I read this author’s other book a year and a half ago, enjoying most of it but finding the ending lacking. This novel both shines and suffered from the same areas as the last one.

The book’s plot is phenomenal. The tale starts out stunning with the invasion of Poland and just keeps the steam up all the way to the liberation of Antwerp four years later. There is not one slow area of the book; it’s just chock full of nail-chewing escapes, close calls, horrifying battles, and the struggle against an overwhelming invader/enemy. All of this is a big plus in a spy/Resistance thriller.

I enjoyed the characters in this volume, too. Anna more than Jan, as she seemed the more developed of the two, but both kept me on the edge of my seat on their journeys through war-torn Europe and fighting against the Nazis. I liked how vulnerable and realistic both were. They weren’t super-secret agents but real people driven to act against the ultimate evil.

Where this book falters, like the first, was towards the end and the ending itself. Again we have a serious lack of resolution. The reader is left hanging when it comes to character development and dealing with the entire trauma the author put them through. The actual spy stuff is concluded but then we’re left with nothing on how the characters dealt with the war itself and all its brutality.

This is especially evident with Anna’s storyline. I mean, dang this girl was put through the ringer but nothing. No scenes of healing or peace after her ordeal. Just a scene asking for time. I mean, really?!?! Her storyline also suffered towards the end from a bit too much melodrama. The whole thing with Dieter felt out of place and just stuck in there for sh*ts and giggles.

So good things and bad things within, this book was about the same as the previous. A plotline that won’t let you go and realistic, down-to-earth characters were a real plus. Yet, an ending that lacked resolution and some out-of-place melodrama towards the end really sucked the good out of the book. A solid three stars, I’d give this book a read if you’re in the market for a spy thriller as they story pleases. Brace yourself for that ending, though. ( )

This is a very good book. One of the better ones I have read in a long time. Jan Kopernik is the Polish Jack Ryan. Look forward to more books from this author. ( )

NIGHT OF FLAMES can be commended for its rapid pace and its detailed portrayals of the Polish and Belgian resistance movements.

At its best moments, NIGHT OF FLAMES reminded this reviewer of Ken Follett's [Hornet Flight] a similar story of ordinary people undertaking extraordinary tasks during wartime.

NIGHT OF FLAMES' shortcomings are its reliance on ho-hum descriptions ("The still, humid air...hung over Warsaw like a massive wet blanket.") and its frequent use of B-movie character dialogue ("We make our own luck.")

One also wonders why the editor chose a 1940's-era photograph of a Kansas City railroad yard as NIGHT OF FLAMES' cover art.. It is an odd graphic design choice for a novel based on five year's of historic research on World War II era Poland, Belgium, and Germany. ( )

I read this book some months ago, had have only just realized that I forgot to write up a review. It is the story of a Polish academic wife and her army husband, who are therefore separated by the war, and their struggle to survive, and the hope that each other still lives and that they will find each other. The Belgian resistance movement is a shining star in the book. I knew a little about the French resistance (thanks 'Allo 'Allo!), but this telling of the courage of the Belgian resistance members, and though people placed in undercover assignments at the peril of their lifes is quite amazing. I do remember as I was reading the book, that there was a little time jump at one point of the characters narratives, and I was so caught up in the story that I wished that the story had continued on. I really enjoyed this book. ( )

Night of Flames joins the group of suspenseful, well written WWII "experiential" novels I've enjoyed. Gripping, well told story, a book that kept me up too late because I couldn't stop reading.