Review: Comes a Horseman by Anne Barwell

Title: Comes a Horseman (Echoes Rising: Book Three)

Author: Anne Barwell

Length: 230 Pages

Category: Historical, Mystery/Suspense

At a Glance: Anne Barwell delivers such an emotional and intense ending to her Echoes Rising series. This WWII historical drama has danger, chaos, betrayal, bigotry, revenge, and suspenseful moments that will keep you on edge.

Reviewed By: Maryann

Blurb: France, 1944

Sometimes the most desperate struggles take place far from the battlefield, and what happens in secret can change the course of history.

Victory is close at hand, but freedom remains frustratingly just beyond the grasp of German physicist Dr. Kristopher Lehrer, Resistance fighter Michel, and the remaining members of the team sent by the Allies—Captain Matt Bryant, Sergeant Ken Lowe, and Dr. Zhou Liang—as they fight to keep the atomic plans from the Nazis. The team reaches France and connects with members of Michel’s French Resistance cell in Normandy. Allied troops are poised to liberate France, and rescue is supposedly at hand. However, Kristopher is no longer sure the information he carries in his memory is safe with either side.

When Standartenführer Holm and his men finally catch up with their prey, the team is left with few options. With a traitor in their midst, who can they trust? Kristopher realizes he must become something he is not in order to save the man he loves. Death is biding his time, and sacrifices must be made for any of them to have the futures they want.

Review: Michel Faber, French resistance fighter, and German physicist Dr. Kristopher Lehrer, are coming to the end of the line. They’ve made their way to the German border, and the last step is to cross over to France. Kristopher can’t afford to be caught by the Germans or the allies; the knowledge he holds is a dangerous formula for destruction.

Matt Bryant and Ken Lowe are American soldiers working a joint mission with British Special Ops, and the Executive and American Office of Strategic Services. Matt and Ken grew to be more than friends. Their mission is to get Kristopher safely out of Germany. Another of their small, courageous band is Dr. Liang Zhou. As a civilian, he was asked to join this team in Germany, to confirm that the plan for the weapon was authentic. He also fell in love with Juliane Dunst, who works for the German Resistance and the sister to the cruel Standartenführer Holm. These brave men have each suffered physical and mental torture at the hands of Holm, his second-in-command, Reiniger, and Margarete Huber.

With the aid of resistance fighters from all ethnicities, the group splits up. As Matt’s band comes to a border crossing, they discover that Holmes and Reiniger have been re-assigned to France. Once in France, Michel finds what may be his last chance to go home, no matter what the outcome is. As the group reconnects, they join the resistance and find themselves narrowly missing capture by the Nazis at every turn. As the allied invasion gets closer, freedom becomes a distant dream for Ken and Michel, and Kristopher decides to take a stand for the man he loves. Before they risk their lives, Kristopher makes a plan that will bring them back together in the future—if they survive.

Anne Barwell delivers such an emotional and intense ending to her Echoes Rising series. This WWII historical drama has danger, chaos, betrayal, bigotry, revenge, and suspenseful moments that will keep you on edge. It’s also a tale that offers camaraderie among different allies and the sadness of those who fought and lost their lives. The characters are so filled with hope and love, even at the worst of times, it just overwhelms your heart. With their friendships and heartbreak, their fears and their faults and relationships, these characters continue to grow. It was sad to have the series come to an end. It is so well written and told with so much heart; it grabs you from the very beginning with its in-depth characterizations and their fight to save humanity. I highly recommend reading the entire Echoes Rising series, beginning with Shadowboxing and Winter Duet.

You can buy Comes a Horseman here:
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