by Wilbur Smith
First published 2021
Paris falls in 1939, tearing apart Saffron Courtney and Gerhard von Meerbach. War drives them to opposite sides of a burning continent. Gerhard fights for Germany despite hating the Nazi regime. He dreams of overthrowing Hitler, but the Battle of Stalingrad becomes a death trap where survival grows more unlikely each day. Saffron joins the Special Operations Executive and parachutes into occupied Belgium. Her mission: discover how the Nazis have compromised SOE's spy network. She soon becomes the target of Germany's most dangerous spymaster. Both lovers face impossible choices as evil surrounds them. They must decide whether to sacrifice themselves or fight to live, clinging to hope that they will find each other again. Their love endures across a world consumed by war.
Genres: romance, historical-fiction, 20th-century, war
Vibes: emotional, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, star-crossed-lovers
Setting: Belgium, Paris, Stalingrad
Period: 1939
Paperback
Content warnings: violence, war