Gates of Fire by this same author is one of my all time favorites. If I read it again soon, it will receive the coveted five star status. Killing Rommel will not get five stars, but it’s better than I thought it would be, and that’s a huge plus for Pressfield.

In this instance, I did Judge a Book by its cover. Or rather, by its cover price. I don’t know what’s going on in the world of publishing, but to expect me to be happy with paying $15 for an oversized paperback version of a short book is insane. I was upset by this that I purposely didn’t buy the book for a long time as my own little personal boycott. The only reason I ended up with it is because I forgot to take it off my Amazon wishlist and I received it for Christmas.

So, I began the book on a very sour note. The story started out a little slow for me, but picked up gear as the main character, “Chap” joins the Long Range Desert Group on a mission to kill the German General in North Africa, Erwin Rommel. The story takes many twists and turn. The description of the loneliness of the desert really rings through, especially interspersed with chaotic gunfights and repetitive manual labor, and a chronic shortage of supplies.

I was too often confused by the names of secondary characters and locations in the desert, but wasn’t too interested in keeping track of them. They all seemed ancillary to the story. As for the story itself, I wasn’t sold on it until the last twenty pages. The conclusion was top notch and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

If you can find this story at the library or borrow it from a friend, definitely do so. Otherwise, consider getting a Kindle so you can put an end to the ridiculous new paperback sizes and their oversized prices.

Rating: 3 out of 5  (What’s This?)