A Castle in Wartime

One Family, Their Missing Sons, and the Fight to Defeat the Nazis

By: Catherine Bailey

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell

Length: 17 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

"I was gripped by A Castle in Wartime - it contained more tension, more plot in fact - than any thriller." (Kate Atkinson, author of Big Sky and Case Histories)

An enthralling story of one family's extraordinary courage and resistance amidst the horrors of war from the New York Times best-selling author of The Secret Rooms.

As war swept across Europe in 1940, the idyllic life of Fey von Hassell seemed a world away from the conflict. The daughter of Ulrich von Hassell, Hitler's Ambassador to Italy, her marriage to Italian aristocrat Detalmo Pirzio-Biroli brought with it a castle and an estate in the north of Italy. Beautiful and privileged, Fey and her two young sons lead a tranquil life undisturbed by the trauma and privations of war. But with Fascism approaching its zenith, Fey's peaceful existence is threatened when Ulrich and Detalmo take the brave and difficult decision to resist the Nazis.

When German soldiers pour over the Italian border, Fey is suddenly marooned in the Nazi-occupied north and unable to communicate with her husband, who has joined the underground anti-Fascist movement in Rome. Before long, SS soldiers have taken up occupancy in the castle. As Fey struggles to maintain an air of warm welcome to her unwanted guests, the clandestine activities of both her father and husband become increasingly brazen and openly rebellious. Darkness descends when Ulrich's foiled plot to kill the Fuhrer brings the Gestapo to Fey's doorstep. It would be months before Detalmo learns that his wife had been arrested and his two young boys seized by the SS.

Suffused with Catherine Bailey's signature atmospheric prose, A Castle in Wartime tells the unforgettable story of the extraordinary bravery and fortitude of one family who collectively and individually sacrificed everything to resist the Nazis from within. Bailey's unprecedented access to stunning first-hand family accounts, along with records from concentration camps and surviving SS files, make this a dazzling and compulsively listenable audiobook, opening a view on the cost and consequences of resistance.

©2019 Catherine Bailey (P)2019 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Bailey’s deep research and her amazing craft at reproducing in vivid detail the stories of von Hassell and the people she encounters...make for chilling prose." (Booklist)

“An uplifting, exciting story of the extraordinary actions of one family during World War II… [Bailey] relates the entire suspenseful story like a novel. Right to the nail-biting end, this book captures your attention in alternating dread, fear, and hope.” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review)

"This historical page-turner gives a gripping view of the conflict’s consequences for one upper-crust family." (Publishers Weekly)

Excelente story

100% loved it! The first part read like a history book, but it was needed to set up what and why thing's were happening to this family. I fully recommend it.

Excellent account

War brings out the best in some and the worst in some.
Incredible biographical story of a family caught up in World War II, separated, enduring much and eventually reunited.

Exciting true story!

There's lots of historical information in this book but don't let that deter you from reading it if you aren't a history buff. It's also a spellbinding WWII tale of a family being at the mercy of the Gestapo and the SS. They serve as an example of total disruption of families in Europe during the Nazi terror. I won't say more so as not to give away the ending except to say that they and many thousands more showed amazing courage.

Wonderful

Yet another angle on WWII. This book is riveting, heartbreaking and unforgettable. I highly recommend it.

Nonfiction that reads like a novel

Fascinating, detailed real history. So compelling, I’ve listened to it twice. Love all Catherine Bailey’s work!