The Dark Side of Glory
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The Dark Side of Glory Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Richard McMahon (Author, Publisher), Don Moffit (Narrator)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 73 ratings
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In this suspense novel set during the Korean War, Matthew Clark, the biographer of a respected and highly decorated army general, learns that there is a hidden side to his life, involving a brutal, covered-up murder, a secret mistress, and an abandoned illegitimate daughter. As he delves deeper, Matthew discovers an intriguing mystery and a tragic love in a world of surprises where nothing is at it seems.

Tracing the general's earlier career during the occupation of Japan and through the early days of the Korean War, Matthew follows the lives of four principle characters: Philip Coursen, who appears to be the perfect army officer but with a disturbing dark side; Miriam Coursen, equally perfect army wife who may hide a secret agenda; Calvin Carter, an idealistic young West Pointer, beset with guilt as a result of his clandestine affair with another officer's wife; and Samantha Winstead, the beautiful, vivacious cause of Calvin Carter's discomfort. The biography takes a personal turn for Matthew as he finds himself drawn into the story when he falls in love with the young woman who claims to be Coursen's daughter.

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  1. Listening Length
    12 hours and 41 minutes
  2. Author
    Richard McMahon
  3. Narrator
    Don Moffit
  4. Audible release date
    June 23, 2015
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Richard McMahon
  7. ASIN
    B01092Q8M2
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 12 hours and 41 minutes
Author Richard McMahon
Narrator Don Moffit
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date June 23, 2015
Publisher Richard McMahon
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B01092Q8M2
Best Sellers Rank #653,929 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#4,326 in International Mystery & Crime (Audible Books & Originals)
#25,826 in International Mystery & Crime (Books)
#44,393 in Historical Fiction (Audible Books & Originals)

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
73 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Catherine Marshall-Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars Both mystery and historical fiction -- The perfect gift for those who serve our country on foreign shores
Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2018
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Richard McMahon has crafted an account of a murder in his novel The Dark Side of Glory with an insider’s point of view of the Korean War. It opens with a breathtaking description of a dead woman in an examining room in Japan. The inspector discovers a cloth object beneath the woman’s blouse and abruptly ends the examination saying, “We have no authority here.” From there the reader is swept into the world of the narrator in Hawaii who has been commissioned to write a biography for a recently deceased general by the general’s wife. McMahon writes with commanding detail about the machinations of the Korean War and the movements of the cavalry. The Dark Side of Glory is the perfect murder mystery for those who have served their country on foreign shores.
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bart
4.0 out of 5 stars Fun book
Reviewed in the United States on June 9, 2015
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I had a hard time getting into it, probably because it was the first electronic book I read. I'd forget to turn on my tablet until I had forgotten who the characters were. But one day I got back to it and started finding it interesting, and that gradually turned to fascinating. I was able to keep going even when my reader would tell me I had 2 hrs 37 minutes to go. I finished it, not all in one sitting, but found the denoument very satisfying.

Some language errors, both English and Japanese, but I haven't told anyone.
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trekker
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Read
Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2013
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First I don't normally read "war stories" unless I'm researching my father's time as a POW in WWII. That being said I'm really glad that I read this one. The book is well written and I quickly became invested in the characters, I mourned when a character was lost to the brutalities of war and cheered when they survived that said war. The book was written with 2 POV's the first being a writer commissioned to write a book about the life story of General Philip Sheridan Coursen and the other Lt. Calvin Carter, a company commander of General Coursen's Tenth Recon. The book has it all love, hate, revenge and everything in between. The intrigues will surprise you and keep you reading til the end. Out of the ashes of the broken lives of the characters rises a rebirth called love. This book could easily be turned into a mini series reminiscent of "Winds of War"
I highly recommend this book.
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Ronaele Whittington
5.0 out of 5 stars Love, Lies, and Loopholes
Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2014
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In his October 8, 2014 Coffee Break column, Jerry Coffee described and praised this book and its author. Richard McMahon had received a gold medal for historical fiction from the Military Writers Society of America... More than enough reason for me to read The Dark Side of Glory...
All parts of this narrative tie together by the end of the story. The drudgery and uncertainty of the battlefield could just as well be the ground action in Syria today, with or without USA involvement. Korea must have been a nightmare for active duty, their families, and civilians. McMahon documents entanglements of human beings - because of what they bring to the war and because of what the war does to them.
Glad I read this book.
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Connie
4.0 out of 5 stars Reminder of things past
Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2019
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I was a adolescent girl during these times and found all things of that time daring and romantic. The grim realities of war became more clear as I matured.
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Claus Prufer
5.0 out of 5 stars My review of Richard McMahon's "The Dark Side of Glory"
Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2014
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At the outset The Dark Side of Glory by Richard McMahon reads like a well researched military history spanning the period prior to and during our war with Korea. It is that aspect that kindles my interest. Officers and NCOs are sketched with insight into their characters and bearing. But soon suspense is created by a murder plot leading us into post world war Japan. Such is the excitement that you cannot put down this book. And it makes one read on and on without any intermission for fascinating subplot dramas involve a narrator's conscience of investigating the suspects, in falling in love and identifying the guilty who is escaping paying for the crime committed. But I mustn't give away the plot. A perfect read; sensitive without sentimentality .
Claus M Prufer
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WilliamF
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Historical Novel
Reviewed in the United States on September 5, 2013
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Richard McMahon's The Dark Side of Glory is a classic, probably the best insight into the pre-Korean War US Army, and the war, itself, ever written. As an Army brat in the 1950's, and an active duty Naval officer from 1959 - '65, I have only praise for his accuracy and skill in portraying military life and warfare. His battle scenes are devastatingly brought to life, as a framework to a complex and irresistable plot, peopled by believable characters. The Dark Side of Glory is, at the same time a subtle and multi-faceted mystery that captivates as seduces the reader until the last page.

Well done, Richard. You have written an unforgettable work.

Michael
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Jose Ayala
5.0 out of 5 stars Sometimes You Have To Go To The Dark Side!
Reviewed in the United States on April 18, 2020
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I was very impressed with the book! The descriptions of the military life and the battles that took place in Korea were masterfully done. The story itself was fascinating. I hardly ever write a review but “The Dark Side Of Glory” is a must read! Don’t pass this one up!
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Top reviews from other countries

Olsson Anders
4.0 out of 5 stars Great Stuff
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 18, 2015
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Good quick-moving plot about an interesting time and place I did not know much about.
That said, I get the impression that the author knows a lot more and that the book could well be twice as long.
Might we hope for a follow-up?
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