British Ace Books

In the air, we find freedom. In the summer of 1914, the world stands on the brink of chaos, and for young William Harsker, life is about to change forever. Drawn to the pride of the cavalry and the allure of glory, William trades the freshness of English fields for the muddy trenches of Flanders. But nothing can prepare him for the brutal reality of cavalry charges against merciless machine guns, where valour and death dance intimately on the battlefield. As the war escalates, William’s fierce spirit leads him to the Royal Flying Corps, a daring shift that takes him to the skies above the carnage. In the cockpit, he transforms from an observer and gunner to a pilot, discovering an unyielding passion for aerial combat that tests his bravery in ways he never imagined. Through breathtaking dogfights and narrow escapes, William grapples with the contrast of his once-simple life back home and the dark, consuming world of war that has engulfed him. “They came in at the same time. I saw the determination on Sharp’s face as he emptied all forty-seven bullets at the Eindecker. The fuselage of our aeroplane was largely air and many of the bullets missed. The danger would be when the steel-tipped bullets hit the engine. That was a bridge I would have to cross later. I could see the German trenches approaching. I was thirty miles from home. I might as well have been three hundred. It was three-to-one odds that we would not make it home.” 1914 is a poignant exploration of courage, brotherhood, and the indomitable human spirit. As William faces the stark realities of loyalty, sacrifice and the abrupt loss of innocence, readers will be drawn into a whirlwind of emotions that resonate long after the final page is turned. Join William on his journey; feel the thrill of flight, the weight of dread, and the bittersweet nature of heroism as the world he once knew fades into the shadows of history. The gripping first instalment of Griff Hosker’s acclaimed seven-part British Ace series. A must-read for fans of Ben Kane, Bernard Cornwell, Simon Scarrow and Anthony Riches. Prepare for battle – this is just the beginning.

The story of the FE 2b; the Gunbus. First Lieutenant Bill Harsker and his squadron come up against the deadly Fokker monoplane. While many other squadrons are decimated the Gunbuses give the fledgling RFC hope. When a new commanding officer takes over the squadron and imposes impossible rules lives are lost and Bill has to face a court martial. All of the gains they have made are threatened by a martinet. The novel spans the end of 1915 and the start of 1916. It shows the harsh realities of life on the Western Front, in the air and the problems of the civilians back home.

It is the beginning of the Somme Offensive and thousands of British and French soldiers are about to assault the German lines. The RFC comes of age as they sweep the German Fokkers from the skies. Providing a protective umbrella over the Somme they ensure that the offensive does not fail. When the Germans retaliate with their new and deadly Albatros fighters the pendulum swings in favour of the Germans and Bill and 41 Squadron find themselves with their backs to the walls as they fight a superior aircraft in the skies of northern France.

The battle of Arras is about to begin and the new German fighters will rule the skies in what will become Bloody April when the Royal Flying Corps begin to lose pilots and crews in huge numbers. 41 Squadron become the one hope on the Arras front and Bill, Gordy and Ted have to fight for their lives against the new Albatros and Baron Manfred Von Richthofen. The novel moves between the war in France and the home front to give a graphic snapshot of the war in the Spring of 1917.

It is late 1917 and the war still grinds on. The Sopwith Camels are holding their own against the German war machine and then they meet the Fokker Triplane and the pilots of the RFC began to fall. As the war drifts into 1918 the Germans have one last throw of the dice and come within a whisker of the sea. It is up to Bill, Gordy and Ted to lead their young pilots in a last desperate attempt to halt the grey wall of steel. With a dramatic climax during bloody September in 1918 the final book set in the Great War shows how the squadron emerges from four bloody years of war.

The novel takes Bill Harsker from the fields of France to other postings in the post war world of 1918. It is the story of the early days of the R.A.F. when Winston Churchill commanded the fledgling air force. Bill is sent to help fight the Bolsheviks in the Baltic where he has to learn to take-off and land on a carrier. There he has to learn how to play politics with men whose loyalties are not obvious. Ordered to the rebellion in Egypt and then Somaliland, Bill has to learn a whole range of new skills. Based upon actual events Arctic Snow to Desert Sand is the story of how the Royal Air Force learned its skills of war in a time of peace.

Wing Commander Bill Harsker is sent by the Air Ministry to the British Protectorate of Iraq. Ordered by the League of Nations to keep the peace, he has just a handful of aeroplanes to control the skies over Mesopotamia. Attacked by rebellious Kurds and then an invading Turkish army, the Royal Air Force is hard pressed to keep the peace. When an old nemesis from Bill’s past emerges, he finds himself fighting for not only peace but his life. Based on true events this is a fast-moving novel about the early days of the Royal Air Force.