I remember reading a bunch of MacLean's books while I was a teen and enjoying them immensely. This was during his most popular period when some of his books were made into big budget films - "Where Eagles Dare," "Ice Station Zebra," etc. So when I came across some sale paperbacks of his books I thought it would be fun to revisit my youth and rediscover him. When I first began this book I wondered what it was I could have found appealing about him. The first thing that bothered me is how he could take a simple action - like looking around a corner - and turn it into a looooooong paragraph describing the character's motivations behind his desire to see what was around the conner. This almost caused me to put the book down then and there, and it did cause me to put it aside for longer than it would normally take to read a 200 page thriller.Finally I picked it up again and got into the plot a bit more. As the action picked up the author tended to shorten his prose, or maybe I got more used to it. In any event I worked my way through it, which may not seem like high praise for a thriller. Still, the author's sense of place and his cliffhanger chapter endings recalled to me why I enjoyed his work so much way back when. At lease I will feel I should continue reading him when I'm looking for a light outing.Now, I'm wondering if any of those movies based on his books still hold up after nearly 50 years away from them.....
This is the author of Where Eagles Dare, The Guns of Navarone, The Satan Bug, Ice Station Zebra, and many others. I can still recall, in colorful detail after 40 years, movies made of those first 2 titles. I was spellbound by the plot twists and heavy suspense, but then again, those were movies on a big screen. Caravans to Vaccares reads now as sadly dated. The women are treated like dolls, liberties are taken with logic, and there are a few holes in the plot too large to accept. I found the book in a free box, and decided the 224 pages would be fun to read. I had read another of his short pieces, The Black Shrike, and had the same reaction, but didn’t hold it against this new title. Caravans is about two men who are hanging around gypsy caravans during a 1960’s era festival where gypsies gather from far and wide. Each “picks up” a pretty girl who can serve as a foil, object of desire, and cover. Each girl obediently goes along with it, later to be put into danger. Power structures of shadowy organizations don’t become clear until the end… sort of clear. There is plenty of violence, a bull fight, and even rocket scientists being smuggled to China. I think this imaginative writer’s best work is a fast, action-laden story with comradely, manly men, soldiers if possible, being heroic and clever against many odds. This one, like The Black Shrike, should be left in the free box.
What do You think about Caravan To Vaccares (1990)?
I read this book as part of a continuing experiment to reread books that I enjoyed back in the day. This one didn't work out so well and highlights a major shift in writing styles over the past 40 years. So a book that I was enthralled with 35 years ago is now mostly boring even though the story is told at pace. What it failed to do was grip the reader through lack of empathy and it felt like the obligation was for the reader to fall under the spell of the author without sufficient investment in character development. I shall not call a halt to the experiment just yet so will have another crack at a MacLean book later in the year. Not holding out much hope though....on to Harry Bosch now!
—David
I read a lot of McLean's classic novels many years ago but have decided to catch up on those I haven't read yet. This 1970 title is OK and as you would expect its well writen, has a solid plot and builds the tension nicely. That said in 2013 it does feel a little dated in style, compared to say someone like Alan Furst, who writes period, as in pre second world war two that have a timeless feel about them, even though they're written by a contemporary writer. It feels a little out of line to be "criticising" somoeone as memorable as Alistair Mclean but hey, that's my perogative. Actually if I'd written a review of Caravan to Vaccares back in 1970 I am sure I would've been effusive rather than conditional in my approach.
—Tony Nielsen
When I was growing up there were a number of books by Desmond Bagley and Alistair McLean on my parent's bookshelf and these formed some of the earliest adult fiction that I read. I thought it would be interesting to revisit these authors, who I haven't read for more than 30 years, to see how the books held up. Caravan to Vacarres is not one I have read before and is certainly not one of McLean's better-known novels. I selected it (in a second hand shop) for the wonderful 1970s style cover. The book has an terribly contrived plot, nothing really hangs together and the characterisation is pretty awful, but it was so wonderfully redolent of the 1970s. The strength is in the action sequences which are very, very well done - not quite as ssuepensful as the depth charge scene in Das Boot, but actually quite compelling. Overall, it was reasonably good fun, no major surprises but because of the excellent action sequences, better than I had expected.
—Gareth Evans
