What We May Become

by Teresa Messineo

Overview

In 1945 secrets hidden at an Italian estate could prove just as vital to humanity's fate as the war efforts on the frontlines . . . if nurse Diana Bolsena can get to them first.

Tuscany, 1945. As the war in Europe ends, American Red Cross nurse Diana Bolsena finds herself separated from her unit. Unable to reconnect with the American army, she's left to survive with nothing but her spirit, her talents as a nurse, and her nightmares of the horror of war.

Determined to return to active duty in the Pacific, to earn her way back Diana begins caring for a child with disabilities on the estate of the enigmatic Signora Bugari. Amidst the ravages of war, it is a peaceful existence until a visiting German officer, Herr Adler, arrives demanding Bugari return what is rightfully his.

When a shocking murder attracts more people to the isolated estate, Diana suspects Adler's hidden secrets could affect the course of history. But who will uncover them first? And what will happen to humanity if they fall into the wrong hands?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781448308675
Publisher:	Severn House
Publication date:	06/07/2022
Edition description:	Main
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	5.59(w) x 8.58(h) x 0.79(d)

About the Author

Teresa Messineo is motivated by social justice, and giving voice to the silenced. Her first novel, The Fire by Night, showcased the heroic and often overlooked work of frontline military nurses of the Second World War. Writing that novel involved seven years of research.

Teresa is also the mother of four children, whom she home schooled for twenty years. Her varied interests include medicine, swing dancing, lecturing, studying foreign languages, distance swimming, hunger relief, travel, and hiking. She earned her Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and Publishing (MFA-CW) from her alma mater, DeSales University.

www.tmessineo.com

Editorial Reviews

2022-03-30
Messineo follows The Fire by Night (2017), her first war story, with a tale of an American nurse battling PTSD.

Tuscany, 1945. Diana Bolsena, an American Red Cross nurse, has gone through hell struggling to save her patients when she’s left behind, penniless and starving, in a small town. Diana’s chance to escape comes when she hears of a child care job. Arriving at a villa seemingly untouched by the war, she’s engaged by Signora Bugari to care for a 9-year-old boy, her ward. All goes well until the house is turned upside down by the hiring of new staff members in preparation for the arrival of the palpably evil Herr Adler, who holds some mysterious power over Bugari. Bugari warns Diana against Adler, who’s ransacking the house looking for something, and they all live in fear until Adler is found drowned in the pool. When the local police ignore Diana’s report, she returns to the villa with DI Giacomo Travere, who says he just happens to be passing through the town. The personable English speaker, whom Diana finds attractive, seems less interested in solving the murder than in searching for something hidden in the villa. The discovery shows Travere is not who she thought, and a battle ensues between them over the nature of good and evil.

A brutally atmospheric tale of the horrors of war.

Kirkus Reviews

'A brutally atmospheric tale of the horrors of war’  –Kirkus Reviews

'An entertaining mix of mystery and romance’  –Booklist

From the Publisher

A powerful read

Booklist on The Fire by Night