COMP CLOSED | Book Giveaway | The Rabbit Hunter

A page-turning, character-driven historical novel illuminating the brutality of war, and revealing New Zealand soldiers’ little-known combat in Northern Greece during the Second World War.

Athens, April 1941. Adolf Hitler has conquered most of Europe, and he’s now turning his attention to the Balkans. The unstoppable Wehrmacht is unleashed on Greece. Standing in its way, on the imposing slopes of Mount Olympus, sacred home of the ancient Greek gods, are soldiers of the New Zealand Division, including a marksman in the person of Second Lieutenant Neil Rankin.

This fictional story places Rankin and his platoon, drawn from across New Zealand’s South island, at the heart of these actual events. The Greek nation’s unfolding disaster, and the humour, farce, personal hurt and tragedy experienced by men at war are detailed in this well-written debut novel.

While ultimately the Battle of Greece was a military failure, it was the curtain-raiser for the campaigns to come, in which New Zealand would play a prominent part. Just 26 years after the name “Gallipoli” was seared into the national psyche, like their fathers before them, many of those involved in this battle would never see their homeland again.

Christopher Worth

Dunedin-based Christopher Worth was a partner with the chartered accounting firm Coopers & Lybrand, later PricewaterhouseCoopers, for 18 years. During that time Chris and his family transferred to Moscow where he spent seven years as a Senior Audit Partner with the firm. After his return he became a contract practice reviewer for the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants and undertook contract assignments for several accounting practices.

The Second World War has always held a powerful fascination for Chris, dating back to his early school days.

“The war’s aftermath shaped the world I grew up in, as it still does,” he says. “Very few of those who went remain with us. I would like to think that in this book the reader might recognise something of their own father or grandfather.

“I wanted to write a book that would keep the history of the ANZACs alive for future generations.”

 

 

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