MacBride's Wars

This title was previously available on NetGalley and is now archived.
Buy on BN.com Buy on Bookshop.org
*This page contains affiliate links, so we may earn a small commission when you make a purchase through links on our site at no additional cost to you.
Send NetGalley books directly to your Kindle or Kindle app

1
To read on a Kindle or Kindle app, please add kindle@netgalley.com as an approved email address to receive files in your Amazon account. Click here for step-by-step instructions.
2
Also find your Kindle email address within your Amazon account, and enter it here.
Pub Date 28 May 2020 | Archive Date 05 Nov 2020
The Book Guild | Book Guild Publishing

Talking about this book? Use #MabridesWars #NetGalley. More hashtag tips!


Description

Charting one of the most romantic and tragic love triangles of the early twentieth century

What Major John MacBride learns when leading the Irish Brigade in the Second Anglo-Boer War against the British Empire isn’t much help when fighting his estranged wife in the French courts. She is the beloved muse of Ireland’s leading poet and so charismatic that militant Irish nationalists think she is worth a platoon of heavy dragoons in Ireland’s fight for freedom.

Back in Ireland, MacBride’s involvement in that fight moves the same poet to say that he has transformed from a drunken, vainglorious lout to a major player in the ‘terrible beauty’ of the 1916 Easter Rising.

This is a rollicking story of a life-long struggle against an implacable foe with a tragic love story thrown in.

Charting one of the most romantic and tragic love triangles of the early twentieth century

What Major John MacBride learns when leading the Irish Brigade in the Second Anglo-Boer War against the...


A Note From the Publisher

Dermod Judge is an Irish author currently living in Cape Town, South Africa. He's had a varied career in storytelling across theatre and film - including in broadcasting, writing, designing, directing and filmmaking. Dermod is an international award-winning filmmaker, script editor and international lecturer on storytelling and filmmaking. He has already published three Irish-based novels with The Book Guild - Clash, Two Jam Jars for the Manor and Bopping in Ballymalloy. Dermod says, "After a lifetime in the media, most of it as a professional writer, I felt the need to write only books and this is my fourth. I have always considered the Anglo-Boer wars as the first freedom struggles of the modern era and deserving of much description and comment. The fact that many Irish patriots who took up arms directly against the British empire, gained their experience while fighting for the Boers in South Africa should be acknowledged."

Dermod Judge is an Irish author currently living in Cape Town, South Africa. He's had a varied career in storytelling across theatre and film - including in broadcasting, writing, designing...


Available Editions

EDITION Ebook
ISBN 9781913551278
PRICE $4.49 (USD)

Available on NetGalley

Send to Kindle (EPUB)

Average rating from 6 members


Featured Reviews

MacBride's Wars by Dermod Judge is true historical fiction featuring many actual people, places, and situations. It is an intriguing story of a man with strong beliefs who is not necessarily a good man in all areas of his life. It is a war story, and most of all it is an Irish story. It was a good read. More importantly, the Introduction is a must-read. It is insightful, interesting, and the words of a true historian. It is as well worth reading as is the novel.
MacBride and colleagues have gone to South Africa to fight with the Boers against the rule of England. They see this as a fight parallel to their own in Ireland. They hope to learn. Irish men are recruited, trained, and paid well for their part in the war. They live hard and love hard. It is an educational read. I recommend it.

I received a free ARC of MacBride's War from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #macbrideswar

Was this review helpful?

I really loved the first half of this story as MacBride arrives in Dublin and immediately falls in with the key theatrical and revolutionary figures of the day who would later become both iconic and household names. MacBride's obsession with Maud Gonne is captured perfectly entwining his love of Ireland and Maud herself. The tragic breakdown of their marriage is briefly visited towards the end of the story as well as a short account of MacBride's role in 1916 and his time in Kilamainham gaol.

Whilst I am not familiar with any actual historical accounts of events of this period, I thought some of the "lighthearted / comedic" tales told during MacBride's exploits in South Africa were at odds with the overall mood of the rest of the story.

After reading "MacBrides Wars" I have been inspired to learn more about these historical characters and this period.

Was this review helpful?

I have a huge interest in irish history and am always keen to read books based on the time. I loved it. Would highly recommend.

Was this review helpful?

I personally struggled through this book a bit. Perhaps it is not my genre/ type of story. I have a keen interest in Scotland/ Ireland in the 1700s-1900s and other history, however, I feel like a deeper knowledge of Ireland's history and Macbride is required to read this story and for that reason, I did not finish it. I got to Chapter 13 where I stopped. I wasn't enjoying it, didn't understand the lingo for a lot of it. Again, might just be me and my upbringing (out of Europe) but I can't say the story is for me.

Was this review helpful?

This book follows the character McBride in his quest to rebel against the English colonials with a group of other men to fight in Africa. Overall, the book had some good ideas and characters but fell a bit short in descriptions and was too lengthy in other areas. Sometimes, the text did not flow and was overly-lengthy or detailed. I would have preferred other parts of the story to be longer in detail or characterisation as well, but overall thought it was promising.

Was this review helpful?

Readers who liked this book also liked: