Where to start. - I have read quite a few books chronicling the war years, mainly based in France, Germany and the Channel Islands. This one was centred around Rome and the Vatican and the extraordinary dedication of an Irish priest based there with help from others during the occupation of the city going to extreme lengths to get people out with The Escape Line. A great read.

A literary, historical thriller, O'Connor transports the reader back to the Vatican during the second world war, expertly evoking the sights and sounds of the period. A valuable addition to any historical fiction collection

A book that brings the reader right into the story as you share the anxieties and greater fears of those prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice to do some right amidst the wrongs of the Nazi occupation of wartime Rome. As well as the emotional involvement, this is a book that also leaves you better informed with its roots in a real story during desperate times.

I have tried several times to read this book but failed each. Each page has a number of words with letters missing making it extremely difficult to read. I don't know if this just applies to me or if others has had the same problem.

Based on the true story of Monsignor Hugh O’Flannery this novel tells of a money drop to enable the escape of POWs and Jews from the Vatican and into the surrounding Italian countryside on Christmas Eve 1943. The story is narrated in two timelines – December 1943 and then with written reports and interviews from the members of Hugh’s choir in more recent times. I found the history within the book fascinating but the combination of literary historical novel with thriller elements didn’t quite knit for me. However the horror and tension within Rome under Nazi occupation reflected against the love ,faith and fearlessness of the choir kept me reading.

As the first part of a proposed trilogy I’m interested to see where this takes the reader. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

I've previously read some of O'Connor writing with mixed success some I found brilliant, others I struggled with but was really keen to read this one as WWll historical fiction is a favourite sub-genre of mine.

This book is a historical fiction thriller telling the story of Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty and a group of like-minded friends who created a Rome Escape Line to hide victims of Nazi persecution (Jews and POW) and help them escape. It centers on the events leading up to one escape mission taking place on Christmas Eve 1943 and its aftermath.

It's told from multiple points of view, Msgr Hugh O'Flaherty, some of his inner circle of friends involved in the rescue mission and SS Leader of Rome Paul Hauptmann who is determined to catch the Irish priest.

It's an incredible book of heroism, of a group of incredibly couragous people who risked everything to help others. Juat to put into context what they achieved, when Rome was liberated 6500 of Msgr O'Flaherty's escapees were still alive.

It's a complete nail-biting, page-turnery cat and mouse thriller and O'Connor at his finest and I'm just delighted that it's the first in a trilogy as I can't wait to read more about this incredible escape story. Brilliant retelling!

Autumn 1943 - Rome is under occupation and much hated SS Officer Paul Hauptmann is endeavouring to make the Fuhrer and Himmler proud of him . Father Hugh O*Flahtery, an Irish priest based in Vatican City, ably supported by an interesting mix of locals and foreigners, heads an escape team doing all they can to re-patriate escaped POW’s. Hauptmann suspects that Father Hugh is up to no good, but as he cannot enter Vatican City himself he has to try every which way to entrap the Father.. Will he succeed or not??

A powerful and very moving story combining love, hate and compassion.

This was such an intriging story sent in The Vatican and Rome during World War 2. Once I started reading I couldn't stop myself following in my mind the routes taken on the many journeys taken across Rome. As the story develops we learn more of each of the characters, of the Priests who took a stance against the evil of the time. With each advancing chapter more of the diversity of the undercover work under taken and the fears they lived with each day became known. Every day these Priests and their support network saved the lives of countless individuals. It is refreshing to read of how they lived the Christian values and lived to tell their story.

Thank you to the author for writing this gripping story and to Net galley for allowing me to read it.

Joseph O'Connor's My fathers house " is one of these rare books that is literary, thriller and historical novel all in one,  based on a real life figure, Father Hugh ' O Flaherty, who was a priest in Vatikan city with an Irish background. Set during the Nazi occupation of Rome in 1943, ( of which I had scant knowledge)  O' Flaherty set up a tight network of people from British diplomat,  Italian contessa, street vendor, nurses or ordinary people who helped Jews or escapees from prison camps to flee Italy via hiding them in Catholic institutions before an escape route could be found. Their hair raising dangerous missions of leading these groups to freedom while risking their own lives left me breathless at times. What human beings were capable of can be discovered between these 300 pages of this novel, be it the brutal reckless rule of SS Officer Hauptmann or the men and many women around O' Flaherty. Taking fictional liberties but based on true facts, this is a fantastic read, great writing and uplifting in the end

This was an extremely frustrating but beautifully told fictitious tale based on fact which was not clear at all at the beginning of the story. First of all the actual print did not make for easy reading as the ‘ff’ and ‘fi’ were missing off words so that words such as ‘officer’ were left as ‘oicer’ and ‘finger’ as ‘nger’! Most confusing. Then, each chapter was told by a different character but again it was not easy to recognise who this person was until, sometimes, halfway through the chapter! Perhaps if each chapter had been titled with a name it would have made things a little easier. However, once I was in my stride I was totally lost in Rome and riveted to the story of Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty and his Choir. Hauptmann, the SS Commandant in Rome is receiving urgent telephone calls from the Fuhrer as he is hearing of too many allied escapees doing so far too many times! The Vatican City, being an independent neutral state, has enabled the Monsignor and his team to form an escape line from within the city and thus saving thousands of lives! They have an escape plan for Christmas Eve, the choir each have their tasks, their history and their codes. The tension is palpable and Hauptmann is determined to get his man! The streets and avenues of Rome come alive as does each character in the choir! It took a lot of getting used to but so worth the effort!

I really enjoy novels based on true events. As such, My Fathers House was definitely the read for me!
This extraordinary thriller tells the account of the life of Monsignor O'Flaherty and his fellow "resistance" workers who risked death by helping Jews and Allied soldiers escape Nazi-occupied Rome.

This was an excellent read, one that piqued my interest in learning more about the real-life event that served as the inspiration for it.
Thank you to NetGalley,Random House UK, Vintage, Harvill Secker for the opportunity to read and review this engaging novel.

Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty finds himself in the Vatican during the Nazi occupation of Italy in 1943. As an Irishman, his own nation is supposedly neutral in the war, and the Vatican City State treads a careful line between professing neutrality and not incurring the wrath of an army that could conquer the state in twenty minutes.

Yet O'Flaherty has hitched himself with the local resistance and their mission to rescue, protect and repatriate Allied airmen. His politically sensitive superiors in the Vatican become increasingly distressed by his conduct while never fully appreciating the depth of his involvement; and the Germans try t0 contain the Vatican personnel within their walls.

O'Connor narrates the novel from multiple viewpoints including SS Colonel Paul Hauptmann and his wife; the British ambassador to the Vatican; and various members of the resistance. Slightly irritatingly, at least in the galley version I received (thanks Netgalley), the viewpoints were not named so the reader had to spend the first paragraph or more trying to decide who was narrating. But I suppose it is to O'Connor's credit that the viewpoint - with so many to choose from - was generally possible to discern quite quickly.

Like many of O'Connor's previous novels, the plot itself is not complicated, the complexity comes from the range of perspectives , each showing different motives and aspirations. This is an accomplished story that is layered with narrative showing everyday life within this secretive community at a particularly unusual time. Bravo!

Having read lots of books on this subject recently I found the fact that this is set in Rome to be extremely interesting. A very good read.

Thank you for allowing me to review this book. I found the theme of this book interesting as I hadn't been aware of the position the Vatican City took during the 2nd World War. It was a fascinating story that was very well written., although I did find the timeliness a little confusing at times. The author uses fictional interviews and reports made many years after the war to explain the roles of some of those involved in helping the allies trapped in German occupied Italy.
I can recommend this book to those who enjoy historical fiction based around true events and people.

Very readable and entertaining story of a real-life group in war torn Rome helping to get on-the-run allied servicemen into safe, supported shelter and then on to escape the city.

For the most part, the structure works well, putting real flesh on the bones of the characters and pulling the reader to invest in the stories on a personal level as well as simply telling their stories. I did feel that it occasionally lost its way when describing the action scenes, but I can forgive that! I just wonder sometimes whether these novels based on real events actually capture the people as they were in real-life, but that's an argument for another day.

My Father's House left me astounded at the personal risk these people were prepared to take to help others and itching to go on and read more about Hugh O'Flaherty, the Catholic priest central to the operation. As a regular visitor to Ireland I had heard his name mentioned and seen the murals throughout Kerry, but hadn't realised the extent of his bravery.

A grand tale. Recommended.

O'Connor is what so many Irish author are - amazing storytellers.
However that this beautifully written novel is based on a true story elevates the characters so much more to the reader.
I began by thinking the Vatican was more sympathetic to the Nazis and often gave of its services and wealth to aid the German occupiers, but this story of Father Hugh O'Flaherty showed the immense bravery and humanity of those prepared to organise Escape Lines for Jews out of occupied Rome was often successful as well as its hideous brutality when secrets got out.
The role of SS Officer Paul Hauptmann was terrifyingly described alongside the sheer brutality of the Nazi soldiers who formed a cordon around the separate state of the Vatican City - literally with a painted line.
The real life of O'Flaherty was in itself worthy of a book/drama/film. The ex boxer,dart playing, motorbike riding charming but intellectually sharp Father in his robes was also revealing through the witnesses true accounts interspersed within the text.
I liked the characters in the British Embassy and Delia Kiernan wife of diplomat who formed 'The Choir' the mechanism through which the escapees would be transported along with their black market clothing and often money taken directly from the Germans whilst they were in the Vatican 'saving their souls'
This is a book to savour and lifted the basic concept of escaping Nazi rule to a whole new level.

My Father's House is set at Christmas time, but there's little yuletide joy to be found.

The concept is simple and based on true events - a priest in Vatican City leads a perilous rescue effort whilst encircled by Rome’s Nazi occupiers.

The telling of his story is anything but simple as O'Connor weaves a spellbinding tale of bravery against the odds.

In 1943 and 1944, Obersturmbannführer Paul Hauptmann rains terror on a starving Rome. But he is forbidden to enter Vatican City, at one-fifth of a square mile, the tiniest country in the world. If Jews or escaped Allied POWs could manage to get there, then maybe, just maybe, they could reach safety.

Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty, an Irish envoy to the Vatican, is incensed by the atrocities of war he sees around him and commits to helping in any way he can - from raising prisoners' spirits at the concentration camps while on official visits, standing up for marginalised people he sees being belittled by German soldiers on the streets and by trying to get some across the Escape Line.

O’Flaherty and a few trusted allies go to great lengths to secretly aid as many people as possible. Discovery means death, so the group employs elaborate ruses to cover their tracks. They form a choir as a cover, and O’Flaherty quietly passes individual instructions during choir practice. They speak in code. They keep no written records. They call in favours from people all over the city and beyond. It’s a risky business they're at.

Hitler tolerates the Vatican’s existence but makes it known that he could invade with ease, and so O’Flaherty’s superiors are deeply unsettled by the monsignor’s activities.

Hauptmann, meanwhile, knows there is an Escape Line, and he is eager to prove it. And to show that the “nuisance of a priest” was involved would only add to his pleasure.

O'Connor’s writing is full of timbre and subtle expressiveness that makes reading this book a truly fascinating delight. This is a highly moving read; you will feel all of our protagonists emotions, from immense anger at the many injustices committed to heartbreaking sadness and beyond.

In my Father’s House are many rooms (John 14:2). Will O’Flaherty and his choristers succeed in their Rendimento? Or will his SS officer nemesis prevail?

Book 1 in the Rome Escape Line Trilogy is an unforgettable story of love, faith and sacrifice, exploring what it means to be truly human in the most extreme circumstances.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced proof copy to review.

Havng been unable to read the download from NetGalley I was pleased to receive an amended version which I have just finished reading. What a great story.. I love the format of 1943 and then some articles and interviews from after the war.. Very well plotted and a good story based around real characters. Obviously fiction but the atmosphere of Occupied Rome came through well and made for an exciting and well paced read. I was surprised to see that it's just 288 pages as it took me quite a bit longer to read than I would expect for that page count. With thanks to NetGalley, the publishers and the author for making the revised copy available for review.. Rating altered from 1 star to 5 stars.

A very interesting novel based on a true story! I particularly enjoyed the characters descriptions often through their own way of expressing themselves: dialogues, reports and interviews. Very well defined, I had the feeling to hear them. The writing style though was not my favourite: reports of events, descriptions of the surroundings felt more like a script for the setting of a film or theatre piece.
However, I was very much engrossed in the storyline and plot. A good read.
I received a complimentary ARC of this novel from NetGalley and I am leaving voluntarily an honest review.

Excellent novel based (loosely!) on the work of an Irish priest within the Vatican to help POWs escape the nazis through the “Escape Line”. Told through a combination of chapters building up to a dangerous Christmas operation, and interviews (the purpose of which are explained later) many years later, My Father’s House is emotionally engaging as well as a gripping thriller. Very much recommended