Military Model Scene

Title: Bloody Vienna
Author: Kamen Nevenkin
Publisher: Peko
ISBN: 978-615-5583-26-1

Another landscape format book from Peko, of 212-pages this time. The story of the Soviet offensive operations in Western Hungary and Austria, March-May 1945. It is packed with many full page photos, none of which I can recall seeing before, and plenty from Bulgarian Military Archives.
Following the Introduction there are then 4 main chapters. These cover Soviet Military Planning & Preparations: The German Catastrophe at Balaton: The Fall of Vienna: and finally, Endgame in Austria. Although it is a relatively short time period, just 3 months, it was not a simple campaign for either side, although the Soviet forces were ultimately successful. There were ups and downs for both sides and a telling time in the closing stages of the war as the German military were to be cut off from the fuel supplies of the Rumanian oil fields and the synthetic fuel plants were being put out of action by repeated bombing attacks which didn't give them time to repair the facilities before they were hit again The text of the story is mostly contained in the first 35 pages of the book, the offensive by 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts, with tables detailing the units of both sides, and plenty of individual accounts from commanders and troopers of both sides. The bulk of the book is then devoted to full page archive images which give some great illustrations of the large quantities of equipment lost by the German forces and fallen into the hands of the advancing Soviets, as well as the tanks, artillery and SP guns of the Soviet units themselves.
Not just the history of the events being covered, but I think the modeller will find this one of the best mixes of equipment illustrated in one book, all used in the same area at the same time. The detail of so many vehicles and plenty of photos that I think could provide inspiration for enough dioramas to keep you busy for several years. Panthers equipped with Infra-Red equipment, plenty of Pz IVs, King Tigers and Stugs, Hungarian Turan tanks, lend-lease Shermans, Studebakers and White M3 scout cars as well as T-34/85s and so much more. Fascinating book with great photo content on these final months of WW2. Highly recommended.
Thanks to Panzerwrecks for our review copy.

Robin