Once We Were Here: A Novel

by Christopher Cosmos

Overview

As World War II intrudes upon their home, three young friends risk everything for freedom, love, and a chance at a better life.

On October 28, 1940, Mussolini gives Greek Prime Minister Ioannis Metaxas an ultimatum: either allow Axis forces to occupy their country, or face war. Greece’s response is swift. “Oxi!” they say. “No!”
 
In a village nestled against the radiant waters of the Aegean Sea live Alexei, the son of a local fisherman, and his best friend Costa, who were both born on the same night eighteen years earlier and have been like brothers ever since. Now, though, like all the young men throughout Greece, they must leave their homes to fight for their country. Before they go, Alexei asks Philia, the girl he’s loved his entire life, to marry him, which sets into motion the events that will change the lives of these three and their families and friends forever and begins an epic story of courage, survival, sacrifice, the strength of the human spirit, and of a love and friendship that will echo across generations.
 
A spellbinding novel and sweeping romance, Once We Were Here is an unforgettable tale that reveals in vivid detail the untold true story of how Greece helped the Allies to win World War II and pays tribute to the brave men and women who fought and gave everything for their country, for each other, and for freedom.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781956763072
Publisher:	Arcade
Publication date:	09/06/2022
Pages:	408
Sales rank:	371,727
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.10(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

CHRISTOPHER COSMOS was raised in the Midwest and attended the University of Michigan as the recipient of a Chick Evans Scholarship. He is also a screenwriter and has had his work featured in the annual Black List of best Hollywood screenplays of the year. He lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Editorial Reviews

Once We Were Here isa modern epic, surging with the lifeblood of Greece and her proud history. Beautiful, tragic, and achingly lovely, this story of heroism, survival, and homeland captured my heart.”— Victoria Aveyard, #1 bestselling author of the Red Queen series

"This stirring debut by Christopher Cosmos examines the enduring costs of love and war, and the way family stories—even buried ones—set the course for generations to come. Cosmos is deeply committed not only to his characters and their harrowing experiences, but also to sharing, with insight and empathy, Greece’s powerful and often heartbreaking history."— Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife and Love and Ruin

“Winston Churchill said that Greeks don't fight like heroes, but heroes fight like Greeks, and this story proves it; a stunning literary debut about legacy and history, war and peace, fate and destiny, the power of family and stories, and how young love can still shine and endure, even in the face of the greatest evils and long after we're gone."— Steven Pressfield, bestselling author of Gates of Fire and The Legend of Bagger Vance

“Christopher Cosmos gives the reader a front-row seat to six pivotal months in the history of Greece, and the world. Full of both heroics and disasters,Once We Were Here shines a vivid light on the human costs of war, and how we inherit family legacies of love, sacrifice, and secrets.”— Caitlin Horrocks, author of The Vexations

"As Cosmos highlights throughout the book, the Greek army’s bravery was heralded throughout the war by the Allies and Axis alike, and were likened to the Greek mythological heroes in the way they fought and resisted. I could see where Costa and Alexi stand in for those mythological heroes, modern day Greeks, marching off to war as if they were Jason or Odysseus. Romance, long journeys, war, death, tragedy and heroes? Honestly, we might just have a modern day Greek myth on our hands here! The reality is, of all western European countries, Greece resisted against the Axis for the longest time, over 200 days. Cosmos truly captures that Greek fighting spirit in his characters and the story in Once We Were Here."— Kat Cavano, Katcavano.com

"If Hitler and Stalin recognized the Greeks’ courage, it’s about time the world did, too."—Kirkus Reviews

"Fittingly for a story about wartime love and loss, there are also echoes of Ernest Hemingway."—Michigan Alumnus Magazine

“The beauty and history of Greece, World War II, and love are the backbone of this breathtaking and far-reaching novel. Highly recommend.”   —ShouldIReaditOrNot.com

“Once We Were Here is a gut-wrenching story with cinematic quality. Christopher Cosmos vividly portrays the human side of war, from the untrained Resistance fighters to the villagers and survivors. He reminds us why Greeks are so fiercely proud of their country and defend their legacy.”—Maria A. Karamitsos, “The Windy City Greek

From the Publisher

08/24/2020

Cosmos’s action-packed if jingoistic debut celebrates the Greek resistance to the Axis invasion in WWII. Nineteen-year-old best friends Alexei and Costa enthusiastically volunteer to fight against the Italian invasion in 1940. After an unexpected victory, Costa leverages a war wound to pick up women until he falls in love, while Alexei marries childhood sweetheart Philia. After Germany launches an assault in 1941, the men return to the front and join the ragtag resistance following a crushing defeat. Back in Alexei and Costa’s hometown of Agria, Philia and her father are forced to garrison a German commander, and residents strain under the slim rations allowed by the occupying forces. When Costa and Alexei return home, they hatch a scheme—to avenge Agria by sabotaging a bridge, then flee to unconquered Athens—that puts them in danger from the onslaught of encroaching Germans. The near escapes of the protagonists and sound effect-filled battle scenes (“Bang bang bang bang!”; “And then mortars from the Italians. Kaboom kaboom kaboom!!!”) are exciting, but the only nuance in this depiction of robotically cruel Germans and valiant Greeks is a brief, belated moment of self-reflection from Alexei. Readers who don’t mind black-and-white WWII adventures will enjoy this take on a lesser-known part of the war. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

2020-07-29
A grandfather reveals his past as a resistance fighter for Greece.

A framing prologue sets up the story: A grandson has discovered an old photograph in his grandparents' attic, leading his Papou, a Greek American, to confess a long-held secret. The first half is an episodic slog of military campaigns as the protagonist, 18-year-old Alexei, leaves his small fishing village of Agria to fight invading Italians. Along with his childhood friend Costa and the outnumbered and ill-equipped Greek army, he draws first blood in skirmishes in the hills before defeating Mussolini’s forces in Pogradec, an Albanian town. The boys return home to short-lived triumph. Costa, a lady’s man, settles down with Thalia, an older woman, and becomes a father to her son, Nico. Alexei marries Philia after winning the grudging respect of her wealthy father, Giorgios. This brief idyll is interrupted as the Greeks must again defend their borders, now against Hitler’s Wehrmacht. Many more battle scenes and skirmishes ensue. The women left behind as the Germans occupy Agria are treated predictably and stereotypically, as victims whom only men can protect—a role 11-year-old Nico prematurely assumes. The combat narrative takes on more urgency and interest as the two friends join a band of resistance fighters led by Koukidis, a fellow veteran of the Albanian campaign (a character based on a legendary Greek fighter). The battle scenes often veer into comic-book territory, however: No shot of any caliber can be fired without accompanying sound effects such as “bang,” “rat-a-tat-tat,” or “kaboom.” According to the book's epigraphs, Hitler admired the Greeks’ tenacity and Stalin thanked Greece for delaying the German invasion of Russia until winter. Even without such dubious testimonials, this debut novel's primary message is clear: Without Greece’s sacrifice of 10% of its population in resisting German occupation for 219 days, the Allied victory might have been seriously compromised.

If Hitler and Stalin recognized the Greeks’ courage, it’s about time the world did, too.

Kirkus Reviews