About:
The Second Sunby P.T. Deutermann is a historical fiction book about a US Navy Captain on a mission to find out if Japan has gotten their hands on a nuclear bomb during World War II. This is the 11thbook in Mr. Deutramann’s World War II series, but the first one I read by the author.
- 304 pages
- Publisher : St. Martin’s Press
- Hardcover : 304 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1250360978
My rating for The Second Sun – 4
Buy The Second Sun from Amazon.com*
More Books by P.T. Deutermann*
Thoughts:
I’ve never read any of the author’s previous books, and even though this is the 11th in a series, it’s certainly a standalone book. Mr. Deutermann certainly writes well and certainly knows his stuff.
The Second Sun refers to what the Japanese called the atomic bomb when they saw it. After all, it harnesses the sun’s power to create a weapon. Honestly, I never thought about it that way, but it certainly makes sense.
I enjoyed his explanation of how nuclear devices work, and his descriptions of the explosions are especially poignant. The descriptions of the devastation in Hiroshima and Nagasaki are heart breaking, but it was probably much worse. From some reason, I kept waiting for the “aunt people”, but they never showed up. Maybe because I learned about them a year ago.
I don’t understand why he makes the protagonist repeat several times how much he hates the Japanese, two or three times would have gotten the message across. The novel deals with the ethical questions of nuking civilians, and whether the protagonist hates the Japanese, or whether they “had it coming”, is irrelevant. The fact that the bombs brought the end of the war saving the lives of hundreds of thousands of American GIs is reason enough.
Nevertheless, this is a gripping book, well written and tight. The characters are fully developed each with a backstory to build them up. We don’t really know if Japan had a nuclear bomb, Mr. Deutermann certainly thinks they did and he makes a good case of why they might have.
Synopsis:
Captain Wolfe Bowen works in Washington DC for the Chief of Naval Operation when he receives a call to come check out a captured German U-Boat with two Japanese civilians on it. It’s determined that the U-Boat is carrying uranium.
Together with Lt. Commander Janet Waring, a Naval intelligence officer who is fluent in Japanese, he must report his findings to President Truman. Bowen’s report could change the course of the war and the world.
Buy The Second Sun from Amazon.com*
More Books by P.T. Deutermann*
Zohar — Man of la Book
Disclaimer:I got this book for free.
*Amazon links point to an affiliate account, the money is usually spent on books
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