Never in the field of human conflict has so much been destroyed by so many - misfits, rogues, psychopaths, traitors, savants, and all out geniuses - yet known by so few.So goes the wartime history of the early SAS, and told from their own archives never before opened up to a historian. Like the saying goes, you couldn't make this stuff up!

I received this book at no cost through the GR Giveaway program in the expectation of a review. According to the author, much of this book has been held in secrecy for 70 years. He had full access to the WWII archives of the Special Air Service, better known as the SAS. A damn shame if this is the first time some of these stories have been told. There is little here that would have compromised the post-1947 modern SAS (SAS was disbanded in ’45 and reborn a few years later). This book only deals

This was an informative book about the SAS, the British Special Air Service, formed in WWII, in North Africa. It was the brainchild of David Stirling, an eccentric Scottish aristocrat who was not a very good soldier in the traditional sense. But his offbeat, unusual mind came up with the idea of a small mobile force that go behind German lines and wreak havoc on the unprepared Afrika Corps. Stirling was a terrible University student: "If he ever opened a book, the event was not recorded."He was

I loved the other books I've read by Ben Macintyre so when I heard about Rogue Heroes: The History of the SAS, Britain's Secret Special Forces Unit That Sabotaged the Nazis and Changed the Nature of War I was keen to read it. Whilst not as jaw dropping as Agent Zigzag: A True Story of Nazi Espionage, Love, and Betrayal, or as edge-of-the-seat thrilling as Operation Mincemeat: How a Dead Man and a Bizarre Plan Fooled the Nazis and Assured an Allied Victory, it's nevertheless an absorbing read. Be...

A fantasticly well researched and written book.I can't stand books that over dramatise events and embelish them to get more drama out of them. This didn't need embelishing, the writer kept the balance throughout. Astonishing tales of suicidal heroism and extremely moving tragedy on a regular basis make this book a must read.It really makes you appreciate the idea that was the creation of the SAS, and how change can change the world for the better. A lone unit deployed behind enemy lines, to caus...

A nice account of the early years of the SAS in World War II with a distinctly British sense of humor that made reading it a joy. Most of the time is spent on defining the characters during the North African desert campaign and then following them through the (spoiler alert) liberation of Europe. I'm sure someone could have written a 700 page version of this history but I appreciated the fast pace, emphasis on personalities over battle specifics, and the in-depth research done by the author to p...

"With correct timing and in suitable country, with or without the help of the local population, a small specially trained force can achieve results out of all proportion to its numbers." - Major Roy Alexander Farran DSOThe territory of military history books in bookshops is mostly undiscovered terrain for me. All these pages that glorify, rationalise and romanticise the biggest atrocities mankind has committed never managed to ignite my interest much. Both the intellectual and the romantic appro...

Mr. Macintyre has written a well-researched and engaging look at the British Special Air Service (SAS – the forerunner of modern Special Forces) in World War II. He follows them from their inception in the Egyptian Desert, the expansion into 2 regiments with different nationalities - although the author focuses on the British contingent, their work in the Italian campaign and finally their support of the D-Day landings and the final campaigns in Germany. In telling the story of their beginnings,...

Rogue Heroes: The History of the SAS, Britain's Secret Special Forces Unit That Sabotaged the Nazis and Changed the Nature of Warby Ben MacintyreThis is one of the best written books to explore the origins of the SAS and the first ever to do so with not only it’s blessing but full access to it’s library of notes, recordings, maps and an incredible amount of first hand accounts. It makes for compelling and unforgettable reading.It unflinchingly captures both the romance and the tragedy of being i...

Macintyre has a knack for finding outrageous stories from history and turning them into fascinating books that read like thrillers. This one is about the SAS, Britain’s secret fighting force that helped turn the tide of World War II and shaped how special forces units operate still to this day. I am always riveted by these tales!Backlist bump: Agent Zigzag: A True Story of Nazi Espionage, Love, and Betrayal by Ben MacintyreTune in to our weekly podcast dedicated to all things new books, All The

You can look through a lot of World War II history books written between 1945 and the end of the 20th century and not find more than a mention of the S.A.S. This group consisted of a small number of British Army soldiers (later linked with other countries' forces) that were primarily functioning in North Africa during the time the Allies were battling with Rommel to control this vast territory. According to Ben Macintyre, their role and actions have required a high security clearance to review t...

Five big stars for this book! I loved MacIntyre’s telling of the founding and WWII service of the SAS. It’s quite the story, and MacIntyre does an excellent job showing both successes and setbacks. He chooses a cast that is wide enough to cover the story, but small enough for a reader to follow. The men, like their mission, were unconventional, complicated, flawed, interesting, and sometimes very funny. The SAS began in the deserts of North Africa, focused on attacking Axis air fields and suppli...

So much fun! Officially, officially obsessed with Ben Macintyre and his real-life spy/adventure sagas!

They Broke the Mold“At 9:15 p.m., in pitch darkness, they [SAS team leader Bill Fraser and a small group of men] reached the airfield perimeter and slipped through the fence, carefully stepping over some tripwire booby traps; over the next thirty minutes they planted thirty-seven bombs, with staggered timers to ensure that all exploded at roughly the same moment…. The first bomb went off at forty-two minutes past midnight, followed by three more in quick succession as the attackers scrambled off...

I liked this, so three stars. I liked the history of this particular time frame. It really is interesting how things all played out and fell into place. They were tenacious even when things didn't work. I enjoyed that part of it...the indomitable spirit. So now with that being said, this was a little dry especially the beginning. But once I fell into its rhythm, it worked for me.

Really enjoyed this both exhaustive and episodic history of Britain's renegade special forces and the crazy risks they took in North Africa and Europe to help defeat Nazi Germany.

I love Ben Macintyre - I think I have four or five of his books on my shelf, and I love the way he blends personal details with gripping narrative non-fiction. I think he's one of the best in the business.Which is why it pains me to say this is not his best work. All the hallmarks are there, but there's just something missing. I think it's due to profiling an organization as opposed to specific individuals - some flamboyant characters rise out of the soup of tactics and division names, but not e...

I won an ARC of this book in a goodreads drawing.A wonderful history of the origins of the SAS, which reads a lot like an Alistair MacLean novel.

I read this book while Aleppo was under siege and finally fell on 13 December 2016. With thousands and thousands of innocents slaughtered in the ruins of their destroyed homes while the whole world was watching, I found it hard to accept that the author doesn't tackle a single one of the many pressing questions concerning the "guerilla tactics" the SAS so famously adopted for warefare.MacIntyre seems to have stuck completely to the testimony of the SAS and other military. This makes for a quite

This was an amazing book! I am not a reader of non-fiction and I’m not sure how this book even found me but I’m so glad it did. I learned so much about the founding of the British SAS (Special Air Service) during WWll. They were brave, resourceful and essential to the war. There were lots of difficult parts to read but also important.