The Eagle Has Landed

Title: The Eagle Has Landed

Author: Jack Higgins

Publisher: Penguin Group

Publication Date: 1975/Reissue June 2000

Genre: Historical Thriller

Pages: 368

I must admit at the beginning that this is a book I've read at least three times. My grandfather was the one who first introduced me to it. I was still living on Long Island, and my mother and her friend had gone down south to see my grandparents. My grandfather sent a Hefty bag filled with books he had read over the past year or so. At the top of the bag was The Eagle Has Landed. I was able to call him (this was back in the day, like 1979, before cell phones, calling plans or digital phone) and ask which book to start with, and he recommended this one. Thanks Gramps, I owe you one.

At the beginning of the book, Jack Higgins warns the reader that it is part historical fact and part fiction, and it is up to the reader to decide which is which. It is 1943, and  SS Reichsfuhrer Heinrich Himmler has launched an outrageous plan to kidnap Winston Churchill. In a remote corner of Norfolk, England, an elite unit is gathered to put into effect Himmler's plan. And with the words "The eagle has landed", you are taken on a thrill ride you may not soon forget.

The Eagle Has Landed is the first of four books dealing with Jack Higgins' character, Liam Devlin. The list of books is as follows:

1) The Eagle Has Landed (1975)

2) Touch the Devil (1982)

3) Confessional (1985)
4) The Eagle Has Flown (1990)

All of them are really good, but keep in mind that The Eagle Has Flown is the only one that is a direct sequel to The Eagle Has Landed. Also keep in mind that "Landed" is not a "What if?" or alternate history type of book. This is a fictionalized account of something that actually happened. A must read for history buff and thriller fans alike!

5 out of 5 stars

Re-readable factor of 5 out of 5