Tag: NetGalley

Book Review – Mussolini’s Island by Sarah Day

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About the Book

mussolini

Francesco has a memory of his father from early childhood, a night when life for his family changed: their name, their story, their living place. From that night, he has vowed to protect his mother and to follow the words of his father: Non mollare. Never give up.

When Francesco is rounded up with a group of young men and herded into a camp on the island of San Domino, he realises that someone has handed a list of names to the fascist police; everyone is suspicious of one another. His former lover Emilio is constantly agitating for revolution. His old friend Gio jealously watches their relationship rekindle. Locked in spartan dormitories, resentment and bitterness between the men grows each day.

Elena, a young and illiterate island girl on the cusp of womanhood, is drawn to the handsome Francesco yet fails to understand why her family try to keep her away from him. By day, she makes and floats her paper birds, willing them to fly from the island, just as she wants to herself. Sometimes, she is given a message to pass on. She’s not sure who they are from; she knows simply that Francesco is hiding something. When Elena discovers the truth about the group of prisoners, the fine line between love and hate pulls her towards an act that can only have terrible consequences for all.

Format: Hardcover (384 pages) Publisher: Tinder Press
Publication date: 23rd February 2017 Genre: Historical Fiction

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My Review

It’s 1938 and Mussolini is in power in Italy. Under the Fascists, homosexuality is viewed as a contagion, a disease that is weakening the manhood of the Italian nation. Like other gay men – or femminella in the local slang – Francesco is in danger of arrest and ‘confino’ (internment) by the authorities. But he has another secret. Because of his father’s political views, Francesco and his mother were forced to leave their home and adopt a new identity and Francesco has vowed to do whatever it takes to protect her and their true identity.   When Francesco and other femminella, including his lover Emilio, are rounded up by the authorities and confined on the island of San Domino, it creates an atmosphere of mutual suspicion within the group as they search for the source of the betrayal.

In telling the story of Francesco and the other internees (a story based on actual events), the novel explores what people will do in order to survive and to protect the ones they love. As the novel progresses, the actions Francesco is forced to take and the insidious message that his sexuality is a ‘contagion’, make him begin to question his own nature:

“It was something within himself, something weak, something of women that should never have been there, so close to his heart, to the core of what he was. Something that made him a coward.”

The internment of the femminella on the island also brings consequences for the inhabitants of San Domino.  The story is partly told through the eyes of Elena, a young island girl, who is drawn to the handsome Francesco but cannot understand why her family try to keep her away from him and the other internees. Ironically, internment on the island enables the femminella to more openly express their sexuality than they could before.

Mussolini’s Island is a fascinating insight into a little known period of Italian history but it is also the story of the love between Francesco and Emilio. Although their relationship is clearly sexual, it is the romantic love and deep friendship between them that is the focus. I really enjoyed the book – like the best historical fiction it brought to life actual events in an engaging and entertaining way. I thought this was an impressive debut.

If you are interested in finding out more, this article provides some historical background to the story.

I received an advance review copy courtesy of Tinder Press via NetGalley.

In three words: Romantic, fascinating, well-researched
Try something similar: The Island by Victoria Hislop

About the Author

Sarah Day - No credit.jpg

Sarah Day’s debut novel, Mussolini’s Island, received a 2018 Betty Trask Award and was shortlisted for the Polari First Book Prize and the Historical Writers’ Association Debut Crown. With a background in science communication, she has worked as a press officer, magazine editor and freelance writer, and was Writer in Residence at Gladstone’s Library in 2019. Her second novel, Night Climbing, was published by Legend Press in September 2024. She lives in London.

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Book Review – The Ashes of Berlin by Luke McCallin

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About the Book

ashes

It’s 1947 and Gregor Reinhardt has been hired back onto Berlin’s civilian police force. The city is divided among the victorious allied powers, tensions are growing, and the police are riven by internal rivalries as factions within it jockey for power and influence with Berlin’s new masters.

When a man is found slain in a broken-down tenement, Reinhardt embarks on a gruesome investigation. It seems a serial killer is on the loose, and matters only escalate when it’s discovered that one of the victims was the brother of a Nazi scientist.

Reinhardt’s search for the truth takes him across the divided city and soon embroils him in a plot involving the Western Allies and the Soviets. And as he comes under the scrutiny of a group of Germans who want to continue the war – and faces an unwanted reminder from his own past – Reinhardt realizes that this investigation could cost him everything as he pursues a killer who believes that all wrongs must be avenged…

Format: ebook (450 pages) Publisher: No Exit Press
Publication date: 8th December 2016 Genre: Historical Fiction, Thriller

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My Review

The Ashes of Berlin is is the third in the series of stories featuring Gregor Reinhardt, now an Inspector in the post-war Berlin police force, and to my mind, it is the strongest so far.  Like its predecessors, The Man From Berlin and The Pale House, it is an extremely well-crafted detective story in which Reinhardt pursues a ruthless killer across the divided city of Berlin.

The meticulous research of the author is apparent in the evocative descriptions of the ravaged city, the orphaned children, the food and fuel shortages where a packet of Lucky Strike cigarettes is valued currency. The turbulent political situation in which each of the Allies is attempting to exert and protect their power and influence is realistically brought to life.

In Gregor Reinhardt, the author has created a compelling character with  believable doubts and flaws. A loner, shunned by colleagues suspicious of his allegiances and unsure who he can trust, in this book he reminded me of Alec Leamas in John Le Carre’s masterful The Spy Who Came In From the Cold.   Prone to almost obsessive introspection, Reinhardt once again questions himself and his principles, battling his inner demons – his capacity for violence (the “darker side of himself)”, his weakness for alcohol, driven by the desire to atone for perceived past actions (or inactions). However, he is also proud of his skill and experience and unwilling to “bend with the wind” like so many of his colleagues.

Widowed and estranged from his son who is missing on the Russian front, there is a touching scene in which Reinhardt is drawn to seek a connection with his past life.  Behind the search for the killer, which has plenty of satisfying twists and turns, the novel depicts the dreadful legacy of the war on individuals; the stories they cannot bear to tell but that weigh heavy on them and, in some cases, drive their actions.

I thought this was a terrific read and I was torn between wanting to find out what happened and not wanting it to end. My personal wish for Reinhardt (who I confess I’m a little in love with) was fulfilled in the last sentence.  Thank you for that, Luke.

I received an advance review copy courtesy of No Exit Press via NetGalley.

In three words: Atmospheric, gripping, satisfying
Try something similar: A Death in Berlin by Simon Scarrow

About the Author

Luke McCallin was born in England, grew up in Africa, was educated around the world, and has worked with the UN as a humanitarian relief worker and peacekeeper in the Caucasus, the Sahel, and the Balkans. His experiences have driven his writing, in which he explores what happens to normal people put under abnormal pressures, inspiring a historical mystery series built around an unlikely protagonist, Gregor Reinhardt, a German intelligence officer and a former Berlin detective chased out of the police by the Nazis. The Man From Berlin was published in 2013, followed by a sequel, The Pale House in 2014, The Ashes of Berlin in 2017 and Where God Does Not Walk in 2021.

He lives with his wife and two children in an old farmhouse in France in the Jura Mountains. He has a master’s degree in political science, speaks French, is learning Spanish, and can just get by in Russian. When he’s not working or writing or spending time with his family, he enjoys reading history, playing squash, and keeping goal for the UN football team.

Connect with Luke
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