Early 1942: the fate of the Suez Canal and access to Middle East oil hangs on the fate of an island just 17 miles long by 9 miles wide: Malta.
Determined to destroy the British forces threatening Rommel’s supply lines, the Axis powers drop more bombs on Malta than London endured throughout the Blitz. The population is forced underground, while the RAF struggles with inadequate resources to fend off defeat. Meanwhile, Britain’s Atlantic lifeline is fraying....
Voices on the Wind follows the fate of four of Malta’s defenders: Senior Intelligence Officer and former Battle of Britain ace, W/Cdr “Robin” Priestman; WAAF SigInt Officer Candice Weld, sent out from Bletchley Park to “man” the only X-machine outside the UK; F/O “Ned” Nettleton, a Beaufort torpedo bomber pilot engaged in suicidal attacks against enemy shipping; and Chief Officer Stevie Mackay of the British Merchant Navy, fighting to keep Britain’s own lines of supply open.
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I picked up “Voices on the Wind: Part One – Assault” because I enjoy Second World War fiction.
I finished it wondering how on earth Adrian “Warby” Warburton survived long enough to become a legend.
Honestly, if someone invented Warby as a fictional character, readers would probably complain that he was unrealistic.
Yet there he is.
Flying dangerous reconnaissance missions over enemy territory.
Attacking targets that sensible people would avoid.
Smoking constantly.
And apparently landing aircraft with all the grace and precision of a falling wardrobe.
Warby is one of several real historical figures who appear in the novel, and every time he turned up I found myself smiling. The RAF became so resigned to his refusal to stop smoking that they eventually fitted an ashtray in his aircraft. At that point, it feels less like enforcing regulations and more like accepting defeat.
"Fine, Warby. If you're going to fly over enemy territory taking photographs while being shot at, at least try not to set fire to the cockpit."
The thing is, beneath the humour was an astonishingly brave man. Schrader does a wonderful job of showing why Warburton became such a legendary figure. His reconnaissance flights required a special kind of courage. Unlike fighter pilots, he wasn't out looking for a fight. He was often flying long distances, alone or nearly alone, gathering information that commanders desperately needed while enemy aircraft and anti-aircraft guns did their very best to make sure he never came home.
Then somehow he'd survive all that and terrify everyone during the landing.
As entertaining as Warby is, the novel is far more than a collection of colourful wartime characters.
What impressed me most was the way Malta itself feels alive. This isn't the Malta of holiday brochures. This is Malta under siege. Bombs are falling, supplies are running short, buildings are being reduced to rubble, and yet people keep going. Pilots keep flying. Merchant seamen keep sailing. Intelligence officers keep working. Civilians keep carrying on with daily life despite circumstances that would have broken many others.
The novel follows several different characters, each showing a different side of the war. Ned Nettleton gives readers a front-row seat to some of the most dangerous flying of the conflict. Candice Weld, meanwhile, has to navigate a different sort of battlefield. She arrives in Malta armed with intelligence, competence, and a willingness to do her job, only to discover that some of the men around her are deeply suspicious of this alarming combination. A few seem to have decided that because she is a woman she couldn't possibly understand anything important. Candice responds by repeatedly proving them wrong. Watching her quietly dismantle their assumptions is enormously satisfying, and there were several moments where certain individuals thoroughly deserved the embarrassment they received.
Robin Priestman helps connect the bigger strategic picture and gives readers a glimpse into the pressure facing those responsible for making sense of the information arriving from multiple sources. Then there is Stevie Mackay, whose storyline shines a light on the Merchant Navy. Historical fiction often focuses on pilots and soldiers, but Schrader reminds readers that none of them could have fought for long without the men risking their lives to keep supplies moving across dangerous seas.
What I particularly enjoyed was how naturally these stories fit together. No one feels as though they exist simply to explain history to the reader. They feel like real people trying to do difficult jobs in extraordinarily difficult circumstances.
The research behind the novel is obvious, but it never feels as though the author is showing off. Historical details emerge naturally through conversations, missions, briefings, and daily life. The result is a story that teaches without ever feeling like a lesson.
There are exciting aerial sequences, moments of genuine tension, fascinating historical figures, and more than a few occasions where I found myself heading off to Google because I couldn't quite believe someone had actually done the thing I had just read about.
Usually, the answer was yes.
And quite often the person responsible was Warby.
“Voices on the Wind: Part One – Assault” is the kind of historical fiction that reminds readers that history was lived by real people—some heroic, some eccentric, and occasionally both at the same time. It brings Malta's wartime story vividly to life while introducing readers to a cast of characters they will not want to leave behind.
A wonderful read, and I am already looking forward to the next book.
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