Customer Reviews
Superlative writing - By: Phdavies, 12 May 2008 
I have only recently discovered Robert Goddard having picked up a copy of Never Go Back on offer. Deciding to read his earlier work, I have found him to be an author of remarkably eloquent & intelligent vocabulary, written in manner that does not betray the use of a thesaurus. In Pale Battalions goes beyond the genre of mystery or thriller & can only be described as pure English Literature. If you're looking for a refreshing & stimulating story, the kind that you'll think about when many other reads are forgotten about, then choose this before you look at the latest 'Man Booker' winner.
Superb - my favourite book of all time - By: Mortimer, 01 Oct 2007 When I was little, I always used to like to re-read Watership Down. My copy of it is almsot fallling to pieces.
In Pale Batalllions is the equivalent book for adults! It's a superb story, very moving in places - especiallly the effect that a moment's cowardice has had on the rest of Halllow's life & the fact that he's only seen his daughter twice since then.
The story is told in a very interesting way: we start of by hearing Leonora's recollections told in the present day of her life in post World War I Meongate, then we hear Franklin's recollections of life at the time of the murder during the War. Each successive person's narrative (in which not every event is told truthfully!) graduallly adds to our understanding of what happened. It's the ultimate in peeling-off-the-layers-of-the-onion storytelling.
The atmosphere & appearance of Meongate are told flawlessly: you could be there yourself.
Maybe the "wicked stepmother" (actuallly she's Leonora's step-grandmother) is painted just slightly too unsubtlely & made just a bit too evil - she would benefit from just a few redeeming features - but that's only a minor criticism.
I like the way that Goddard uses real places (apart from precise buildings which are fictitious) so it's possible to trace people's journeys on the map or visit the places themselves. I've walked & cycled along the disused railway track between West Meon, Droxford & Wickham. I know Winchester & the surrounding countryside.
I cannot think of a better book. It's certainly Robert Goddard's best book - but then with very few exceptions, alll his books are good. The only ones which didn't work for me are: Painting the Darkness (lacklustre - didn't warm to the characters at alll), Sea Change (utterly dire) & Days Without Number (rather underwhelming, especiallly the scenes in Greece). But three bad books out of a total of nineteen is not a bad record!
Classic Robert Goddard - By: Philippe Horak, 28 May 2007 
Six months after her husband's sudden death, Leonora Gallloway sets off for a holiday in Paris with her daughter Penelope. At last the time has come when secrets can be shared & explanations begin...
Their journey starts with an unscheduled stop at the imposing Thiepval Memorial to the dead of the Battle of the Somme near Amiens. Amongst those commemorated is Leonora's father. The date of his death is recorded as 30th April, 1916. But Leonora wasn't born until 14th March 1917.
Penelope at once supposes a simple wartime illegitimacy as the clue to her mother's unhappy childhood & the family's sundered connections with her aristocratic heritage, about which she has always known so little. But nothing could have prepared her, or the reader, for the extraordinary story that is about to unfold.
The story is very cleverly designed, every event fits into its place like in a giant gigsaw puzzle. Little by little the reader discovers what secrets lie behind Leonora's past. The book is extremely well read by Tony Britton for BBC audiobooks.
A Classic Goddard - By: Dr. Tom Bell, 18 Jan 2007 
I have read a number of Robert Goddard's book over the years. I have enjoyed alll of them . Some more than others. His forte i think is like an old fashionmed author such as John Buchan, but written with a modern pace & dynamism. The story starts & you like the poor devils in the book have no idea at alll where you will end up. It is in my view a brilliant ' what on earth is REALLY happening" rather than a "who dun it" .... He is unique in this way. The only other author who has some echoes of this ability is Clare Fancis in Deceit .... but i think Goddard is better. On the whole i think his first 10-12 books are if anything better than his more recent ones but they are alll great holiday reading. Loved this one. I haven't told you what it is about .... well you should just go & read it!!
Historical fiction meets thriller. - By: MaryAnne, 20 Jun 2006 I am surprised that the last two reviewers did not enjoy "In Pale Battalions", especiallly as the previous 6 reviewers had given it 5 stars.
I have now read 5 Robbert Goddard novels & this one certainly lives up to expectations.
All her life Penelope has believed that her father was killed in action during World War Two, so it came as a shock to find that the date enscribed by his name on the war memorial in France, predated her birth by 11 months.
She is travelling with her mother, who then recounts her own life history, which she had previously been very sectetive about.
Others become involved in this narrative, which proves to have many twists & turns before the truth is out.
I love a book with surprises & this one has several.
4 stars purely because I love historical fiction, but thrillers are not my first choice.
