Emotional and Heartwrenching WW2 Fiction

A family divided by war… a promise forged beneath the Sicilian stars.

1941, Pittsburg, California. Sixteen-year-old Annalisa Aiello huddles around the radio with her family when a special announcement shatters her world: Pearl Harbor has been bombed–where her brother is stationed on the USS Arizona. After the United States declares war, Annalisa watches in horror as her father, a Sicilian fisherman, is arrested as an "enemy alien". Grappling with grief and harsh wartime restrictions, Annalisa is forced to undertake an unexpected journey across the country to find her father and uncover the sacrifices of the past.

Meanwhile, in war-torn Sicily, her cousin Alberto navigates bombing raids as ancient fishing traditions crumble around him. But the forces tearing this family apart began decades earlier with a desperate choice made on a Sicilian shore–a secret pact sealed beneath the stars that promised a brighter future across the sea.

As Annalisa searches for her father and Alberto seeks his place in a changing world, they both discover that even in the darkest times, hope for a better future can endure.

From an American internment camp to Sicily's bombed villages, Beneath the Sicilian Stars follows one family's fight for survival, identity, and hope during World War II. Perfect for fans of Kelly Rimmer, Rhys Bowen and Angela Petch.