Beneath a Scarlet Sky

If you're anything like me, you love a good World War II story. Even though this was one of the most horrific events in history, I'm always drawn to the stories of courage and resilience that have emerged since. One such story is Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan.

This novel tells the true account of Pino Lella, a little known Italian hero of WWII. A teenager when Italy enters the war, headstrong Pino is determined to make a difference. He first finds himself hiding in the Alps helping to transport Jews over treacherous mountain trails into neutral Switzerland. However, he ends up having to join the Italian army and works as a driver for a high-ranking German official. This position keeps him from the front lines and allows him the opportunity to work as a spy for the resistance. But working as a spy against the Nazis is a dangerous mission all on its own.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The stakes were high from page one, the action was continually moving, and there was even a tragic love story involved! While reading, I was amazed that Pino, a real life person, did all of these fantastic things and I had never heard of him before reading this book. In the foreword to the story, the author explains how he found out about Pino's life and WWII experiences.

The most interesting part of the story to me was learning about the Italian side of the war. Since Italy was part of the Axis Powers, we rarely see them outside of the "enemy" light in American history. But no matter what side of conflict a country is on, there are still hundreds of civilians getting bombed, killed, or having their lives destroyed by war. I loved getting more perspective on how German invasion and Mussolini's leadership affected the Italian citizens.

I'd definitely recommend this book if you like novels like All the Light We Cannot See and other epic WWII adventures.