Derek Miller

''A brilliantly imagined World War II saga'' Kirkus‘A compellingly chaotic blend of art-heist thriller, wartime adventure, historical epic and coming-of-age drama’ Observer‘Derek B Miller has crafted an ambitious, sometimes tricksy story full of colourful characters…darkly funny, readable and intelligent’ Times_________________We will lie, cheat, steal, fight, kill, and sin our way to Napoli. We will trust no one but each other, and we will remember that in this place, at this time, there is no way to tell friend from foe.The bombing of Rome in 1943 leaves fourteen-year-old Massimo orphaned and with no choice but to set out on a perilous journey to find his remaining family in Naples. A chance meeting with the mysterious and charismatic Pietro Houdini will deliver both of them to the doors of the monastery of Monte Cassino, a centuries-old haven of contemplation, learning and art.But the abbey is in the path of the relentless Allied advance to Rome. Pietro and Massimo need a plan to survive the coming onslaught and that means out-manoeuvring the Germans who are as interested in the abbey''s art collection as in the murder of two of their officers in the town below.For their plan to work, they must dissemble, disguise, and outwit two armies using skills that Pietro has in spades, but as war edges ever closer, it becomes clear that Massimo is not without a surprise or two either...The Curse of Pietro Houdini is a sweeping tale of resilience, hope and survival which is at once an action-packed adventure heist, an imaginative chronicle of forgotten history and a philosophical coming-of-age story.

From the acclaimed author of Norwegian by Night, a story of two men given a second chance to save the girl they failed to protect decades before.1991Near Checkpoint Zulu, one hundred miles from the Kuwait border, British journalist Thomas Benton meets American private Arwood Hobbes. Desert Storm is over, and peace has been declared. As the two argue about whether it makes sense to cross the nearest border, they become embroiled in a horrific attack in which a young local girl in a green dress is killed under their protection. The two men walk away into their respective lives. But something has cracked in both of them.2013Twenty-two years later, in another place, in another war, they meet again and are offered an unlikely opportunity to redeem themselves when that same girl in green is found alive and in need of salvation. Will this second chance allow the two men to right the wrongs of their past?