September 1939, and war is declared. For Bob and Annie Kelty, life will never be the same again, not least because they are forced to foster 12-year-old Ellen Laing, an evacuee from Finnieston in Glasgow. Amid growing tensions between the Glasgow evacuees and the residents of the sleepy village of Crieff, the feisty and quick-tempered […]
Naples 1944 by Keith Lowe
The Second World War destroyed countless cities in Europe and Asia. This is the story of the first major European city to be liberated by the Allies. The book describes not only what happened to Naples when the scourge of war lashed down upon it, but also, crucially, what happened next. This is the first […]
A Dark and Deadly Journey by Julia Kelly
After being sidelined for a pesky gunshot wound, typist-turned-field agent Evelyne Redfern is ready for her next assignment with Britain’s secretive Special Investigations Unit. When a British Intelligence informant in Portugal mysteriously disappears just after hinting that he has vital information about German plans that could tip the balance of World War Two, Evelyne and […]
The Seeker of Lost Paintings by Sarah Freethy
Arriving in Rome in 1939 to work for the wealthy Montefalco family, Maddalena is homesick and alone. She finds solace – and love – in the beauty of the city, but as the war in Nazi-occupied Italy rages, she must make a devastating choice. In London, in 1997, after her mother Maddalena’s death, Beatrice Fremont […]
Syndrome K, the ‘disease’ that saved lives in occupied Rome
Sarah Freethy uncovers the extraordinary story of Syndrome K, the supposedly deadly disease that saved lives in German-occupied Rome in 1943. The Fatebenefratelli Hospital sits on an island in the south bend of the Tiber, in the heart of Rome. It looks as if a great ship beached itself between Trastevere and the Jewish Quarter, […]
Appointment in Paris by Jane Thynne
It’s April 1940, and Britain is in turmoil. Chamberlain’s government is faltering, and a German invasion may be only weeks away. A body, wearing the uniform of a Luftwaffe captain, is found in the grounds of Trent Park, a stately home and now a prison to house high level German POWs. Trent Park’s true purpose, […]
The Second Traitor by Alex Gerlis
It’s September, 1940, and British intelligence is desperately worried: the Nazi invasion of Britain is imminent. A sinister organisation called The Group, a collection of British and Irish Nazi collaborators, is at work trying to support Hitler’s plans… But that is not the only concern for the spy chiefs: the search for double agent ‘Archie’ […]
Blood Vengeance by Douglas Jackson
Christmas Day 1943, Arisaig, Scotland. The body of beautiful, well-connected Polish SOE agent Krystina Kowolska is found in the gardens of the country house where she’s been preparing for a vital mission to France. The question is, was she already dead when she was hanged? Two days later, resistance double agent, Investigator Jan Kalisz of […]