"Signal Red" by Robert Ryan

Publisher: London : Headline Review, 2010.
Copyright 2010
ISBN: 9780755358205
Characteristics: 593 pages.

The fictionalized tale of the greatest train robbery of modern times. In August of 1963 a gang of unarmed men led by Bruce Reynolds holds up the Royal Mail Train, which is carrying millions of pounds in bills that are destined to be taken out of circulation.

This novel goes into great depth on the planning, and execution of the robbery as well as the investigation and subsequent capture of the gang by Scotland Yard. The gang had gotten away will virtually all the money, and had gone to ground in a nearby farmhouse. They are eventually spooked out of their hiding place, and leave many clues behind for the then new science of forensics to get their hands on.

While this novel is long at almost 600 pages, it is well worth the read as the amount of research that Mr. Ryan had to concerning the real robbery is astounding, and definitely gives the reader the ability to be in the thick of the action.

In addition to being a great novel, it inspired the 2014 double movie "The Great Train Robbery" starring Luke Evans, Martin Compston, Jim Broadbent, and James Fox. I say double movie, as that is what it is you get one from the robber's point of view and another from the police's. An excellent way of telling the tale.

"The Light of Day" by Eric Amber (1909-1998)

Publisher:New York: A. Knopf [1962]
Copyright Date:©1962
Characteristics: 219 pages: maps

This novel is one of many by Eric Ambler who was a celebrated suspense novelist, and tells the tale of a jewelry heist from the National Museum in Istanbul in Turkey. In it not only do you get a well rounded story, but a bit of a history lesson as well, which was another of Mr. Ambler's trademarks as he was known for do a lot of research forms books (most of it in person from what I understand).

The novel was the winner of the Edgar Award in 1964 and tells the story of one Arthur Simpson an out-of-luck con man, who is hired to drive a car across the Turkish border from Greece. Seems quite a simple job, but unbeknownst to him the car is being used to smuggle weapons. This story is told in first person by Simpson who upon discovery of the weapons becomes an unwilling "agent" for the Turkish Secret Police - a role he was forced into due to various circumstances and subsequently an even more unwilling accomplice in the robbery.

This book inspired the 1964 movie "Topkapi" which starred Peter Ustinov, Maximilian Schell & Melina Mercouri and unlike many movie adaptions, this one actually stays quite close to the story as Mr. Ambler wrote it. True they did change some things, but not nearly as much as they do now-a-days.

The characters in the movie are fairly true to those in the book as well, but not as close as they could be which is somewhat typical of Hollywood (even in the 60's). The Arthur Simpson character as played by Peter Ustinov is a lot of fun to watch, and could considered to be one of his better performances (at least in my opinion).

"Loot for the Taking" by Don Levers

Publisher:[Victoria, British Columbia] : Tellwell, [2017]
Copyright Date:©2017
ISBN: 9781773027142
Characteristics: 297 pages

"Loot for the Taking" revolves around the real life robbery in 1977 of the Vancouver Safety Deposit Vault in Vancouver, British Columbia. It tells the tale of four average friends who decide to rob the vault of a fortune in money, jewels, and bonds.

The author has produced a cohesive story that is extremely well written, and keeps you reading to the very end. The characters are intricately developed, and their motivations are believable. The explaination of how the robbery was carried out is very detailed, and gives the story a life of it own that keeps you turning the pages.

Historical fiction is a growing genre, that more authors should investigate, as the rewards are substantial. These include such a thing as a targeted audience, which is something very few other genres can boast. On the down side of this genre there is the research that the author has to do to support the story, which most authors are unwilling or unable to do. Mr. Levers has definitely succeeded in this and has produced a story that should delight all readers. In addition, his interweaving of the dream sequences was an interesting plot twist that definitely kept me interested.

The only thing I found missing in this novel - and it's a minor thing that likely only matters to very few readers - is the lack of a bibliography. As an author myself, when I read a historical fiction piece I frequently like to read more on the subject, and would have appreciated the reference material.

I'm very much looking forward to the next book by this author.