Swapping the fire station for the front line, retired fireman A.A.G. Whitehead a former serving Fire Officer at Newton Aycliffe has always had heroism in his blood and on his mind. It has been the heroism that he saw in his working life that inspired his new novel, citing that “For many years he was intrigued by the human reaction to being given an order which could obviously put the receiver into harm’s way.”
Whitehead is also keen for his novel to help pay tribute to the brave men that were lost on the front lines in the great war explaining “This is my personal tribute and hopefully in it, the readers, if they don’t already appreciate the pain, misery and suffering these men endured will do so.”
The heart of the book follows human relationships that develop and flourish between these characters in times of great adversity.
In a mixture of patriotism and excitement, Danny Byrne and his friends from the close-knit pit villages of north-east England sign up, like so many other young men, to fight for King and country at the start of the First World War, a war they all expected to be over by Christmas.
In this fictional account of the Durham Fusiliers, Danny and his band of brothers embark on an adventure where no one knows the ending.
The camaraderie, skills, and connections of the regiment mean they are soon singled out as a specialist operations team – a unit that is feared and revered in equal measure.
‘Pals Wars- The Second Battle of Ypres’ is published by Austin Macauley, and is available to order from Amazon and all good booksellers. For further information please visit http://www.austinmacauley.com
