The Red Patch Private: The invasion of Sicily, July 1943 - Paperback

by Darrell Duthie (Author)

An improbable soldier, the greatest seaborne landing in history

Sicily, July 1943. After nearly four years of war, Hitler's Fortress Europe is under siege. An invasion fleet of 3,000 ships, thousands of men, supported by countless aircraft is heading for the shores of Sicily.

Newly-demoted Private Archie Atwell yearns for landfall, victory, and an opportunity to prove himself to his father. But as the battalion marches under a searing sun towards the island's mountainous interior and the crack Panzer Grenadier division that awaits them, he is confronted with his chequered past, and the scheming ambition of a fellow soldier.

As the fight intensifies, the harsh realities of war begin to take their toll. Facing a tenacious enemy, their lives and the campaign at stake, Archie must choose: stand true to the habits of a lifetime, or embrace the virtues of duty and responsibility he's spurned so often. The battle for Sicily is nearing its climax...