The City of Echoes Joseph O’Connor

 This is a superb ending to Joseph O’Connor’s Rome trilogy. I could never praise it highly enough! Both thrilling and luminous, it kept me so captivated that I read it in a few days. It also made me anxious to learn far more about the Rome Escape Line, and the famous characters featured in the book, such as Sam Derry.

This time the Allies are closing in, and a large sum of money has been stolen by a dangerous criminal. Both the murderous Commander Paul Hauptmann and the Choir (the underground Vatican team led by Monsignor O’Flaherty which saves Allied escapees) want to get their hands on it. Haupmann needs it to escape before the Allies come, and the Choir needs it to help their cause. In an exciting race against time, the Choir has to find out what Commander Hauptmann how he intends to find the money, as he becomes more and more vicious, deporting more and more Jews and executing more escaped prisoners. Joseph O’Connor presents an amazing portrayal of Hauptmann, who is shown as surprisingly sensitive and caring about his wife and children, although he is an almost completely evil Nazi otherwise. 

The characters in the Choir are all fascinating in their own way. The Cockney Johnny May leads the pack while he longs for the jazz clubs of Soho where he wants to sing again. Urbane and charming Osbourne makes peace when the increasingly tired and frustrated parties fight with each other, and the beautiful Countess Jo and Sam Derry share ‘a moment’ amid the horrors of the war. Courageous Marianna goes to any lengths to help escapees. The Monsignor doesn’t play as big a role in this book, but he’s always a strong presence.

The three books in this trilogy are some of the best books that I’ve ever read, and I’ve read a lot!

I received this free ebook from Edelweiss.plus in return for an honest review.