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Customer Reviews (5)

So-So book
I had never read anything by this author. The characters are
interesting and strongly drawn but in the first place, it took me
awhile to plow through the first part so I could get to the
main premise of the book; to find out the identity of a shell
shocked soldier. I didnt like the wayjust as you are at the
end of one chapter and left hanging, the next chapter will be
about someone else leaving you wondering what they have to do
with the whole thing. Plus, the worse thing is at the end when
you supposedly find out the identity of the soldier, you still
are not positive exactly who he is...I wont tell you the
ending but leave it to you hoping you can figure it out.

"This war would leave no one as they had been before.",
Barbara Cleverly's "Tug of War" opens in the Champagne region of Northern France in 1915. Aline Houdart wonders how her officer husband is faring on the battlefront while she and their five-year old son, Georges, cope with the help of their elderly servants. Aline is maintaining the family chateau and vineyards under difficult circumstances, determined that when her husband returns home he will be proud of all that she has accomplished in his absence.

The next scene takes place eleven years later in London. Scotland Yard Commander Joe Sandilands is about to embark on a vacation to the south of France with his fourteen-year-old "honorary" niece, an outspoken, irreverent, and precocious young lady named Dorcas. Before he manages to escape, Joe is summoned by Sir Douglas Redmayne of Military Intelligence. Redmayne tells Sandlilands that he wants him to take part in a sensitive investigation: His task will be to identify a shell-shocked veteran of World War I who is being housed in an asylum in Reims.

The soldier's doctor, Patrice Varimont, has given him the name Thibaud for the time being. Sadly, Thibaud can neither speak nor remember his past. What makes this situation even more difficult is the fact that four families have each claimed him. Madame Guy Langlois, a grocer's wife, swears she is his mother; Mademoiselle Mireille Desforges insists that she was his very close friend and perhaps something more; members of the Tellancourt family not only maintain that he is their relative, but they even try to smuggle him out of the institution; finally, Madame Aline Houdart says that the invalid is her husband, Clovis, who was reported missing in 1917. Who is telling the truth? Moreover, why would anyone lie about Thibaud's identity? It turns out that there is an excellent motive for deception: Thibaud will most likely receive "a generous allowance from the state, a sort of war pension, calculated from the time of his vanishing to the present day and beyond." The family that succeeds in verifying its connection to Thibaud stands to receive a great deal of money.

Joe is highly qualified to conduct this inquiry. He is a veteran of the war who worked in military intelligence and was awarded the prestigious ribbon of the Legion of Honor. In addition, he is familiar with the French countryside and speaks the language fluently. When he arrives at Inspector Bonnefoye's office, Joe learns that the newspapers have made the unidentified soldier into a cause célèbre. "Every Frenchman and woman is passionate to know the outcome" and there is a great deal of pressure to come up with an acceptable solution. As Joe gets to know each claimant and examines the evidence, he observes the best and worst in human nature and learns of several explosive secrets that will alter the outcome of this complicated and heartbreaking case.Joe receives invaluable assistance from the mature and intelligent Dorcas, who proves to be a promising detective in her own right.

Cleverly's meticulous research gives "Tug a War" an added dimension. The story of this unfortunate veteran sheds light on the fate of so many soldiers who were killed, severely wounded and traumatized, or declared missing, never to be seen again. This is an intense work of historical fiction that gives readers a deeper understanding of the devastation of war.It also provides insight into how people behave under extreme pressure.Do they sacrifice for others or exploit the weak and vulnerable? Do they behave courageously or shrink in cowardice?The author's literate and animated dialogue, cleverly constructed plot, and well-developed characters make this a spellbinding work of historical fiction as well as an absorbing and suspenseful mystery.

British mystery
This is one of her best books yet. All of the Joe Sandilands series have been great, but this is by far and away the best she has written. The story and people are written about in depth and I really hated to finish it, but could not stop reading and stayed up to finish. Do readTug of War: A Joe Sandilands Murder Mystery (Joe Sandilands Mysteries)

Tug of War
I thoroughly enjoyed the book.Best of all B. Cleverly's Joe Sandilands mystery series.

The impact of war
Commander Joe Sandilands is planning to take his 14-year-old niece, Dorcas, to be reunited with her father in the South of France.However, his superior has asked that he stop in Reims.A former soldier, suffering from shell shock, residing at a local sanatorium, is being claimed as the husband of a wealthy owner of a champagne vineyard.The woman's son claims his mother murdered her husband and sealed his body behind a wall. Another complication comes from four other people who also claim the soldier and the patient's doctor who believes the soldier may be English rather than French.With the soldier's considerable pension and well-being involved, it is important the right identity be made.

I am a huge fan of Cleverly's books.She really knows how to set the stage and give the reader a sense of physical, emotional and political place.Along with Charles Todd and Anne Perry, she writes about the horror of WWI and its impact on those who fought and lived it.She creates strong, smart, interesting characters, particularly Sandilands and Dorcas, but all her characters have dimension with dialogue that has a natural flow.But the core of it all is a good, solid traditional mystery that kept me turning the pages in the non-stop read.I highly recommend this book and the entire series.
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Chapters: Frank Kugler, Eugen Schmidt, Josef Krämer, Frederick Humphreys, Karl Staaf, Oswald Holmberg, Erik Granfelt, Gustaf Söderström, Wilhelm Dörr, Charles Winckler, August Nilsson, Wesley Coe, John James Shepherd, Charles Gondouin, Émile Sarrade, Edwin Mills, Jean Collas, Alexander Munro, Joseph Dowler, Walter Chaffe, Albert Ireton, Edgar Aabye, John Sewell, Wilhelmus Bekkers, Max Braun, Arvid Andersson, Antonius Van Loon, Marinus Van Rekum, Willem Van Loon, Patrick Philbin, James Clarke, Willem Van Rekum, Johannes Hengeveld, Erik Larsson, Henk Janssen, Sijtse Jansma, Erik Algot Fredriksson, Thomas Homewood, James Woodget, Ernest Ebbage, Walter Tammas, Frederick Goodfellow, William Slade, Frederick Merriman, Frederick Holmes, Thomas Swindlehurst, Charles Rose, Harry Jacobs, Édouard Bourguignon, William Hirons, George Smith, Joseph Roffo, François Van Hoorenbeek, Patrick Flanagan, Alexander Kidd, Charles Van Den Broeck, William Greggan, Alphonse Ducatillon, Adolf Bergman, Thomas Butler, Herbert Lindström, August Gustafsson, Mathias Hynes, Rémy Maertens, George Canning, Christin Piek, Johan Edman, Carl Jonsson, Gustave Wuyts, Ernest Thorn, Henri Pintens, Sylvester Granrose, Harry Stiff. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 156. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Frank X. Kugler (March 29, 1879, Germany July 7, 1952, St. Louis, Missouri) was an American wrestler, weightlifter and tug of war competitor who competed in the 1904 Summer Olympics. In 1904 he won a silver medal in wrestlings' heavyweight category, bronze medals in weightliftings' two hand lift and all-around dumbbell events and another bronze in the tug of war competition as a member of Southwest Turnverein of Saint Louis No. 2 team. Despite taking last place in 9 out of 10 events in the dumbbell competition he was awarded ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=15130826 ... Read more

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This digital document is an article from SIECUS Report, published by Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S., Inc. on September 22, 2003. The length of the article is 7975 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

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Title: Trends 2002-03: a tug-of-war between abstinence-only and comprehensive sexuality education.
Author: Myra Batchelder
Publication: SIECUS Report (Refereed)
Date: September 22, 2003
Publisher: Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S., Inc.
Volume: 31Issue: 6Page: 5(10)

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This digital document is an article from Wind Speaker, published by Aboriginal Multi-Media Society of Alberta (AMMSA) on February 1, 2003. The length of the article is 1190 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

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Title: Museum, Kitigan Zibi in tug of war over remains.(human bones at Canadian Museum of Civilization)
Author: Marty Logan
Publication: Wind Speaker (Newsletter)
Date: February 1, 2003
Publisher: Aboriginal Multi-Media Society of Alberta (AMMSA)
Volume: 20Issue: 10Page: 24(1)

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Chapters: Robert Garrett, Eugen Schmidt, Constantin Henriquez de Zubiera, Karl Staaf, Gustaf Söderström, Charles Winckler, August Nilsson, Charles Gondouin, Émile Sarrade, Jean Collas, Edgar Aabye, Joseph Roffo. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 34. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Robert Garrett (May 24, 1875 April 25, 1961) was an American athlete. He was the first modern Olympic champion in discus throw and shot put. Born in Baltimore County, Maryland, Garrett came from a wealthy family and studied in Princeton University. He excelled in track and field athletics as an undergraduate, and was captain of the Princeton track team in both his junior and senior years. Garrett was primarily a shot-putter, though he also competed in the jumping events. When he decided to compete in the first modern Olympics in 1896, Professor William Milligan Sloane suggested he should also try the discus. They consulted classical authorities to develop a drawing and Garrett hired a blacksmith to make a discus. It weighed nearly 30 pounds (14 kg) and it was impossible to throw any distance, so he gave up on the idea. Garrett paid for his own and three classmates' (Francis Lane third in 100 m, Herbert Jamison second in 400 m, and Albert Tyler second in pole vault) way to Athens to compete in the Olympics. When he discovered that a real discus weighs less than five pounds, he decided to enter the event for fun. The Greek discus throwers were true stylists. Each throw, as they spun and rose from a classical Discobolus stance, was more beautiful than the last. Not so with Garrett, who seized the discus in his right hand and swinging himself around and around, the way the 16 pound hammer is usually thrown, threw the discus with tremendous force. Garrett's first two throws were embarrassingly clumsy. Instead ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=219692 ... Read more

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Chapters: Eric Lemming, Axel Norling, Karl Staaf, Oswald Holmberg, Erik Granfelt, Gustaf Söderström, August Nilsson, Arvid Andersson, Erik Larsson, Erik Algot Fredriksson, Adolf Bergman, Herbert Lindström, August Gustafsson, Johan Edman, Carl Jonsson. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 37. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Eric Valdemar Lemming (22 February 1880 5 June 1930) was a Swedish athlete who competed in a wide variety of events. Lemming won a total of 7 Olympic medals over three Olympics including 4 golds. His Olympic experience began at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. He tied for fourth place in both the high jump and pole vault, clearing 1.70 metres and 3.10 metres in the two events, respectively. Lemming took another fourth place finish in the hammer throw. He took eighth place in the discus throw. Lemming also competed in the long jump. He finished last of the twelve-man field with a distance of 5.500 metres. Lemming also competed in the triple jump and while his place and distance are unknown, he did not finish in the top six. In the 1906 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. He picked up four medals here, a bronze in the tug of war with the Swedish national team, a second bronze in the shot put, a third bronze in the pentathlon and a gold medal in the javelin (free style) event. He returned two years later to the 1908 Summer Olympics held in London, Great Britain. Here he won a further two gold medals, defending his title in the javelin (free style) event, the last time this was to be held and also gaining the javelin title. At the next Olympics in 1912 Lemming retained his javelin title with a throw 6 metres further than he had thrown at the previous games. ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=7136068 ... Read more

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Chapters: Axel Norling, Josef Krämer, Oswald Holmberg, Erik Granfelt, Wilhelm Dörr. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 17. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Axel Norling (April 16, 1884 May 7, 1964) was a Swedish gymnast, diver, and tug of war competitor who participated in the 1908 Summer Olympics and in the 1912 Summer Olympics. He was part of the Swedish team, which was able to win the gold medal in the gymnastics men's team event in 1908. In the 1912 Summer Olympics he won his second gold medal as member of the Swedish gymnastics team in the Swedish system event. At the 1906 Summer Olympics in Athens, he was a member of the Swedish tug of war team, which won the bronze medal. Also he competed in the diving event. ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=10710703 ... Read more

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Chapters: Frank Kugler, Max Braun, Charles Rose, Harry Jacobs, Patrick Flanagan. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 17. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Frank X. Kugler (March 29, 1879, Germany July 7, 1952, St. Louis, Missouri) was an American wrestler, weightlifter and tug of war competitor who competed in the 1904 Summer Olympics. In 1904 he won a silver medal in wrestlings' heavyweight category, bronze medals in weightliftings' two hand lift and all-around dumbbell events and another bronze in the tug of war competition as a member of Southwest Turnverein of Saint Louis No. 2 team. Despite taking last place in 9 out of 10 events in the dumbbell competition he was awarded the bronze as there were only 3 competitors. He is the only competitor to win a medal in three different sports at the same Olympic Games. ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=15130826 ... Read more

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Chapters: Wilhelmus Bekkers, Antonius Van Loon, Marinus Van Rekum, Willem Van Loon, Willem Van Rekum, Johannes Hengeveld, Henk Janssen, Sijtse Jansma. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 23. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Wilhelmus Johannes Bekkers (August 21, 1890 November 13, 1957) was a Dutch tug of war competitor who competed in the 1920 Summer Olympics. He was born and died in Arnhem. He was a swimming teacher in his birthplace, where he married Engelina Gouw in 1916. In 1920 he won the silver medal as member of the Dutch team. ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=14470972 ... Read more

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This digital document is an article from Fairfield County Business Journal, published by Westfair Communications, Inc. on April 26, 2004. The length of the article is 799 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

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Title: Winning the work, life tug-of-war.(changing definitions of success, tug-of-war between home life and work)
Author: Jen Malcom
Publication: Fairfield County Business Journal (Magazine/Journal)
Date: April 26, 2004
Publisher: Westfair Communications, Inc.
Volume: 43Issue: 17Page: 3(1)

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This digital document is an article from Computer User, published by MSP Communications on May 1, 2001. The length of the article is 2081 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

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Title: A tug-of-war over intellectual property: THE MUSIC INDUSTRY CONTINUES TO STRUGGLE AGAINST THE PULL OF CHANGING DISTRIBUTION TRENDS. WHAT'S NEXT?. (TECHNOLOGY LAW).
Author: Dan Heilman
Publication: Computer User (Magazine/Journal)
Date: May 1, 2001
Publisher: MSP Communications
Volume: 19Issue: 5Page: 32(3)

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This digital document is an article from Black Enterprise, published by Thomson Gale on March 1, 2006. The length of the article is 493 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

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Title: Tug of war for SBA funding: amendment passed but funding still $123 million less than last year.(Small Business Administration )
Author: Joyce Jones
Publication: Black Enterprise (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 1, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 36Issue: 8Page: 32(1)

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