First published 2011
General George Patton stands on British shores on D-Day, commanding an army that exists only on paper. While Allied forces storm the beaches of Normandy, Patton plays his part in the greatest military deception of World War II. Spanish double agent GARBO transmits false intelligence from his network of imaginary spies, feeding Nazi commanders exactly what they want to hear. Radio operators broadcast fake messages from nonexistent units. Dummy landing craft float in harbors far from the real invasion site. Even as reports pour in from Normandy, Hitler refuses to move his reserves, convinced the landings are merely a diversion. The fate of the war hangs on whether a web of lies can hold long enough for the Allies to establish their foothold in France. Levine weaves together the stories of the spies, soldiers, and planners who made Operation Fortitude possible, showing how deception became as crucial as any weapon in the Allied arsenal.
Genres: historical-fiction, 20th-century, military-fiction, action, world-war-ii, espionage
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: deception, found-family
Setting: Normandy, United Kingdom
Period: World War II
272 pages · Hardcover · Lyons Press