Unfortunately, I could not read the book as the font was unreadable and I could not edit it. Therefore, I will give it 3 stars as a middle mark.

What a great collection of short stories. Each one is full of action and is well written. This book will surely hold your attention! I could not put this book down till I finished it. A great read for the air enthusiast.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This collection of short stories contains some gems. I particularly liked “Anything to Anywhere,” an ATA woman pilot who steps in at the last minute for a crew whose navigator breaks down. She flies with them on the Dambuster Raid. “Into the Frey Goes Walter Pigeon” is a charming, quirky tale told from the carrier pigeon’s point of view. “Lion Hearts,” about teens with Down’s Syndrome, is a good story, but it ends abruptly, leaving a big question unanswered. “The German Pilot” and “Corkscrew Port Go” are poignant stories about the toll war takes on the airmen. “One Too Many” wasn’t too appealing, featuring an American officer of both WWI and WWII who feels he’s squandered his life in a loveless marriage. “The Pathfinder” tries to promote racial harmony, but ends up making Winston Cy Jellicoe so heroic and others as idiots.

These are a very enjoyable and well written set of stories from an author who evidently has researched her subject matter thoroughly and must also possess a great love of flying. Character development is often a failing in the short story format but Jacqueline Puchtler manages to bring clarity and depth to most of her people (and pigeons!) in just a few pages. Some of the stories are overly sentimental which may put off those who expect more Biggles than Barbara Cartland but each tale is well crafted and the roller coaster emotions well illustrate the perils and uncertainties which must have characterised life as a wartime pilot. I particularly enjoyed the story about "Operation Chastise" which adds a fictional element to the Dam Busters story and may therefore offend the purist. For my money, if the technical details are accurate, as I think they are here, then it is a highly effective and enjoyable way for the reader to learn some history.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Cranthorpe Milner Publishers for permitting me to review this book.