'We are the Pilgrims, master; we shall go
Always a little further; it may be
Beyond that last blue mountain barred with snow'
And if there was ever anyone who went a little further, a little beyond, it was Alastair MacKenzie...
In a career spanning 30 years, MacKenzie served uniquely with the New Zealand Army in Vietnam, the British Parachute Regiment, the British Special Air Service, the South African Defence Force's famed ParaBats, the Sultan of Oman's Special Forces and a host of private security agencies and defence contractors, MacKenzie lived the soldier's life to full as he's journeyed the 'the Golden Road to Samarkand'.
This extraordinary all new work from the author of 'Special Force: The Untold Story of 22nd Special Air Service Regiment (SAS)', vividly documents in a detail that stuns, the experience of infantry combat in Vietnam, life with the Paras, the tempo of selection for UK Special Forces, covert SAS operations in South Armagh and SAS Counter Terrorist training on the UK mainland, vehicle mounted Pathfinder Brigade insertions into Angola and maritime counter-terrorism work in Oman.
This is a military CV like no other and one that makes for the most compelling of reading, listing as it does, a veritable 'Who's Who' of modern military history featuring personalities featuring the likes of Cedric Delves, Arthur Denaro, Jan Breytenbach, Mike Jackson, Peter McAleese, Fred Marafono and more.
Brutally honest, MacKenzie is candid about life as a Special Forces soldier, questioning as he does, approaches and man management that leave a lot to be desired. No stone is left unturned, no reputation left aside. Read it and be amazed; his is a perspective that has been earned the hard way. It can't be ignored.
