The Darkest Hour

By: Tony Schumacher

Narrated by: Gildart Jackson

Length: 14 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

London, 1946. The Nazis have conquered and now occupy Great Britain. John Henry Rossett, a decorated British war hero and former police sergeant, has been reassigned to the Office of Jewish Affairs. He now answers to the SS, one of the most powerful and terrifying organizations in the Third Reich. Now assigned a job he did not ask for and cannot refuse: rounding up Jews for deportation. But they are not the only victims, for the war took Rossett's wife and son, and shattered his own humanity. Then he finds Jacob, a young Jewish child, hiding in an abandoned building. Determined to save the innocent boy, Rossett takes him on the run, with the Nazis in pursuit. But they are not the only hunters following his trail...

©2014 Tony Schumacher (P)2014 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Good concept but maybe too many escapes

I was drawn to this book by the idea of England if the Nazis won the war. London was as dark as I expected and the backround story was very good. The hero was like a McGiver of the 1940s though and he escaped even falling six stories through a wooden door onto conveniently located cotton bales. That escape was one of about a dozen or more. I think that's where the absurdity of the multiple escapes kind of took over. I do like the story and did listen to the end but maybe a little less almost getting caught by someone and a bit more character development might have made the story more believable.

an 11 miler!!

What did you love best about The Darkest Hour?

It mesmerized me--I rate books by how long I walk at a time. A mediocre book is a 5 miler and a book I can't stop listening to is an 11 miler. I was completely drawn in by this alternative history.

What did you like best about this story?

I loved the forward momentum of the plot and the way the author made the listener have some empathy for, or at least understanding of, even the flawed characters

What does Gildart Jackson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I can't think or read with an English accent. Therefore, listening to the book made it seem so real--as if I were watching a well done BBC drama in my brain. Mr. Jackson was able to bring distinctive voices to all the characters--different English and German accents as well as female and a small boy's. I was transported to another time and place.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I was particularly moved by the opening scene with the desperate grandfather trying to get the sergeant to help him.

Any additional comments?

I have listened to hundreds of audible books. The best ones are usually like this one, reasonable well written with a fabulous narrator. I hope this author continues this storyline as a series.

Excellent alternate history novel

I listened to The Darkest Hour during March of 2016 but decided to wait to rate and review it due to mixed feelings on my part. My issue was whether to rate it 4 stars or 5. The novel is set in Great Britain in 1946 after Germany won WWII. The book is an excellent suspense thriller. The protagonist, an English war hero, has been assigned to round up Jews for deportation. He decides to try to save a young Jewish boy at severe risk to his own life. The excellent narration is by British actor Gildart Jackson.