A FORMER soldier from York who fought in Afghanistan has published his second war novel.

Andy Johnson, 42, was the Regimental Sergeant Major of the 1st Battalion, Coldstream Guards, before retiring from the Army in March 2009.

The father-of-two was deployed on operations in Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan, and received a Meritorious Service Medal for his exemplary service over a quarter of a century.

He used his first-hand experience of infantry warfare to write a novel giving a graphic account of war in North and East Yorkshire, Seelöwe Nord: The Germans Are Coming, describing what might have been if the Germans had invaded North and East Yorkshire in 1940. The book came out last year.

Now, following the success of his first novel, Mr Johnson has published his second book, Thunder In May, an action story about the Dunkirk campaign in 1940.

Mr Johnson, who was educated at Dringhouses Primary School and the former Ashfield Secondary Modern School, in York, said: “I took a group of young people on a battlefields tour with Veterans and it had a really dramatic affect on them. Being with the veterans, it really brought the reality of war to life, and that’s what I aim to do with my writing – I want people to understand the experience of war rather than give them a history lesson.”

Thunder in May was published on July 18, and has already received two five-star reviews on amazon in the UK.

As with the first novel, a percentage of the profits from Thunder in May will be donated annually to various UK military charities.

Mr Johnson, who now lives in Staffordshire, said he still has strong links with the city where he grew up.

He said: “My extended family still live in York and I am chairman of the York Branch of the Coldstream Guards Veterans’ Association. The cover photograph for the novel was taken at Eden Camp and the re-enactors on the photograph are a York-based living history group.”

Thunder in May can be bought online from amazon.co.uk and is available through bookshops priced £11.99.