Written in 1942 while World War II still raged across the globe, this pulpy adventure novel drops three American pilots into the heart of the Pacific conflict. Stan Wilson, Bill O'Malley, and March Allison are chafing in the sweltering RAF mess hall in Singapore, bored and desperate for action against the Japanese advancing through the region. When they learn they can transfer to the Chinese Air Force to fight directly against the enemy, they jump at the chance, leaving their British posts for something more dangerous and more personal. The Far East opens up before them: the heat, the tension, the alien beauty of a world at war, and the deadly reality of aerial combat against Japanese forces. Montgomery writes with the propulsive energy of a writer who knew his audience wanted young men in cockpits, daring raids, and the brotherhood of aviators facing death together. It's unapologetically of its time, a wartime morale piece dressed up as adventure fiction, but that's precisely what gives it its kick. For readers who want a window into how Americans in 1942 imagined their role in the global fight, or who just want a brisk, old-school war adventure, this delivers.
