“We were young citizen-soldiers, terribly naive and gullible about what we would be confronted with in the air war over Europe and the profound effect it would have upon every fiber of our being for the rest of our lives. We were all afraid, but it was beyond our power to quit. We volunteered for the service and, once trained and overseas, felt we had no choice but to fulfill the mission assigned. My hope is that this book honors the men with whom I served by telling the truth about what it took to climb into the cold blue and fight for our lives over and over again.”—John “Lucky” Luckadoo, Major, USAF (Ret.) 100th Bomb Group (H)Pearl Harbor, Hawaii was a world away from John Luckadoo’s hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee. But when the Japanese attacked the American naval base on December 7, 1941, he didn’t hesitate to join the military. Trained as a pilot with the United States Air Force, Second Lieutenant Luckadoo was assigned to the 100th Bomb Group stationed in Thorpe Abbotts, England. Between June and October 1943, he flew B-17 Flying Fortresses over France and Germany on bombing runs devised to destroy the Nazi war machine.With a shrapnel torn Bible in his flight jacket pocket and his girlfriend’s silk stocking around his neck like a scarf as talismans, Luckadoo piloted through Luftwaffe machine-gun fire and antiaircraft flak while enduring subzero temperatures to complete twenty-five missions and his combat service. The average bomber crew rarely survived after eight to twelve missions. Knowing far too many airmen who wouldn’t be returning home, Luckadoo closed off his emotions and focused on his tasks to finish his tour of duty one moment at a time, realizing his success was more about being lucky than being skilled.Drawn from Luckadoo’s firsthand accounts, acclaimed war correspondent Kevin Maurer shares his extraordinary tale from war to peacetime, uncovering astonishing feats of bravery during the bloodiest military campaign in aviation history, and presenting an incredible portrait of a young man’s coming-of-age during the world’s most devastating war.
Mark Owen Books







No Hero
- 290 pages
- 11 hours of reading
Mark Owen's instant bestseller, No Easy Day, focused on the high-profile targets and headline-grabbing chapters of the author's 13 years as a Navy SEAL. His follow-up, No Hero, offers a rare counterpoint: an intimate account of Owen's most personally meaningful missions, missions that never made headlines, including the moments in which he learned the most about himself and his teammates in both success and failure. Owen offers readers a close up view of the experiences and values that make Mark Owen and the SEALs he served with so capable.
Rock Force
- 304 pages
- 11 hours of reading
"In late December 1941, General Douglas MacArthur, caught off guard by the Japanese invasion of the Philippines, is forced to retreat to Corregidor, a jagged, rocky island fortress at the mouth of Manilla Bay. Months later, under orders from the president, the general is whisked away in the dark of night, leaving his troops to their fate. It is a bitter pill for a fiercely proud warrior who has always protected his men. He famously declares "I shall return," but the humiliation of Corregidor haunts him, even earning him the derisive nickname "Dugout Doug." In early 1945, MacArthur returns to the Philippines, his eyes affixed firmly on Corregidor. To take back the island, he calls on the 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment, a highly-trained veteran airborne unit. Their mission is to jump onto the island--hemmed in by sheer cliffs, pockmarked by bomb craters, bristling with deadly, spiky, broken tree trunks--and wrest it from some 6,700 Japanese defenders who await, fully armed and ready to fight to the death. Drawn from firsthand accounts and personal interviews with the battle's surviving veterans, acclaimed war correspondent and bestselling author Kevin Maurer delves in this extraordinary tale, uncovering astonishing accounts of bravery and heroism during an epic, yet largely forgotten, clash of the Pacific War. Here is an intimate story of uncommon soldiers showing uncommon courage, and winning, through blood and sacrifice, the redemption of General MacArthur"-- Provided by publisher
No Easy Day
The autobiography of a Navy SEAL. The firsthand account of the mission that killed Osama bin Laden
This first-person account details the planning and execution of the raid that led to Osama bin Laden's death, offering an unprecedented look inside the elite SEAL Team Six. The narrative immerses readers in the experiences of the twenty-four-man team as they prepare for this pivotal mission. From the harrowing crash of a Black Hawk helicopter to the moment the target was confirmed dead, the account unfolds with gripping, minute-by-minute precision. Team leader Mark Owen takes readers behind enemy lines, providing an insider's perspective on one of the most remarkable military operations in history. Critics have praised the book for its cinematic quality, capturing the intensity of the raid as if readers were alongside the SEALs in the helicopter. Mark Owen, a former member of SEAL Team Six, brings his extensive experience, having participated in numerous missions globally, including the high-profile rescue of Captain Richard Phillips in 2009. On May 1, 2011, he was a key figure in Operation Neptune Spear, witnessing bin Laden's demise firsthand. For security reasons, Owen's name and those of his fellow SEALs have been altered. Co-author Kevin Maurer has spent years covering special operations, embedding with forces in various conflict zones and authoring multiple books on the subject.
Codex Imperial Guard
- 63 pages
- 3 hours of reading
Paperback 63 pages Games Workshop; paperback / softback edition English 1841544108 978-1841544106
Život a práce člena týmu SEAL. Po bestselleru popisujícím misi vedoucí k zabití bin Ládina Nelehký den přichází bývalý člen jednotky amerického námořnictva Navy SEAL Mark Owen se svou druhou knihou, v níž předkládá čtenáři nejniternější zážitky ze svých misí, které ho nejvíce zasáhly a měly vliv na to, jaký člověk se z něj stal.
