Pre-order the brand-new, heart-wrenching and emotional Italian historical fiction novel from Tessa Harris, bestselling author of Beneath a Starless Sky!***
A war-torn city. A stolen masterpiece. Two lives in the balance…Italy, 1940. With Florence on the cusp of war, Il Scorpione, the no-nonsense Englishwomen of the city, find their genteel livelihoods under grave threat by the approach of the Nazis. Tea rooms and bookshops are closed by the Fascists, and the women are forced to join the war effort.
Desperate to help in any way that she can, Angelina Leone, expert art-historian and the half-Italian niece of Il Scoprione’s founder makes a deal with the devil. To guarantee her beloved aunt Agatha, the only family she has, safe passage across the city, Lina must authenticate the art ruthlessly stolen from Jewish families. But when she comes across a priceless portrait – one that she cannot bear to see sieged by the Germans – Lina declares the masterpiece a fake. But in doing so, will she set off a chain of events with consequences more deadly than she could ever imagine …
Readers have been swept away by Tessa Harris:
'Richly told … a must for all fans of WW2 fiction' MANDY ROBOTHAM
‘A really well researched novel with a dramatic ending' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'An absolute masterpiece' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'A thrilling, chilling close-up of the battle to save Italy from within' SARAH STEELE
‘I loved this story, it is one of the few that I have read focusing on Italy … fascinating' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘An amazing and sentimental look at one Englishwoman's war in Italy' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- ISBN13 9780008640514
- Publish Date 24 April 2025
- Publish Status Forthcoming
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher HarperCollins Publishers
- Imprint HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
- Format Audiobook (WAV)
- Duration 10 hours and 14 minutes
- Language English
- URL http://harpercollins.co.uk