philippines, (self-proclaimed) Brigadier-General Wendell Fertig. Griffin's ability to weave fictional and historical characters never ceases to amaze, and this novel is populated with the usual assortment of colorful and exciting Griffin stalwarts. Lang continues his credible narrative performance of "Soldier Spies" in this work; he is comfortable and confident reading the narrative and brings out the hardened characters of the cast. For all action/adventure collections.DMichael T. Fein, Central Virginia Community Coll., Lynchburg
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