My Father's House: From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Star of the Sea

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A literary thriller based on the true story of an Irish priest in the Vatican who rescued victims of the Nazis in Rome under the nose of his SS officer nemesis. From the bestselling and prizewinning author of Shadowplay. September 1943- German forces occupy Rome. SS officer Paul Hauptmann rules with terror. The war's outcome is far from certain. An Irish priest, Hugh O'Flaherty, dedicates himself to helping those escaping from the Nazis. His home is Vatican City, the world's smallest state, a neutral, independent country within Rome where the occupiers hold no sway. Here Hugh brings together an unlikely band of friends to hide the vulnerable under the noses of the enemy. But Hauptmann's net begins closing in on the Escape Line and the need for a terrifyingly audacious mission grows critical. By Christmastime, it's too late to turn back. Based on an extraordinary true story, My Father's House is a powerful literary thriller from a master of historical fiction. Joseph O'Connor has created an unforgettable novel of love, faith and sacrifice, and what it means to be truly human in the most extreme circumstances.

Reviews

A spectacular, thrilling novel...suspense crackles...celebrates triumphant against-the-odds camaraderie. * Sunday Times *
O'Connor is on stellar form with this ensemble thriller ...while the story's inbuilt tension urges you on, it's the sheer vigour of O'Connor's beautifully turned phrases that really makes the book sing...an expert storyteller * Daily Mail *
A literary thriller of the highest order. The incarnation of O'Flaherty, the Irish Oskar Schindler, is sublime. What often elevates a writer is compassion, and O'Connor has it in spades... Beautifully crafted, his razor-sharp dialogue is to be savoured, and he employs dark humour to great effect. The plot twists keep on coming * Observer *
Breathtakingly good writing - O'Connor puts you right there, centre stage in the story and never lets you go -- Peter James
The novel's evocative scene-setting, its propulsive narration and its powerful depiction of bravery and unity in extremis, all make for an engrossing read. * Telegraph *
Thrilling... Based on true events, this tense, gripping narrative is rendered in beautifully evocative prose * Mail on Sunday *
Impressive and pleasurable...the diverse ventriloquism of O'Connor's novel evokes a city in peril with wonderful vitality * Financial Times *
A tale worth re-telling, adorned as it is by the brilliants of O'Connor's impressionistic writing -- Best New Thrillers * The Times *
A powerful portrait of extraordinary courage * Irish Independent *
Precisely choreographed... We eagerly follow the characters through uncertainty and disappointment as well as high-stakes jeopardy. O'Connor is playing with the possibilities of multiple narrators, and thinking also about plurality, reliability and the historical record * Guardian, Book of the Day *
Gripping...a hugely satisfying book, from its explosive opening to its bittersweet end * Washington Post *
So beautifully written, a masterclass in 'voices' and an extremely tense thriller. It's magnificent. -- Marian Keyes

Author Bio

Joseph O'Connor was born in Dublin. His books include Cowboys and Indians, Inishowen, Star of the Sea (American Library Association Award, Irish Post Award for Fiction, France's Prix Millepages, Italy's Premio Acerbi, Prix Madeleine Zepter for European novel of the year), Redemption Falls, Ghost Light (Dublin One City One Book Novel 2011) and Shadowplay (Irish Book Awards Novel of the Year, Costa Novel of the Year shortlist). His fiction has been translated into forty languages. He received the 2012 Irish PEN Award for Outstanding Contribution to Literature and in 2014 he was appointed Frank McCourt Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Limerick. www.josephoconnorauthor.com