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Silver Wings and Leather Jackets
227 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 2, 1989
27 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 9, 2020
Eagleheart is a trilogy of books, written by C.T. Westcott but framed as the autobiography of Colonel Will Bicko, the only person to win three Congressional Medals of Honor and the most highly decorated fighting man in the history of the United States Federal Air Command (USFAC). This first book in the trilogy was published in 1989 and depicts “future” events after a Limited Nuclear Exchange that takes place in 2006. The US has combined all its armed forces into the single USFAC, the better to face foreign enemies, roving post nuclear war bandit gangs, and the new race of gross radioactive mutants that have evolved.
That description sounds like some kind of action movie-of-the-week starring Tom Cruise or Michael Fassbender but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Will Bicko is an anti-hero of the first order. A rogue, a scoundrel and very often a self-centered prick. He’s also hilariously witty, mostly with dark abrasive humor and even has a certain nobleness about him. His outlook on the post-nuclear war environment rings true and serves well to pull the reader onto his side. In many ways, this is a brilliant parody of the men’s action adventure genre.
This novel covers Will’s life from seventeen years of age up through his early twenties. When his ace pilot father dies in the line of duty Will is left with his inheritance: a secret (and stolen) harrier jet. However, the will stipulates that he won’t get it until after he has graduated from the USFAC Academy at Quantico. Such a disciplined environment doesn’t play to Will’s strengths so it is not surprising that his mouth gets him in serious trouble with upperclassmen and he soon gets tossed out. He chooses to seek out an old friend of his father, learns to fly, and takes his snotty attitude with him in a nice revenge mission against a major bandit gang and his father’s traitorous wingman.
Readers will find themselves reading this novel closely, absorbing the author’s adept use of clever prose and dialog. Even scenes of brutal carnage or graphic torture are lessened through Will’s humorous response. Supporting characters are also fun and unpredictable. The novel culminates in an exciting climax and will absolutely entice readers into the rest of the trilogy.
That description sounds like some kind of action movie-of-the-week starring Tom Cruise or Michael Fassbender but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Will Bicko is an anti-hero of the first order. A rogue, a scoundrel and very often a self-centered prick. He’s also hilariously witty, mostly with dark abrasive humor and even has a certain nobleness about him. His outlook on the post-nuclear war environment rings true and serves well to pull the reader onto his side. In many ways, this is a brilliant parody of the men’s action adventure genre.
This novel covers Will’s life from seventeen years of age up through his early twenties. When his ace pilot father dies in the line of duty Will is left with his inheritance: a secret (and stolen) harrier jet. However, the will stipulates that he won’t get it until after he has graduated from the USFAC Academy at Quantico. Such a disciplined environment doesn’t play to Will’s strengths so it is not surprising that his mouth gets him in serious trouble with upperclassmen and he soon gets tossed out. He chooses to seek out an old friend of his father, learns to fly, and takes his snotty attitude with him in a nice revenge mission against a major bandit gang and his father’s traitorous wingman.
Readers will find themselves reading this novel closely, absorbing the author’s adept use of clever prose and dialog. Even scenes of brutal carnage or graphic torture are lessened through Will’s humorous response. Supporting characters are also fun and unpredictable. The novel culminates in an exciting climax and will absolutely entice readers into the rest of the trilogy.
October 26, 2012
The greatest achievement of literature in any human language. "Silver Wings and Leather Jackets" is the 1st part in an epic post-apocalyptic adventure saga that follows hotshot pilot Will Bucko on a quest for revenge and loose women. Funny, irreverent, and stocked full of non-stop adventure this book is will change your meager existence.
February 3, 2016
I don't understand how this author never published any more, or why this series isn't better known.
This series stands as a brilliant parody of the men's action genre, as sheer entertainment and fun, as a darkly humorous action series. It's science fiction with radioactive mutants, it's got character growth and worldbuilding that betters a lot of more famous series.
It's Mad Max, Call of Duty, Borderlands and Ace Combat...all rolled into one trilogy.
This series stands as a brilliant parody of the men's action genre, as sheer entertainment and fun, as a darkly humorous action series. It's science fiction with radioactive mutants, it's got character growth and worldbuilding that betters a lot of more famous series.
It's Mad Max, Call of Duty, Borderlands and Ace Combat...all rolled into one trilogy.
January 1, 2025
Another re-read from my youth. I couldn't remember a lot of specific details other than that I enjoyed the trilogy. Now I can recall that books like these have always been a guilty pleasure for me. Probably because they are my complete opposite. Action packed, extra macho, somewhat crude, with a helping of naughty humor thrown in. Not for everyone but definitely entertaining.
January 8, 2017
Rereading this series again 25 years later. Spectacularly irreverent narration that is laugh out loud funny, but also feels completely real. Love it.
January 29, 2026
Thoroughly cheesy and vulgar, this book never pretends to be anything other than what it is: a macho power fantasy for teenaged boys. Having discovered it as an insecure teenaged boy myself, I consider this a perfect example of the kind of "trashy" paperback novels that were being published en masse during the 1980s. It is violent, sexist, racist, homophobic, and far more, but with the tone of adolescent snickering. This is the offensiveness of a present-day 13-year-old trolling a comment section. This sounded very edgy to me when I was 15 and, for that reason, I can still enjoy it today as the artifact that it is.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews