In time for the 80th anniversary of VE Day, this powerful novel is about family bonds and secrets, fascism and repercussions and revolves around the tragic World War II story of the Italian army that froze to death trying to get back home from Stalingrad. A story that has remained embedded in Italy’s consciousness ever since.

In the winter of 1942, an army vanishes into the icefields of the Eastern Front. In the summer of 1945, a massacre in small-town Italy makes international headlines… Today, an ordinary man is about to stumble onto a horrifying secret. 

Alex Lago is a jaded journalist whose family, marriage, and career are fading fast. So, when the accidental discovery of an aged photo from World War II offers him a last gasp at bonding with his dying father, Alex can't help but scratch at the scabs of a mystery seventy years in the making. 

What he's about to uncover is a secret that can topple a political dynasty. From the unhealed wounds of a post-war massacre to an army of boys forever frozen at the gates of Stalingrad, from British spies reshaping Italy's post-war future to the casual cruelty of ice-hard US Army investigators, and from the unsolved murder of a partisan hero to the most heroic, untold battle of World War II, the deceits of the past are about to propel Alex on a collision course with a deadly legacy… until a compromised, beautiful stranger promises redemption for an unimaginable price. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Sandro grew up in Africa to Italian immigrant parents fleeing post-war Italy. He studied law in Italy, chased literary dreams in London, American dollars in New York City, and is now living and writing in Switzerland. Sandro Martini’s previous book, "Tracks: Racing the Sun", an award-winning historical novel about Italian motor racing, is now in its third edition with movie rights optioned. 

Ciao, Amore, Ciao is based on the true story of Sandro Martini’s uncle, who vanished in the Ukrainian winter at 19 years old, and how it affected his family.