The Ghosts of Rome

Joseph O'Connor

Paperback

Regular price$18.95With free membership trial$9.4850% off your first book+ Free shipping

Pre-order: Ships Feb 24th, 2026

Do you recommend this book?

Yes!

A NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS' CHOICE

★ "Mesmerising, tragic, horrifying, utterly unputdownable... An outstanding read for fans of WWII fiction and of writers like Anthony Doerr."--Emily Melton, Booklist (Starred Review)

Shortlisted for Kerry Group Novel of The Year

A Parade Most Anticipated Book of the Year

In the final, perilous months of WWII, a secret network known as The Choir smuggles thousands out of Nazi-occupied Rome via a route known only as the Escape Line. But when a wounded airman falls from the sky, the entire operation is thrown into jeopardy. From the Vatican, Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty struggles to maintain the fragile network as the ruthless SS Commander Paul Hauptmann closes in. Enter Contessa Giovanna Landini, a bold and defiant member of the Resistance whose actions will tip the balance of power. But in whose favor?

Brimming with suspense, unforgettable characters, and historical resonance, The Ghosts of Rome is a masterfully written novel of resistance, sacrifice, and survival from an acclaimed and bestselling storyteller.

"The power of The Ghosts of Rome comes from the dazzling variety of voices... not just a wartime thriller, but a meditation on how we remember, how we resist, and how, even in the darkest times, humanity endures."--The New York Times Book Review

Book Details

Publisher: Europa Editions
Publish Date: Feb 24th, 2026
Pages: 384
Language: English
Edition: undefined - undefined
Dimensions: 0.00in - 0.00in - 0.00in - 0.00lb
EAN: 9798889661696
Categories: • Historical - 20th Century - World War II & Holocaust• Thrillers - Historical• Thrillers - Suspense

About the Author

O'Connor, Joseph: - Joseph O'Connor's Shadowplay was named Novel of the Year at the 2019 Irish Book Awards and was a finalist for the prestigious Costa Book Award. His novel Star of the Sea was published in thirty-eight languages and won France's Prix Millepages, Italy's Premio Acerbi, the Irish Post Award for Fiction, the Nielsen Bookscan Golden Book Award, an American Library Association Award, the Hennessy/Sunday Tribune Hall of Fame Award, and the Prix Littéraire Zepter for European Novel of the Year. He is the author of ten novels and is the Inaugural Frank McCourt Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Limerick. My Father's House, the critically acclaimed first book in his Rome Escape Line Trilogy was a Washington Post Best Book of the Year and was a finalist for the Walter Scott Prize.

Praise for this book

"The power of The Ghosts of Rome comes from the dazzling variety of voices employed, the sense of a world constructed in multiple dimensions... What emerges is not just a wartime thriller, though it is that, but a meditation on how we remember, how we resist and how, even in the darkest times, humanity endures."--Alex Preston, The New York Times Book Review

"Gorgeous prose, unforgettable characters and flawless storytelling combine to produce this triumphant tale about the rare wonder of humans lucky enough to connect and thrive under adversity."--Toronto Star

"Richly atmospheric and pulsing with excitement, this novel breaks the second-in-a-trilogy 'curse.' O'Connor's final act can't come soon enough."--Star Tribune

"A captivating study of human morality and courage under inhuman levels of stress... O'Connor has crafted a historical suspense novel brimming with unforgettable personalities, illuminating human character and relationships forged in the horrors of war."--Winnipeg Free Press

★ "The Ghosts of Rome is a deeply affecting read with an ending that's sad yet life affirming... Mesmerising, tragic, horrifying, utterly unputdownable... An outstanding read for fans of WWII fiction and of writers like Anthony Doerr."--Emily Melton, Booklist (Starred Review)

★ "Pulse-pounding... O'Connor captivates with his vigorous portrayal of wartime Rome."--Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

★ "The story is exciting and rich with prose that's a joy to read... Top-notch storytelling filled with emotion and drama."--Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)

"The Ghosts of Rome, Joseph O'Connor's second novel in his projected trilogy about Rome under Nazi occupation, blazes with the imaginative flair and narrative energy that won its predecessor, My Father's House (2023), high acclaim... The ugly stratum of Nazi oppression O'Connor's novel graphically resurrects is packed with sensuously evoked reminders of Rome's rich past in this haunted and haunting novel."--The Sunday Times (UK)

"A stellar piece of storytelling... O'Connor brilliantly captures the sense of the city and its inhabitants in peril."--The Daily Mail (UK)

"Nail-bitingly tense... A vidid and moving story."--The Guardian (UK)

"It was hard to turn pages fast enough to keep up with the rapid-fire pace of The Ghosts of Rome. O'Connor lures readers into a little known, but important, facet of World War II history and keeps them hooked until the very last page."--Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author of The Personal Librarian

"Thrilling, terrifying and entertaining in equal measure, The Ghosts of Rome is beautifully written, warm and witty. A must-read!"--Liz Nugent, author of Strange Sally Diamond