Soon to be a major television event from Pascal Pictures, starring Tom Holland.
Based on the true story of a forgotten hero, the USA Today and #1 Amazon Charts bestseller Beneath a Scarlet Sky is the triumphant, epic tale of one young man’s incredible courage and resilience during one of history’s darkest hours. Pino Lella wants nothing to do with the war or the Nazis. He’s a normal Italian … the Nazis. He’s a normal Italian teenager—obsessed with music, food, and girls—but his days of innocence are numbered. When his family home in Milan is destroyed by Allied bombs, Pino joins an underground railroad helping Jews escape over the Alps, and falls for Anna, a beautiful widow six years his senior.
In an attempt to protect him, Pino’s parents force him to enlist as a German soldier—a move they think will keep him out of combat. But after Pino is injured, he is recruited at the tender age of eighteen to become the personal driver for Adolf Hitler’s left hand in Italy, General Hans Leyers, one of the Third Reich’s most mysterious and powerful commanders.
Now, with the opportunity to spy for the Allies inside the German High Command, Pino endures the horrors of the war and the Nazi occupation by fighting in secret, his courage bolstered by his love for Anna and for the life he dreams they will one day share.
Fans of All the Light We Cannot See, The Nightingale, and Unbroken will enjoy this riveting saga of history, suspense, and love.
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I recommend this book if you’re interesting in historical fiction. It was an amazing look at how young people were affected during World War II.
This book is set in Italy during the Second World War and is a fascinating true story. I found the story to be gripping, especially knowing it was true.
This is a book you do not want to put down.
Quite outstanding…from a person who reads one book a week.
This is a highly readable, true story about Italy during WWII. A young man with mountain climbing experience escorts hundreds of Jews over the mountains into neutral Switzerland. When he reaches draft age, he is persuaded to join the German army and becomes a driver for a German officer, all the while feeding information to the Italian resistance. The story is spell bounding and the mountain descriptions are breathtaking.
This book is based on a true story & was heart wrenching! You wanted to jump into the story & be a part of it, hugging away the hurt & warning of the danger…
very eye opening regarding the happenings of the war & heart wrenching view into one mans journey.
If I could give this book 10 stars, I would. It had everything, the beauty that is Northern Italy, the cuisine, even during food shortages, the romance of young love, and the uniqueness of the Italian people and culture. The descriptions of war, torture, deprivation and inhumanity, tore at my soul.
This is a beautiful novel, despite the horror that is war. Believe me, this is a story to be treasured! Kudos to Mark T Sullivan for this labor of love. I’m sure it is career defining for him. Interesting that Mike Lella, Pino’s son, lives in my small community. I wish I could have met him, before I moved.
This was a great fictional historical novel . It was based on a real boy who survived WWII in Italy.
This book takes you on an odyssey through the heart of Nazi-occupied Italy. It follows one boy’s growth into manhood as he confronts evil and learns that he has the strength to do what is right. A heartbreaking love story is woven throughout. The protagonist is flawed, and yet lovable and heroic. And the best part – it’s all true. Loved it! My favorite book of the year so far.
One of my all time favorites. Incredible story telling.
History mixed with fiction that tells a beautiful story that makes the reader very much aware of Word War II Italy. I hated to see it end.
This is one of the best books I have read in a long time. Based upon the life of Pino Lella, the book is exciting, action packed, and tragic. Anyone interested in WW II should read this book. Mark Sullivan is an author whom I will look forward to reading more of his books
Beneath a Scarlet Sky came up as one of our book club reads. I went into the book skeptical, since we have read so many books recently with a WWII theme; but this was one I couldn’t put down. This was also centered in Italy, and I have not read any books that focused on what happened in Italy during the war.
Read a lot of books in my time, and this goes to the top of my favorites. A great account of a young hero in WWII; a book of family, commitment, nobility, and courage, and the tragedies of war. The writing was almost lyrical a la Pat Conroy, and I could not put it down. I plan to reread it. If you liked “The Nightengale”, “Lilac Girls”, “All the Light You Cannot See”, you will love this book even more.
These stories of WW II have never been disclosed before and highlight some of the unsung heroes that fought against the horror that was Nazi Germany. These stories need to be brought out to the young people so we never forget what can happen when good men and women look the other way.
One of the best books I have read in a long time
I couldn’t put this amazing book down, and the same goes for those people I have passed the book onto. This novel, based on true happenings in WWII in Italy which I have read little about, is a must read for WWII buffs. The icing on the cake is that the main character is likeable and still alive and was interviewed for the story.
Suspenseful and probably my favorite book in many years.
Best book since Gentlemean From Moscow
I don’t read much historical fiction, but this was a really good story and book. It’s also one of the largest books I’ve read but I enjoyed it. Grab a sample on Amazon or just buy it. It’s been discounted I believe now that it’s in paperback.