The reader may wonder if he has stumbled onto a recently written anti-war novel as Goshawk Squadron does have a strange feel of ‘Biggles meets Blackadder’ all mixed together with Mick Herron’s cynical Jackson Lamb character from his Slough House series. Strangely, despite its modern feel this is a novel written 50 years ago and the author is very clear that ‘Goshawk Squadron’ reflects more accurately the ruthless character of the air war in the First World War.
There is no doubt that the unforgiving nature of the fighting between the two air forces is well captured and the very short life expectancy of newly joined pilots (generally reckoned to be around 18 airborne hours) will come as no surprise to the reader by the time the closing chapters are reached.
Strengths of this unusual book are the surprisingly well crafted descriptive language; the ease with which the author conjures up the sense of being a close witness to the airborne fighting; and the clever black humour, particularly as deployed to describe Major Woolley, the leader of the Goshawk Squadron, and the antics of off duty pilots when enjoying the pleasures of the local hostelries.
Be prepared, however, to be affected by the experiences of these young men, often expecting to be engaged in a chivalrous fight but then finding that ‘kill or be killed’ leaves little room for chivalry.