Frederick Forsyth "The Veteran"

 


I have so many works of fiction waiting to be read at the moment that it is rare for me to bother reading anything twice but Frederick Forsyth is such a marvellous story-teller thst I thought I would make an exception in his case when I came across 'The Veteran' in the library. I first read this book of five short stories when it came out in 2000 and thought it would bear re-reading. It did.

"A collection of five heart-stopping stories from the master thriller writer. A miracle in war-torn Siena that begins with the persecution of a young nun in the turbulent days of the sixteenth century and culminates in the bitter German retreat from Italy; a drug smuggling heist on an international flight where the Knock pit their wits against the smugglers; a brural urban murder, where a brilliant QC decides to defend the killers, resulting in a startling justice; an incandescent art scam at a famous London auction house, and a brilliantly plotted revenge that shatters the elegant world of the Old Masters - each story is a remarkable tour de force. And above all here is a brilliant novella, 'Whispering Wind', which begins with the single survivor of Custer's Last Stand at the battle of Little Big Horn. Then follows the rescue from rape and murder of a Cheyenne girl and a flight across the mountains and forests of the West, ending in a savage present-day manhunt in the wild lands of Montana. "



FREDERICK FORSYTH CBE (born August 25, 1938) is an English author and occasional political commentator. He is best known for thrillers such as The Day of the Jackal, The Odessa File, The Dogs of War, The Fist of God, Icon, The Veteran, Avenger and recently The Afghan (which latter I do not recall having read yet). All bear the stamp of his masterly story telling and thorough research.