Beneath a Scarlet Sky

A Novel

By: Mark Sullivan

Narrated by: Will Damron

Length: 17 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

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 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.

©2017 Mark Sullivan (P)2017 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved

Just wow. Thank you Mark Sullivan....

I rarely review, but this was such a different, human perspective of WW2 in Italy and showed so clearly, how murky options and people can be in real life. I will bear witness to Pino's story, and remember he and Anna always..great narration too.

Outstanding Book!!

I can't image how anyone could rate this book less than 5 full stars. The writing is clear and engaging. The performance of the reader is absolutely top notch, and the story of Pino Nella will leave me changed forever. This book is heart warming and heart wrenching. It is so real in its portrayal of the complexity of human relationships. But mostly it is uplifting and a testimony to the power of the human spirit. Thank you Pino for sharing your story.

One of the better WWII books

I didn't realize until the end that this story was based on real characters so in retrospect it's hard to know how much of this story is fiction and what is fact. However, it is a good story that will keep you listening. There are many heartbreaking moments in the book but what can you expect for a wartime story?This book is a good insight into the life of someone who survived the Italian occupation by the Nazis. If the end of the war in Italy is depicted as accurate, the actions of some of the Italians was horrifying although admittedly I can see where they were coming from. Rash decisions can happen after watching your loved ones picked off one by one. Anyway, this book is worth the credit.

Exciting war time novel that covers all bases

If it is not true is should be
I read from the author’s that this is a novel, that frees tthe other to assume some things that may not have happened.
That being said as I listened I was very sceptical at the beginning of this book,as it went along I stated to believe the story more and more. Stick with it and you will be rewarded with an exciting and wonderful story. That is most likely true,
I enjoyed the narration very much.

Excellent Book that stayed with me for days...

Just download and start listening. You won't regret it. Though the story is engaging and never boring, this book puts life into perspective, and makes you really appreciate the present time.

A true story with Bond like qualities

I enjoy WWII spy novels, but I have some pretty high standards and a lot of them just stretch credibility. Suddenly, my standards have changed. This is a mostly true story (it sounds like the author took some literary license, but the characters and plot are actual events.) If it were not a true story, I would have said that it stretched credibility.

Pino Lella is a 17 year old boy in Milan. When Allied bombing starts in the area, he goes to a boys school in the mountains to the North. There he becomes a guide to assist Jews in escaping to Switzerland. The character development in the first part of the story is excellent, and you do not even notice it happening. While the listener/reader is enjoying a good story, Pino is developing James Bond like skills that you would not expect him to ever use.

The second part of the story finds Pino joining the German army so as to select his assignment rather than being drafted and sent to the front lines. But his skills land him a job as a driver for one of the highest ranking Nazis in Italy. Its an opportunity to become a spy for the Allies. As this part of the story progresses, Pino uses those skills he learned in the first part and finds a reservoir of strength that I cannot comprehend. This is a very fast paced and engrossing story.

Along the way, there is a tragic love story (which it looks like may be added by the author.) It is very well done. Not mushy, but it does connect with the reader. It is also the most realistic part of the story. (How is that for irony?)

The last part of the story covers the Nazi retreat and Allied liberation, the resultant partisan celebrations and vengeance, and what feels like the climax. Pino has to deal with the responses that people have to their perception that he was a collaborator. He both celebrates the ejection of the Nazis and hides from the stain they have put upon him. It brings the war and the love story to a close and pulls at emotions. It resolves thread after thread as the inhabitants of the area deal with the dead. As the climax appears to pass and the tension deflates, Pino is sent on another hair raising mission which shocks him. He now gets answers to many of his questions, but answers lead to more questions.

The author also provides an epilogue to cover the aftermath so that the reader is not left wondering what happened. Since it is a true story, there are actual answers. I thought that was extremely satisfying.

The narration is very well done. The fact that there are different languages involved is a part of the story, but they are done by explanation and the language is clear.

I highly recommend this.

Nazis + Italy

While I know the history of WWII, most historical fiction books feels like they take place in Nazi occupied France, London, East Asian Islands, or in concentration camps. This book is set in fascist Italy and is a perspective on the war that I never had. I loved the story lines, characters and the influence that the catholic church had in saving many jews from the Nazis.

Kept me going back for more...

Having it animatedly read was a drama performance in my ear. Extremely suspenseful. Based on history of a struggle for freedom.

Audible version

part of the audio is missing from 1:43, chapter ten. I just started with audible books and feels the beginning of the story is flowing and unfolding rather slow

Absolutely Amazing Story!

I couldn’t turn this audio off! The story was amazing and the fact this is was based on real life events of WWll was even more amazing..