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Sisters in Resistance: How a German Spy, a Banker's Wife, and Mussolini's Daughter Outwitted the Nazis
In a tale as twisted as any spy thriller, discover how three women delivered critical evidence of Axis war crimes to Allied forces during World War II: “Mazzeo is a fascinating storyteller” (New York Journal of Books).
In 1944, news of secret diaries kept by Italy's Foreign Minister, Galeazzo Ciano, had permeated public consciousness. What wasn't reported, however, was how three women—a Fascist's daughter, a German spy, and an American banker’s wife—risked their lives to ensure the diaries would reach the Allies, who would later use them as evidence against the Nazis at Nuremberg.
In 1944, Benito Mussolini's daughter, Edda, gave Hitler and her father an ultimatum: release her husband, Galeazzo Ciano, from prison, or risk her leaking her husband's journals to the press. To avoid the peril of exposing Nazi lies, Hitler and Mussolini hunted for the diaries for months, determined to destroy them.
Hilde Beetz, a German spy, was deployed to seduce Ciano to learn the diaries' location and take them from Edda. As the seducer became the seduced, Hilde converted as a double agent, joining forces with Edda to save Ciano from execution. When this failed, Edda fled to Switzerland with Hilde’s daring assistance to keep Ciano's final wish: to see the diaries published for use by the Allies. When American spymaster Allen Dulles learned of Edda's escape, he sent in Frances De Chollet, an “accidental” spy, telling her to find Edda, gain her trust, and, crucially, hand the diaries over to the Americans. Together, they succeeded in preserving one of the most important documents of WWII.
Drawing from in‑depth research and first-person interviews with people who witnessed these events, Mazzeo gives readers a riveting look into this little‑known moment in history and shows how, without Edda, Hilde, and Frances's involvement, certain convictions at Nuremberg would never have been possible.
In 1944, news of secret diaries kept by Italy's Foreign Minister, Galeazzo Ciano, had permeated public consciousness. What wasn't reported, however, was how three women—a Fascist's daughter, a German spy, and an American banker’s wife—risked their lives to ensure the diaries would reach the Allies, who would later use them as evidence against the Nazis at Nuremberg.
In 1944, Benito Mussolini's daughter, Edda, gave Hitler and her father an ultimatum: release her husband, Galeazzo Ciano, from prison, or risk her leaking her husband's journals to the press. To avoid the peril of exposing Nazi lies, Hitler and Mussolini hunted for the diaries for months, determined to destroy them.
Hilde Beetz, a German spy, was deployed to seduce Ciano to learn the diaries' location and take them from Edda. As the seducer became the seduced, Hilde converted as a double agent, joining forces with Edda to save Ciano from execution. When this failed, Edda fled to Switzerland with Hilde’s daring assistance to keep Ciano's final wish: to see the diaries published for use by the Allies. When American spymaster Allen Dulles learned of Edda's escape, he sent in Frances De Chollet, an “accidental” spy, telling her to find Edda, gain her trust, and, crucially, hand the diaries over to the Americans. Together, they succeeded in preserving one of the most important documents of WWII.
Drawing from in‑depth research and first-person interviews with people who witnessed these events, Mazzeo gives readers a riveting look into this little‑known moment in history and shows how, without Edda, Hilde, and Frances's involvement, certain convictions at Nuremberg would never have been possible.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published June 21, 2022
186 people are currently reading
6480 people want to read
About the author
Tilar J. Mazzeo
18 books334 followersTilar J. Mazzeo is a cultural historian, biographer, and passionate student of wine and food culture. She divides her time among the California wine country, New York City, and Maine, where she is a professor of English at Colby College.
(from the author's website)
(from the author's website)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 153 reviews
February 17, 2022
What do Mussolini's daughter, a beautiful Nazi spy, and a rich American socialite have in common?
The question reads like an opening line for a joke of the sort your dad tells, but it's the very serious premise of this book about an WWII episode belonging more to the likes of John Le Carré's spy tales than an academic's pen.
The answer is: Count Galeazzo Ciano. Or rather, his diaries. What did Mussolini's son-in-law write in these diaries that merited a dizzying hunt across international borders and involved Italian, German, American, and British intelligence agents? What could the diaries contain that a few top Nazis wanted it so badly for themselves? Were they really so explosive they merited blackmailing Mussolini and Hitler simultaneously with them?
Tilar J. Mazzeo's Sisters in Resistance provides answers to all of this. From 1937 to 1943, possibly starting even earlier, Ciano had been meticulously registering important events, conversations, plans, letters, official document contents, personal impressions, table talk, and so on, that he was privy to as Italy's foreign minister. He was very candid, rather too honest (his comments on the Nazi big bosses is wonderfully catty) in his diaries, which were organised in three sets: the personal diaries proper; the "Conversations," that chronicled his very sensitive and top secret talks with important officials, and "Germania," that collected papers dealing with the Germans' hierarchy and their plans and intentions. Of these three sets of papers, the hot potatoes were in the second and third set, which would be so damaging to Germany if they fell in Allied hands as they revealed the truth about the atrocities they were committing and how they were lying to the world about their true intentions.
The one that would've been the most damaged on a personal level by the diaries was Joachim von Ribbentrop, the German foreign minister, and the ones most interested in damaging him personally were, can you guess? Our old familiar faces Himmler and Kaltenbrunner. When Ciano fell out of favour with Mussolini and the latter was deposed, he had to flee with his wife, Edda Mussolini, and their children, falling into genteel captivity by the Nazis. In captivity, Himmler and Kaltenbrunner sent a seductive spy to bed inveterate womaniser Ciano out of his diaries, and she, incredibly, succeeded and got the diaries... And you thought Gossip Girl levels of cattiness and honeypot schemes were Hollywood fantasies!
But the problem was, Ciano had only given the Germans a portion of his diaries. The rest of the diaries were still hidden away and out of the hands of the desperate Germans. Here's where wife Edda decides to take the bull by the horns, and blackmail her father and the Führer in exchange for Ciano's life: either you release him from captivity or the diaries will end up in the eager hands of the Allies. Don't believe me? Well, off I am to Switzerland with the papers, and you can't have them anymore! It's a giant go hang yourselves from irate Edda to both fascist dictators.
It's not easy to both secure the hiding locations of the papers and safeguard Edda and the Ciano children's lives at the same time. The Gestapo are out hunting, they are circled by spies ready to jump at them, and their existence as refugees in Switzerland is precarious. They need help, lots and lots and lots of help. Contrary to the book's subtitle and blurb, it's not just Edda Mussolini, Hilde Beetz, and Frances de Chollet who achieved the incredible feat of saving the Ciano diaries for posterity. A legion of people contributed, in varying degrees, some more, some less. Not only these three women risked their lives for the diaries, many others did too. They were simply the ones that did the most work, the heavy lifting so to speak, but would never have been successful if not for the army of ant helpers, who also deserve credit for their role.
It's thanks to that army of ant helpers, and especially these three women, that Galeazzo Ciano's diaries survived the destruction the Nazis had in reserve for them, and were key material at the Nuremberg trials at the end of the war. The Ciano diaries were crucial to serve a measure of justice that rendered it worth the sacrifices the people who fought to preserve them made.
Even though this story is written in a balanced and non-judgmental manner, it's not meant to make heroes out of the women involved. Indeed, none of them are admirable, none of them are exactly upstanding people. All people involved in the Ciano rescue mission are very flawed, some even moral reprobates. The point is, as Mazzeo put it, show these were "people who, in the middle of their life’s journey, find themselves on the wrong path discover the courage to change and to wrestle with the darkness and with the reckoning that follows. A Nazi spy. Mussolini’s daughter. A fascist diplomat. At the story’s heart is Mussolini’s son-in-law, a flawed man, a playboy and Italy’s foreign minister, who found the strength to repudiate fascism and stare down his executioners." Will you sympathise with these three women, or Ciano? I'd say no. You'll understand them better.
The book's great flaw is, I think, that it tends to play too much into the "spy thriller" act, and it ends up being a bit of a telenovela. It can get repetitive and tedious in parts despite the fast pace, because the author has a tendency to repeat herself. In part, that helps you remember who is who and what was done by whom, but at the same time it loses you in the labyrinth of too much information crammed in, some of which could've been made do without. The emphasis is on the tension, the thrills, and there's an overall feel of wanting this to be "filmable." In the process, too much melodrama clogs the pages, and you feel that a bit more explanations on historical context would've been an improvement.
I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The question reads like an opening line for a joke of the sort your dad tells, but it's the very serious premise of this book about an WWII episode belonging more to the likes of John Le Carré's spy tales than an academic's pen.
The answer is: Count Galeazzo Ciano. Or rather, his diaries. What did Mussolini's son-in-law write in these diaries that merited a dizzying hunt across international borders and involved Italian, German, American, and British intelligence agents? What could the diaries contain that a few top Nazis wanted it so badly for themselves? Were they really so explosive they merited blackmailing Mussolini and Hitler simultaneously with them?
Tilar J. Mazzeo's Sisters in Resistance provides answers to all of this. From 1937 to 1943, possibly starting even earlier, Ciano had been meticulously registering important events, conversations, plans, letters, official document contents, personal impressions, table talk, and so on, that he was privy to as Italy's foreign minister. He was very candid, rather too honest (his comments on the Nazi big bosses is wonderfully catty) in his diaries, which were organised in three sets: the personal diaries proper; the "Conversations," that chronicled his very sensitive and top secret talks with important officials, and "Germania," that collected papers dealing with the Germans' hierarchy and their plans and intentions. Of these three sets of papers, the hot potatoes were in the second and third set, which would be so damaging to Germany if they fell in Allied hands as they revealed the truth about the atrocities they were committing and how they were lying to the world about their true intentions.
The one that would've been the most damaged on a personal level by the diaries was Joachim von Ribbentrop, the German foreign minister, and the ones most interested in damaging him personally were, can you guess? Our old familiar faces Himmler and Kaltenbrunner. When Ciano fell out of favour with Mussolini and the latter was deposed, he had to flee with his wife, Edda Mussolini, and their children, falling into genteel captivity by the Nazis. In captivity, Himmler and Kaltenbrunner sent a seductive spy to bed inveterate womaniser Ciano out of his diaries, and she, incredibly, succeeded and got the diaries... And you thought Gossip Girl levels of cattiness and honeypot schemes were Hollywood fantasies!
But the problem was, Ciano had only given the Germans a portion of his diaries. The rest of the diaries were still hidden away and out of the hands of the desperate Germans. Here's where wife Edda decides to take the bull by the horns, and blackmail her father and the Führer in exchange for Ciano's life: either you release him from captivity or the diaries will end up in the eager hands of the Allies. Don't believe me? Well, off I am to Switzerland with the papers, and you can't have them anymore! It's a giant go hang yourselves from irate Edda to both fascist dictators.
It's not easy to both secure the hiding locations of the papers and safeguard Edda and the Ciano children's lives at the same time. The Gestapo are out hunting, they are circled by spies ready to jump at them, and their existence as refugees in Switzerland is precarious. They need help, lots and lots and lots of help. Contrary to the book's subtitle and blurb, it's not just Edda Mussolini, Hilde Beetz, and Frances de Chollet who achieved the incredible feat of saving the Ciano diaries for posterity. A legion of people contributed, in varying degrees, some more, some less. Not only these three women risked their lives for the diaries, many others did too. They were simply the ones that did the most work, the heavy lifting so to speak, but would never have been successful if not for the army of ant helpers, who also deserve credit for their role.
It's thanks to that army of ant helpers, and especially these three women, that Galeazzo Ciano's diaries survived the destruction the Nazis had in reserve for them, and were key material at the Nuremberg trials at the end of the war. The Ciano diaries were crucial to serve a measure of justice that rendered it worth the sacrifices the people who fought to preserve them made.
Even though this story is written in a balanced and non-judgmental manner, it's not meant to make heroes out of the women involved. Indeed, none of them are admirable, none of them are exactly upstanding people. All people involved in the Ciano rescue mission are very flawed, some even moral reprobates. The point is, as Mazzeo put it, show these were "people who, in the middle of their life’s journey, find themselves on the wrong path discover the courage to change and to wrestle with the darkness and with the reckoning that follows. A Nazi spy. Mussolini’s daughter. A fascist diplomat. At the story’s heart is Mussolini’s son-in-law, a flawed man, a playboy and Italy’s foreign minister, who found the strength to repudiate fascism and stare down his executioners." Will you sympathise with these three women, or Ciano? I'd say no. You'll understand them better.
The book's great flaw is, I think, that it tends to play too much into the "spy thriller" act, and it ends up being a bit of a telenovela. It can get repetitive and tedious in parts despite the fast pace, because the author has a tendency to repeat herself. In part, that helps you remember who is who and what was done by whom, but at the same time it loses you in the labyrinth of too much information crammed in, some of which could've been made do without. The emphasis is on the tension, the thrills, and there's an overall feel of wanting this to be "filmable." In the process, too much melodrama clogs the pages, and you feel that a bit more explanations on historical context would've been an improvement.
I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
July 26, 2022
Known as the Ciano Diaries this is a WWII espionage drama of huge proportions.
Galeazzo Ciano (Mussolini’s foreign minister) is married to Edda Mussolini Ciano (Mussolini’s eldest and favourite daughter) all faithful fascists but Galeazzo becomes disenchanted with Hitler and realizes that war is not in the best interest of Italy.
Watching Mussolini leaning towards an alliance with Hitler Ciano began keeping detailed diaries from 1939 through 1943. In 1943 he tried to have his father in law removed from office whereupon, not surprisingly, he finds himself in prison.
Edda and Galeazzo were known to have numerous affairs but they had three children and remained committed to each other to the end.
Edda was in possession of the diaries (or most of them) when her husband was in prison facing execution and they were so damming she knew that they were her only salvation. Her plan was to use them to blackmail Hitler and hopefully save her husband. Unfortunately that was not to be. Edda and her children had to flee to Switzerland and there she was forced to remain in hiding.
This is the story of the diaries and their travels through war-torn Europe and the people who made it possible for them to eventually come to light.
“…whatever small measure of justice the trials at Nuremberg amounted to, a circle of intrepid women had made one important part of it possible.” (Pg.250)
There are no likable people in this story but deeply flawed individuals who somehow ended up doing the right thing…even if it was for personal reasons.
Pages 257 – 297 are the author’s Endnotes and where details were not possible to confirm 100% the author says so.
Galeazzo Ciano (Mussolini’s foreign minister) is married to Edda Mussolini Ciano (Mussolini’s eldest and favourite daughter) all faithful fascists but Galeazzo becomes disenchanted with Hitler and realizes that war is not in the best interest of Italy.
Watching Mussolini leaning towards an alliance with Hitler Ciano began keeping detailed diaries from 1939 through 1943. In 1943 he tried to have his father in law removed from office whereupon, not surprisingly, he finds himself in prison.
Edda and Galeazzo were known to have numerous affairs but they had three children and remained committed to each other to the end.
Edda was in possession of the diaries (or most of them) when her husband was in prison facing execution and they were so damming she knew that they were her only salvation. Her plan was to use them to blackmail Hitler and hopefully save her husband. Unfortunately that was not to be. Edda and her children had to flee to Switzerland and there she was forced to remain in hiding.
This is the story of the diaries and their travels through war-torn Europe and the people who made it possible for them to eventually come to light.
“…whatever small measure of justice the trials at Nuremberg amounted to, a circle of intrepid women had made one important part of it possible.” (Pg.250)
There are no likable people in this story but deeply flawed individuals who somehow ended up doing the right thing…even if it was for personal reasons.
Pages 257 – 297 are the author’s Endnotes and where details were not possible to confirm 100% the author says so.
August 8, 2022
Knowing only the barest outline of how World War II played out in Italy, I found this nonfiction book featuring Mussolini's daughter and a Germany spy to be fascinating. The author acknowledges the flawed nature of the highlighted women - Edda Mussolini Ciano and Hilde Beetz were supporters of fascism and the Nazi party before playing a role in getting secret papers to the Allied powers. Filled with spies and high stakes during the closing days of World War II, this book makes for a compelling narrative that reads more like a novel than nonfiction.
July 3, 2023
Reading like the most extravagent, sensational fiction, this is a thrilling, behind-the- scenes account of how the daughter of Mussolini managed to overcome her attachment to her father to risk her life for the man she loved (both were cads).
She had reached the stage of middle age where she was not entirely sure what she was doing or why it mattered. p201
It's not even as if they were still romantically inclined towards each other. Each had their own paramour who would prove to be astonishing in the lengths they would go to save Ciani's life - and his letters.
As well as adding to the historical imagination, this book highlights some obscure codes of honour and the rigorous demands of loyal responsabiliy.
Galeazzo Ciani, son in law of Mussolini, may have been a bit of a cad but he was ultimately betrayed by his own decency . What a lot of bother (and his own life) could have been averted if only people had taken his warnings seriously.
My emotional response to this book was greatly enhanced by the blurry photographs.
4/5
6/7
She had reached the stage of middle age where she was not entirely sure what she was doing or why it mattered. p201
It's not even as if they were still romantically inclined towards each other. Each had their own paramour who would prove to be astonishing in the lengths they would go to save Ciani's life - and his letters.
As well as adding to the historical imagination, this book highlights some obscure codes of honour and the rigorous demands of loyal responsabiliy.
Galeazzo Ciani, son in law of Mussolini, may have been a bit of a cad but he was ultimately betrayed by his own decency . What a lot of bother (and his own life) could have been averted if only people had taken his warnings seriously.
My emotional response to this book was greatly enhanced by the blurry photographs.
4/5
6/7
June 22, 2022
I am constantly amazed at the power and perseverance of women and what they have done for this world. It is an inescapable fact that when women are left to the task they can do wondrous things for the greater good.
~Tanja
*Thank you to @grandcentralPub for sharing this title with me.
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~Tanja
*Thank you to @grandcentralPub for sharing this title with me.
Follow me on
Instagram✿Twitter✿Facebook✿Pinterest✿TikTok
November 28, 2025
What a story!!! Needs to be a mini series. Reads like fiction but it’s a true story of 3 phenomenal women.
July 12, 2022
Loved this book and devoured it in three days, with lots of icy drinks on my patio in gorgeous Michigan summer weather. Mazzeo brings out of the shadows three remarkable women who worked together to save incriminating diaries (known as the Ciano Diaries) amid danger, excitement, and betrayal. For all World War II aficionados.
August 19, 2022
The title is misleading; the 3 women were not at all sisterly; they were from 3 different countries and they were not in the Resistance. The banker's wife doesn't show up until the last quarter of the story. The book is about Mussolini's eldest daughter, Edda, her husband, Galeazzo Ciano, and their lovers, Emilio and Hilde. They were all fascists. Mussolini wanted to side with Hitler in the war; the rest of his family and most of his cabinet wanted to stay out of the war. In 1944, Edda and Emilio fled to Switzerland, and we learn what a hotbed of spies were stationed in Bern. The Germans and the Americans both wanted to obtain the diaries that Ciano had written while he was Foreign Minister, which Edda and Hilde had hidden. A different view of the war.
September 24, 2022
3.5 stars. Interesting story but very dry for the first half of the book. I liked how the author said upfront - these were not upstanding, moral people necessarily but they together did this extraordinary thing so I'm going to tell you about them anyway. And isn't that usually the case -- not all heroes come from some squeaky clean background and conduct themselves at all times like saints, but that doesn't mean we should discount the good things they do. Even if they do the good things because they love the person they are having an extra-marital affair with. For instance.
March 23, 2023
Non fiction based around the Ciano diaries and the fall of fascism in Italy. This is a whole part of history that I never really knew about prior to this. So fascinating to learn that the key people would be Mussolini’s daughter who went up against her dictator father and blackmailed Hitler, famous Italian designer Emilio Pucci and heiress of Fiat.
January 8, 2023
An interesting perspective of the Axis alignment during WWII from those closely associated within Mussilini's circle.
July 20, 2022
The more I learn about the untold stories of WWII, the more I learn of untapped chasms of stories that have yet to be Told.
I’d never given much thought to Mussolini’s children or in-laws until this book appeared on my radar.
Secret diaries and the race to procure them is the terrific basis for a movie, except this was real life.
Some of the diaries are still missing to this day, but some thought to be destroyed during the war, turned out to be not so destroyed after all!
I’d never given much thought to Mussolini’s children or in-laws until this book appeared on my radar.
Secret diaries and the race to procure them is the terrific basis for a movie, except this was real life.
Some of the diaries are still missing to this day, but some thought to be destroyed during the war, turned out to be not so destroyed after all!
June 21, 2022
"Sisters in Resistance," by Tilar J. Mazzeo, is set during the Second World War. It is the true story of a band of women who set out to foil the Nazis by delivering politically significant diaries and other documents to the Allies. Galeazzo Caleazzo Ciano, the Italian Foreign Minister and Mussolini's son-in-law, feared that the dictator was destroying Italy by siding with Hitler and plunging the country into a costly war. Galeazzo's wife, Edda, was a volatile individual who had a variety of lovers (as did her husband). Their affairs, strangely enough, did not diminish their regard for one another. Ciano kept meticulous records of his thoughts and observations, and both the Nazis and United States were eager to get their hands on his journals.
This work of non-fiction is deeply flawed. Time and again, Mazzeo admits that there is no proof concerning the accuracy of various incidents. Another problem is the sheer volume of characters and events, which makes for a confusing mishmash rather than a coherent whole. I was not particularly interested in Ciano, Edda, nor most of the other men and women in this book. The prose style is cluttered, dull, and rambling, except for a few passages in which people risk their lives, make daring escapes, or die courageously.
The "Sisters in Resistance" were Frances Winslow de Chollet, Hildegard Burkhardt Beetz, Susanna and Virginia Agnelli, and Cordelia Dodson. Each aided and supported Edda—who was distraught much of the time—and played a part in the delivery of Ciano's papers to the West. According to the author, Ciano's diaries helped make the case at Nuremburg that several high-ranking Nazis were guilty of horrendous crimes. This story is worthy of a long essay, but it does not have enough substance to merit a three-hundred-page-book.
This work of non-fiction is deeply flawed. Time and again, Mazzeo admits that there is no proof concerning the accuracy of various incidents. Another problem is the sheer volume of characters and events, which makes for a confusing mishmash rather than a coherent whole. I was not particularly interested in Ciano, Edda, nor most of the other men and women in this book. The prose style is cluttered, dull, and rambling, except for a few passages in which people risk their lives, make daring escapes, or die courageously.
The "Sisters in Resistance" were Frances Winslow de Chollet, Hildegard Burkhardt Beetz, Susanna and Virginia Agnelli, and Cordelia Dodson. Each aided and supported Edda—who was distraught much of the time—and played a part in the delivery of Ciano's papers to the West. According to the author, Ciano's diaries helped make the case at Nuremburg that several high-ranking Nazis were guilty of horrendous crimes. This story is worthy of a long essay, but it does not have enough substance to merit a three-hundred-page-book.
December 9, 2023
A mostly fascinating account of three women who ultimately foiled the Nazis and brought a large amount of damaging documentation gathered by Galeazzo Ciano (Italy's Foreign Minister) and the husband of Edda Mussolini to the Allies. With all that happened to everyone involved in turning over these papers it is really amazing that it was ultimately successful. It makes me want to read more about these individuals and most importantly 'Mussolini's Daughter: The Most Dangerous Woman in Europe' which was published by another author in 2022.
February 2, 2023
Who knew this story? I was not familiar with it.
Real spy intrigue about a secret journal that contained details about Hitler and his plans takes place with three women at the core. Wow. So many secretive actions, duplicitous behavior, and bad faith in humankind show how much was at risk during the years just before WWII.
Real spy intrigue about a secret journal that contained details about Hitler and his plans takes place with three women at the core. Wow. So many secretive actions, duplicitous behavior, and bad faith in humankind show how much was at risk during the years just before WWII.
July 26, 2022
3.5 stars
June 19, 2023
" Há no coração de cada verdadeira mulher uma centelha de fogo divino que permanece adormecida à luz forte da prosperidade, mas que se ateia e brilha e lampeja na hora escura da adversidade. "
May 8, 2025
I have not really read much about this aspect of World War 2 - Italy, etc. I found it very interesting, and now I want to know more!
Listened to on Libby thanks to my local public library.
Listened to on Libby thanks to my local public library.
March 13, 2025
The story is good, but the book is boring.
September 29, 2022
Interesting story and perspective. I really liked the beginning but it got less interesting toward the end as I had to keep track of so many conversations between minor players in the story. I also would have liked more info on what happened to the various characters afterward.
May 19, 2024
This book has more curves than the Amalfi Coast, showing that truth can be more powerful than fiction. Tilar Mazzeo captures a complex book in an easy reading, page turning book. She demonstrates that Italian fascist Benito Mussolini was a tragic figure who was vindictive but, possibly worse, placed his own ego above family.
The author speaks about the conflict within the Mussolini’s family over the entry into WWII with Benito taking sides with Nazi Germany in hopes of expanding their nation in the spoils of war. His son-in-law, Galeazzo Ciano, had been Italian Consul by his father-in-law, kept diaries of the inner working of the two fascist governments, recording damaging history since 1937 to both his father-in-law and Hitler’s hatchet men. But Ciano joined the Fascist Grand Council majority and turned on his father-in-law in a vote for new leadership when the King had enough and decided to exercise his power to get out of a losing war. This book centered on saving those diaries that would be used at the Nuremberg Trials and how women who were all flawed worked to save the life of a man who was flawed by convincing another man who was faulty to act to save the father of his own grandchildren.
Mazzeo captures the movements of three women who worked together despite one being the mistress of the other’s husband while sharing with her readers the politics of neutral Switzerland, the way the United States was looking beyond the war to use media companies to help to save important documents and reminds readers just how vicious Nazi SS and Hitler was to everyone in their way. In her preview of the book, Mazzeo rightfully says: “…most history, including the history of the human heart, takes place in the shades of gray and among the shadows.” That is certainly true with this complex story. She further said that “…this is a story of courage. It is the story of how people who, finding themselves on the wrong path in the middle of their life’s journey, discover the courage of change and to wrestle with the darkness and with the reckoning that follows.”
When Mussolini was knocked out of government, the conditions in Rome declined far quicker than anyone would imagine. The former dictator was the most hated man in Italy and tried to escape to the nearest nation – the Vatican – and was surprised when he was refused entrance. His daughter and son-in-law applied for passports to escape through Spain to South America; he instantly started working with his bankers to move his money. Mussolini’s oldest son, Vittorio, looked to flee to Germany. Galeazzo was under police surveillance, his father-in-law arrested, fellow citizens celebrating the downfall of the powerful family, and then witnessed the press turn against him, making an argument for his arrest. The new Badoglio government had a hit list, and this famous family was high on the list to settle old scores.
Enter the journals. Hitler did not want Ciano’s diaries to reach the allies so the couple had something they could use to bargain their safety. They hid the diaries and tried to bargain with the German government while agents started to look for the hidden, damaging papers. Hitler also turned-on Italy when the new government secretly tried to negotiate an armistice with the Allies. The Germans instituted a ruthless occupation and replaced Galeazzo with a puppet government lead by Mussolini after they freed him from the Alpine property where he was being held before being put on trial.
The story got more complicated, but Mazzeo did an excellent job allowing the reader to understand what was happening, especially since there were so many involved in the plot to free Mussolini’s daughter, son-in-law, and young family. The plot included a talented Nazi spy, Hilde Beetz, who fell in love with Ciano, a true lady’s man. Hilde was complex character, a woman who was trying to prove herself to the Nazi’s, who was in love with her young husband who was serving on the Russian front, and who fell in love with her target yet, later, forged an unusual friendship with his wife.
While trying to use Ciano’s diaries to provide their freedom, those who turned on Mussolini’s government, including – possibly especially – Ciano were brought up on charges. Mussolini’s son-in-law was the focus of incredible anger by Italians with chants from the political gathering, “Death to Ciano.” It put pressure on a weakened Mussolini to save his son-in-law while allowing others to be found guilty in a show trial and killed. While being held in prison, Ciano had an affair with the young Nazi spy while writing touching letters to his wife. Edda was receiving his letters while their children were being held with her at a clinic. But, saving her children from harm, Edda worked out a way to get their children to go across barbed wife to Switzerland while ordering extra meals and talking to herself while her kids escaped. They did not tell the Swiss government that the children were Mussolini’s grandkids for the neutral government would not take the chance. Instead, the Swiss government had to hide the kids, so Germany did not learn they were part of a decision that showed anything except neutrality. Later Edda also slipped through the boarder and the Swiss government had even more of a problem.
The book shares the correspondence that Edda wrote directly to Hitler and to her father, asking that Galeazzo’s life be spared. Mussolini delayed his trial as the relationship between Galeazzo and Hilde continued to grow with the Nazi spy repeatedly showing her relationship with the enemy of Germany. Ten days later, Galeazzo and five other men who voted against Mussolini were tried for treason, five condemned to death; Galeazzo was not the one spared. Death by firing squad was scheduled for the following day. Panicky attempts to secure a last-minute commutation for Galeazzo. The night before the planned execution, Hilde gave him a vial of poison. He took it but it only made him sick, failing to kill him. That night, no one slept, including Mussolini, who was bothered by a letter that his favorite daughter wrote to him threatening revenge if he took the father of his grandchildren. But the next morning, Mussolini put his relationship with Hitler above that of his daughter and grandchildren, allowing his son-in-law to be taken to death. The five men faced a firing squad of two tiers, one standing and one kneeling, while they sat in chairs facing the other way. Twenty witnesses were present including a doctor and priest. The squad failed to do their job, only killing one sentenced man immediately. It was a gruesome scene with Galeazzo dying last.
Much of the rest of the book dealt with:
Edda trying to use the diaries for revenge and her future financial security;
the American government, through future CIA initial director Allen Dulles, and the Chicago Daily News, buying the journals with the understanding that the U.S. government would decide what would be published during the war;
Hilde living with her mother to transcribe the journals the German government secured so the German version could be presented to Hitler who quickly destroyed them before killing himself;
And Mussolini’s attempt not to anger Hitler and be killed. Ironically, it was Italian citizens who captured Mussolini and his wife in a small village in Northern Italy, lined up his mistress and the dictator against a wall and brought them to death by a citizen’s firing squad; they were then taken to town center and their lifeless bodies were hung up for all to see and history to record. Two days later, Hitler committed suicide.
The book ended with a few more surprises. The diaries, as expected, were used against some of the Nazi’s top leadership. Edda was brought back to Italy and tired but just had to serve two years on the small island of Lipari where she found her future husband and then was reunited with her kids. The journals were published in the Chicago Daily News on June 25, 1945, but then released as a New York Times best seller the following year. Perhaps most surprising is that Hilde had hidden the transcripts that were being translated for Hitler, risking her own life to stand up for the Allies. She later became a Nazi hunter for the CIA.
This book is worth the read, even if it were fiction. But the point that it is rich history, well documented and presented makes it even a rarer find. It’s usually difficult to read a book when all the characters are so flawed and unlikable, but this book passes that test. Mazzeo presents a small, important portion of history in a thrilling way.
The author speaks about the conflict within the Mussolini’s family over the entry into WWII with Benito taking sides with Nazi Germany in hopes of expanding their nation in the spoils of war. His son-in-law, Galeazzo Ciano, had been Italian Consul by his father-in-law, kept diaries of the inner working of the two fascist governments, recording damaging history since 1937 to both his father-in-law and Hitler’s hatchet men. But Ciano joined the Fascist Grand Council majority and turned on his father-in-law in a vote for new leadership when the King had enough and decided to exercise his power to get out of a losing war. This book centered on saving those diaries that would be used at the Nuremberg Trials and how women who were all flawed worked to save the life of a man who was flawed by convincing another man who was faulty to act to save the father of his own grandchildren.
Mazzeo captures the movements of three women who worked together despite one being the mistress of the other’s husband while sharing with her readers the politics of neutral Switzerland, the way the United States was looking beyond the war to use media companies to help to save important documents and reminds readers just how vicious Nazi SS and Hitler was to everyone in their way. In her preview of the book, Mazzeo rightfully says: “…most history, including the history of the human heart, takes place in the shades of gray and among the shadows.” That is certainly true with this complex story. She further said that “…this is a story of courage. It is the story of how people who, finding themselves on the wrong path in the middle of their life’s journey, discover the courage of change and to wrestle with the darkness and with the reckoning that follows.”
When Mussolini was knocked out of government, the conditions in Rome declined far quicker than anyone would imagine. The former dictator was the most hated man in Italy and tried to escape to the nearest nation – the Vatican – and was surprised when he was refused entrance. His daughter and son-in-law applied for passports to escape through Spain to South America; he instantly started working with his bankers to move his money. Mussolini’s oldest son, Vittorio, looked to flee to Germany. Galeazzo was under police surveillance, his father-in-law arrested, fellow citizens celebrating the downfall of the powerful family, and then witnessed the press turn against him, making an argument for his arrest. The new Badoglio government had a hit list, and this famous family was high on the list to settle old scores.
Enter the journals. Hitler did not want Ciano’s diaries to reach the allies so the couple had something they could use to bargain their safety. They hid the diaries and tried to bargain with the German government while agents started to look for the hidden, damaging papers. Hitler also turned-on Italy when the new government secretly tried to negotiate an armistice with the Allies. The Germans instituted a ruthless occupation and replaced Galeazzo with a puppet government lead by Mussolini after they freed him from the Alpine property where he was being held before being put on trial.
The story got more complicated, but Mazzeo did an excellent job allowing the reader to understand what was happening, especially since there were so many involved in the plot to free Mussolini’s daughter, son-in-law, and young family. The plot included a talented Nazi spy, Hilde Beetz, who fell in love with Ciano, a true lady’s man. Hilde was complex character, a woman who was trying to prove herself to the Nazi’s, who was in love with her young husband who was serving on the Russian front, and who fell in love with her target yet, later, forged an unusual friendship with his wife.
While trying to use Ciano’s diaries to provide their freedom, those who turned on Mussolini’s government, including – possibly especially – Ciano were brought up on charges. Mussolini’s son-in-law was the focus of incredible anger by Italians with chants from the political gathering, “Death to Ciano.” It put pressure on a weakened Mussolini to save his son-in-law while allowing others to be found guilty in a show trial and killed. While being held in prison, Ciano had an affair with the young Nazi spy while writing touching letters to his wife. Edda was receiving his letters while their children were being held with her at a clinic. But, saving her children from harm, Edda worked out a way to get their children to go across barbed wife to Switzerland while ordering extra meals and talking to herself while her kids escaped. They did not tell the Swiss government that the children were Mussolini’s grandkids for the neutral government would not take the chance. Instead, the Swiss government had to hide the kids, so Germany did not learn they were part of a decision that showed anything except neutrality. Later Edda also slipped through the boarder and the Swiss government had even more of a problem.
The book shares the correspondence that Edda wrote directly to Hitler and to her father, asking that Galeazzo’s life be spared. Mussolini delayed his trial as the relationship between Galeazzo and Hilde continued to grow with the Nazi spy repeatedly showing her relationship with the enemy of Germany. Ten days later, Galeazzo and five other men who voted against Mussolini were tried for treason, five condemned to death; Galeazzo was not the one spared. Death by firing squad was scheduled for the following day. Panicky attempts to secure a last-minute commutation for Galeazzo. The night before the planned execution, Hilde gave him a vial of poison. He took it but it only made him sick, failing to kill him. That night, no one slept, including Mussolini, who was bothered by a letter that his favorite daughter wrote to him threatening revenge if he took the father of his grandchildren. But the next morning, Mussolini put his relationship with Hitler above that of his daughter and grandchildren, allowing his son-in-law to be taken to death. The five men faced a firing squad of two tiers, one standing and one kneeling, while they sat in chairs facing the other way. Twenty witnesses were present including a doctor and priest. The squad failed to do their job, only killing one sentenced man immediately. It was a gruesome scene with Galeazzo dying last.
Much of the rest of the book dealt with:
Edda trying to use the diaries for revenge and her future financial security;
the American government, through future CIA initial director Allen Dulles, and the Chicago Daily News, buying the journals with the understanding that the U.S. government would decide what would be published during the war;
Hilde living with her mother to transcribe the journals the German government secured so the German version could be presented to Hitler who quickly destroyed them before killing himself;
And Mussolini’s attempt not to anger Hitler and be killed. Ironically, it was Italian citizens who captured Mussolini and his wife in a small village in Northern Italy, lined up his mistress and the dictator against a wall and brought them to death by a citizen’s firing squad; they were then taken to town center and their lifeless bodies were hung up for all to see and history to record. Two days later, Hitler committed suicide.
The book ended with a few more surprises. The diaries, as expected, were used against some of the Nazi’s top leadership. Edda was brought back to Italy and tired but just had to serve two years on the small island of Lipari where she found her future husband and then was reunited with her kids. The journals were published in the Chicago Daily News on June 25, 1945, but then released as a New York Times best seller the following year. Perhaps most surprising is that Hilde had hidden the transcripts that were being translated for Hitler, risking her own life to stand up for the Allies. She later became a Nazi hunter for the CIA.
This book is worth the read, even if it were fiction. But the point that it is rich history, well documented and presented makes it even a rarer find. It’s usually difficult to read a book when all the characters are so flawed and unlikable, but this book passes that test. Mazzeo presents a small, important portion of history in a thrilling way.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 21, 2022
A true story as good or better than a fictional spy novel. These women were never recorded in history or recognized for their role against the Nazis. They were beyond courageous, smart, daring and key to information used against Nazis leaders in the Nuremburg Trials. I note this author has written other books about forgotten women in history.
April 21, 2022
Sisters in Resistance by Tilar J Mazzeo is that splendid mix of history and narrative that both entertains and informs.
As she states early in the book, this is not a story about heroes, these people largely had personal rather than humanistic or even redemptive motivation. That doesn't make the story any less compelling nor the value of their actions any lower.
Because the story involves people from several governments as well as acquaintances, there is a bit of information that has to be given in order to make this into a narrative rather than a brain dump. Part of that entails some repetition, since we may well need a piece of information we learned while immersed in the part of the story that involved many of the Italians but now we are immersed in a bunch of Americans and their objectives. So to make sure we have all the pieces of each puzzle (and this is not a story about one simple puzzle) we are reminded of things we learned in one context so we can apply it in this new context. Technically, yes, that is repetition, but the kind that is essential to any storytelling, fiction or nonfiction.
This is a propulsive read, in part due to relatively short chapters and each of them separated into sections, but also because there is so much intrigue. Even knowing how it will turn out (the case with nonfiction) we are anxious for these people when they are trying to make deals, or trick each other. Are there many truly likable people here? Not really. But we can, on some level, understand their motivations. Couple this personal level of narrative with the larger historical aspect of what was at stake and, as readers in the 21st century know, the value of the diaries.
I didn't have any real complaints about the book, it managed to keep quite a few people and a lot of information organized for the reader while also providing a compelling narrative. Does it read like a spy thriller? Well, duh, it is a spy thriller, a real life one. Maybe we want our true stories to be more boring and only movies and fiction book to be exciting and dramatic. No, we aren't that jaded yet, are we?
I would recommend this to history buffs who have an interest in World War II period intrigue as well as those who enjoy spy novels and want to read some true stories as well.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
As she states early in the book, this is not a story about heroes, these people largely had personal rather than humanistic or even redemptive motivation. That doesn't make the story any less compelling nor the value of their actions any lower.
Because the story involves people from several governments as well as acquaintances, there is a bit of information that has to be given in order to make this into a narrative rather than a brain dump. Part of that entails some repetition, since we may well need a piece of information we learned while immersed in the part of the story that involved many of the Italians but now we are immersed in a bunch of Americans and their objectives. So to make sure we have all the pieces of each puzzle (and this is not a story about one simple puzzle) we are reminded of things we learned in one context so we can apply it in this new context. Technically, yes, that is repetition, but the kind that is essential to any storytelling, fiction or nonfiction.
This is a propulsive read, in part due to relatively short chapters and each of them separated into sections, but also because there is so much intrigue. Even knowing how it will turn out (the case with nonfiction) we are anxious for these people when they are trying to make deals, or trick each other. Are there many truly likable people here? Not really. But we can, on some level, understand their motivations. Couple this personal level of narrative with the larger historical aspect of what was at stake and, as readers in the 21st century know, the value of the diaries.
I didn't have any real complaints about the book, it managed to keep quite a few people and a lot of information organized for the reader while also providing a compelling narrative. Does it read like a spy thriller? Well, duh, it is a spy thriller, a real life one. Maybe we want our true stories to be more boring and only movies and fiction book to be exciting and dramatic. No, we aren't that jaded yet, are we?
I would recommend this to history buffs who have an interest in World War II period intrigue as well as those who enjoy spy novels and want to read some true stories as well.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
September 9, 2023
I follow Tilar J Mazzeo and like her books. She teaches creative nonfiction at a college. She is definitely all about research and putting facts together to form a historical accounting of lesser-known but key stories or people. There are a lot of characters, people and stories to track. It is a factual accounting of intelligence plots surrounding Mussolini's daughter, her husband Galeazzo Ciano, his lover, a double-crossing German spy, and a mad search for Ciano's diaries which comprise three suitcases and would be extremely damaging to the Germans. The book has value to those with an interest in Italy's participation in WWII in documenting an interesting episode.
July 19, 2023
Today's nonfiction post is on Sisters in Resistance: How a German Spy, a Banker's Wife, and Mussolini's Daughter Outwitted the Nazis by Tilar J. Mazzeo. It is 336 pages long and is published by Grand Central Publishing. The cover is a group of pictures of the three women. The intended reader is someone who is interested in World War 2 history and women's history. There is no foul language, no sex, and no violence. There Be Spoilers Ahead.
From the back of the book- In 1944, news of secret diaries kept by Italy's Foreign Minister, Galeazzo Ciano, had permeated public consciousness. What wasn't reported, however, was how three women—a Fascist's daughter, a German spy, and an American banker’s wife—risked their lives to ensure the diaries would reach the Allies, who would later use them as evidence against the Nazis at Nuremberg.
In 1944, Benito Mussolini's daughter, Edda, gave Hitler and her father an ultimatum: release her husband, Galeazzo Ciano, from prison, or risk her leaking her husband's journals to the press. To avoid the peril of exposing Nazi lies, Hitler and Mussolini hunted for the diaries for months, determined to destroy them.
Hilde Beetz, a German spy, was deployed to seduce Ciano to learn the diaries' location and take them from Edda. As the seducer became the seduced, Hilde converted as a double agent, joining forces with Edda to save Ciano from execution. When this failed, Edda fled to Switzerland with Hilde’s daring assistance to keep Ciano's final wish: to see the diaries published for use by the Allies. When American spymaster Allen Dulles learned of Edda's escape, he sent in Frances De Chollet, an “accidental” spy, telling her to find Edda, gain her trust, and, crucially, hand the diaries over to the Americans. Together, they succeeded in preserving one of the most important documents of WWII.
Drawing from in‑depth research and first-person interviews with people who witnessed these events, Mazzeo gives readers a riveting look into this little‑known moment in history and shows how, without Edda, Hilde, and Frances's involvement, certain convictions at Nuremberg would never have been possible.
Review- A very interesting look into three women who fought to protect the journals of Galeazzo Ciano and all the history within them. After his death Germany wanted his dairies to cover up what really happened in Italy. A good drive into what was going on inside the family of Mussolini-Ciano, from the affairs, the fights, and the politics. Ciano was a charming man and that charm was what helped his journals survive the war. The real heart of the story is women who worked so hard to safe them and everything they endured to make the dairies public. The book covers the whole scope of the war but most of the action is toward the end of war. The reader will learn a lot of about Edda and her life before, during, and after the war. She was a very interesting person and I enjoyed learning about her. I would recommend this book.
I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this from my local library.
From the back of the book- In 1944, news of secret diaries kept by Italy's Foreign Minister, Galeazzo Ciano, had permeated public consciousness. What wasn't reported, however, was how three women—a Fascist's daughter, a German spy, and an American banker’s wife—risked their lives to ensure the diaries would reach the Allies, who would later use them as evidence against the Nazis at Nuremberg.
In 1944, Benito Mussolini's daughter, Edda, gave Hitler and her father an ultimatum: release her husband, Galeazzo Ciano, from prison, or risk her leaking her husband's journals to the press. To avoid the peril of exposing Nazi lies, Hitler and Mussolini hunted for the diaries for months, determined to destroy them.
Hilde Beetz, a German spy, was deployed to seduce Ciano to learn the diaries' location and take them from Edda. As the seducer became the seduced, Hilde converted as a double agent, joining forces with Edda to save Ciano from execution. When this failed, Edda fled to Switzerland with Hilde’s daring assistance to keep Ciano's final wish: to see the diaries published for use by the Allies. When American spymaster Allen Dulles learned of Edda's escape, he sent in Frances De Chollet, an “accidental” spy, telling her to find Edda, gain her trust, and, crucially, hand the diaries over to the Americans. Together, they succeeded in preserving one of the most important documents of WWII.
Drawing from in‑depth research and first-person interviews with people who witnessed these events, Mazzeo gives readers a riveting look into this little‑known moment in history and shows how, without Edda, Hilde, and Frances's involvement, certain convictions at Nuremberg would never have been possible.
Review- A very interesting look into three women who fought to protect the journals of Galeazzo Ciano and all the history within them. After his death Germany wanted his dairies to cover up what really happened in Italy. A good drive into what was going on inside the family of Mussolini-Ciano, from the affairs, the fights, and the politics. Ciano was a charming man and that charm was what helped his journals survive the war. The real heart of the story is women who worked so hard to safe them and everything they endured to make the dairies public. The book covers the whole scope of the war but most of the action is toward the end of war. The reader will learn a lot of about Edda and her life before, during, and after the war. She was a very interesting person and I enjoyed learning about her. I would recommend this book.
I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this from my local library.
August 15, 2022
Having read Mazzeo’s “Irena’s Children” and “The Hotel on the Place Vendome”, I was drawn to her newest historical record of “one of the Second World War’s greatest rescue missions”. In this complex and engaging text, the author presented an account of the incredible mission to deliver to the Allies the diaries of the former Italian foreign minister and now imprisoned Galeazzo Ciano. Ciano was ultimately executed by the Italian Fascists, his wife having promised him that his extensive diaries would be rescued and delivered. These documents would incriminate the Nazis for their war crimes in future trials, particularly Ribbentrop, and highlight Mussolini’s dictatorial activity in bringing Italy onto the side of the Axis powers during the war.
The location of the diaries was unknown to anyone except Ciano’s widow, Edda, who incredibly was the eldest daughter of Mussolini. If her attempts failed to have her husband released, she threatened to deliver the documents to the Allies. Thus began the dangerous liaisons and associations with those who could possibly help Edda secure the diaries and escape the efforts of Mussolini and Hitler to capture her and destroy them. What followed was more of a James Bond-like spy thriller, highly complicated and somewhat confusing, as I tried to navigate through the escapes across borders, the involvement of Nazi spies, double agents, American intelligence officers, and threats to Edda and her children.
The most intriguing aspect of the account was the involvement of the three women in accomplishing this incredible mission: Hilde Beetz, the German spy; Edda Ciano; and American socialite Frances de Chollet. Despite the mission being largely ignored in historical records, Mazzeo certainly enlightened readers as to the astounding collaboration and friendship among the women, which resulted in the preservation of these significant documents. So complicated to follow the trail, but a worthwhile read nonetheless.
The location of the diaries was unknown to anyone except Ciano’s widow, Edda, who incredibly was the eldest daughter of Mussolini. If her attempts failed to have her husband released, she threatened to deliver the documents to the Allies. Thus began the dangerous liaisons and associations with those who could possibly help Edda secure the diaries and escape the efforts of Mussolini and Hitler to capture her and destroy them. What followed was more of a James Bond-like spy thriller, highly complicated and somewhat confusing, as I tried to navigate through the escapes across borders, the involvement of Nazi spies, double agents, American intelligence officers, and threats to Edda and her children.
The most intriguing aspect of the account was the involvement of the three women in accomplishing this incredible mission: Hilde Beetz, the German spy; Edda Ciano; and American socialite Frances de Chollet. Despite the mission being largely ignored in historical records, Mazzeo certainly enlightened readers as to the astounding collaboration and friendship among the women, which resulted in the preservation of these significant documents. So complicated to follow the trail, but a worthwhile read nonetheless.
January 15, 2023
An actual account of heart pounding heroism during WWII, this tale of three remarkable young women who rose to a unique challenge is very readable. It will linger long after the last page. The protagonists of the title are not sisters at all, but rather young women bound together by the risks they undertook to accomplish the near impossible!
The book, rich in fascinating detail, begins with a very helpful chapter which lists and identifies the cast of characters. Italy, during the war with full blown Fascism raging, was the setting. One of the three who inspired the title, Edda Mussolini Ciano, was Mussolini’s favorite daughter. The other two principals were a beguiling German spy turned double agent and a banker’s wife. Each was flawed, and yet their combined determination to accomplish the mission was awe inspiring. Edda’s husband, Galeazzo Ciano, was Mussolini’s foreign minister. Horrified by what he witnessed both in Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, he resolved to keep detailed diaries. As the war raged on, Galeazzo eventually lost his life. An urgency soon emerged to preserve the diaries and see them safely turned over to the Americans and the war-crimes tribunals at Nurenberg. The Nazis were fully aware of the diaries and were fiercely determined to take possession to destroy them. The sisters of the title accomplished the near impossible, and their sacrifices proved worthwhile indeed, as the damning evidence proved key in bringing some of the key war criminals to justice.
Her memory is commemorated by a bench in New York City’s Central Park. Upon it is inscribed a quote from Washington Irving:
‘There is in every true woman’s heart a spark of heavenly fire, which lies dormant in the broad daylight of prosperity but which kindles up and beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity’.
Five stars 11/4/2022
The book, rich in fascinating detail, begins with a very helpful chapter which lists and identifies the cast of characters. Italy, during the war with full blown Fascism raging, was the setting. One of the three who inspired the title, Edda Mussolini Ciano, was Mussolini’s favorite daughter. The other two principals were a beguiling German spy turned double agent and a banker’s wife. Each was flawed, and yet their combined determination to accomplish the mission was awe inspiring. Edda’s husband, Galeazzo Ciano, was Mussolini’s foreign minister. Horrified by what he witnessed both in Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, he resolved to keep detailed diaries. As the war raged on, Galeazzo eventually lost his life. An urgency soon emerged to preserve the diaries and see them safely turned over to the Americans and the war-crimes tribunals at Nurenberg. The Nazis were fully aware of the diaries and were fiercely determined to take possession to destroy them. The sisters of the title accomplished the near impossible, and their sacrifices proved worthwhile indeed, as the damning evidence proved key in bringing some of the key war criminals to justice.
Her memory is commemorated by a bench in New York City’s Central Park. Upon it is inscribed a quote from Washington Irving:
‘There is in every true woman’s heart a spark of heavenly fire, which lies dormant in the broad daylight of prosperity but which kindles up and beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity’.
Five stars 11/4/2022
January 11, 2024
#bookreview “Mulheres na Resistência"by Tilar J. Mazzeo translated by Asa with 320 pages and the genre is history, literature, romance and history in general
Este livro oferece uma perspectiva séria e intrigante sobre um episódio da Segunda Guerra Mundial, centrado nos diários do genro de Mussolini, Conde Galezzo Ciano.
De 1937 a 1943, Ciano registrou eventos cruciais, conversas e documentos sensíveis que provocaram uma busca internacional.
Este relato revela a caçada internacional pelos diários e explora seu conteúdo explosivo, fornecendo respostas sobre as intenções nazistas e chantagear simultâneamente Mussolini e Hitler.
"Mulheres da Resistência" de Tiler J. Mazzeo revela o papel vital de três mulheres na preservação desses diários, essenciais nos julgamentos de Nuremberg.
A história, escrita de forma equilibrada, não idealiza os personagens, destacando as suas falhas como seres imperfeitos envolvidos em uma missão complexa e arriscada revelando uma complexa jornada de redenção e coragem diante só fascismo.
A narrativa, apesar de envolvente, tenda a ter um estilo de um thriller de espionagem, apresentando alguma repetição e melodrama, ainda assim, recomendo esta leitura a todos como uma experiência valiosa e enriquecedora sobre coragem, mudança e confronto com a escuridão histórica, apesar de algumas limitações. 📖
*
Já foram dar oportunidade a este livro incrível ✨ se sim digam-me tudo, gostaram ou não gostaram?
Opinião: 5 ⭐️
*
*
#ebookreview #bookstagram #mulheresnaresistência #woman #mulher #books #book #indicaçãodelivros #livros #explore #explorar #editoraasabook #tilarjmazzeo
(Agora é o momento de avançar para a próxima leitura 😁)
__________________
@biblioteca.da.ana
Este livro oferece uma perspectiva séria e intrigante sobre um episódio da Segunda Guerra Mundial, centrado nos diários do genro de Mussolini, Conde Galezzo Ciano.
De 1937 a 1943, Ciano registrou eventos cruciais, conversas e documentos sensíveis que provocaram uma busca internacional.
Este relato revela a caçada internacional pelos diários e explora seu conteúdo explosivo, fornecendo respostas sobre as intenções nazistas e chantagear simultâneamente Mussolini e Hitler.
"Mulheres da Resistência" de Tiler J. Mazzeo revela o papel vital de três mulheres na preservação desses diários, essenciais nos julgamentos de Nuremberg.
A história, escrita de forma equilibrada, não idealiza os personagens, destacando as suas falhas como seres imperfeitos envolvidos em uma missão complexa e arriscada revelando uma complexa jornada de redenção e coragem diante só fascismo.
A narrativa, apesar de envolvente, tenda a ter um estilo de um thriller de espionagem, apresentando alguma repetição e melodrama, ainda assim, recomendo esta leitura a todos como uma experiência valiosa e enriquecedora sobre coragem, mudança e confronto com a escuridão histórica, apesar de algumas limitações. 📖
*
Já foram dar oportunidade a este livro incrível ✨ se sim digam-me tudo, gostaram ou não gostaram?
Opinião: 5 ⭐️
*
*
#ebookreview #bookstagram #mulheresnaresistência #woman #mulher #books #book #indicaçãodelivros #livros #explore #explorar #editoraasabook #tilarjmazzeo
(Agora é o momento de avançar para a próxima leitura 😁)
__________________
@biblioteca.da.ana
July 10, 2022
In 1944, news of secret diaries kept by Italy's Foreign Minister, Galeazzo Ciano, had permeated public consciousness. What wasn't reported, however, was how three women—a Fascist's daughter, a German spy, and an American banker’s wife—risked their lives to ensure the diaries would reach the Allies, who would later use them as evidence against the Nazis at Nuremberg.
In 1944, Benito Mussolini's daughter, Edda, gave Hitler and her father an ultimatum: release her husband, Galeazzo Ciano, from prison, or risk her leaking her husband's journals to the press. To avoid the peril of exposing Nazi lies, Hitler and Mussolini hunted for the diaries for months, determined to destroy them.
Hilde Beetz, a German spy, was deployed to seduce Ciano to learn the diaries' location and take them from Edda. As the seducer became the seduced, Hilde converted as a double agent, joining forces with Edda to save Ciano from execution. When this failed, Edda fled to Switzerland with Hilde’s daring assistance to keep Ciano's final wish: to see the diaries published for use by the Allies. When American spymaster Allen Dulles learned of Edda's escape, he sent in Frances De Chollet, an “accidental” spy, telling her to find Edda, gain her trust, and, crucially, hand the diaries over to the Americans. Together, they succeeded in preserving one of the most important documents of WWII.
Drawing from in‑depth research and first-person interviews with people who witnessed these events, Mazzeo gives readers a riveting look into this little‑known moment in history and shows how, without Edda, Hilde, and Frances's involvement, certain convictions at Nuremberg would never have been possible.
In 1944, Benito Mussolini's daughter, Edda, gave Hitler and her father an ultimatum: release her husband, Galeazzo Ciano, from prison, or risk her leaking her husband's journals to the press. To avoid the peril of exposing Nazi lies, Hitler and Mussolini hunted for the diaries for months, determined to destroy them.
Hilde Beetz, a German spy, was deployed to seduce Ciano to learn the diaries' location and take them from Edda. As the seducer became the seduced, Hilde converted as a double agent, joining forces with Edda to save Ciano from execution. When this failed, Edda fled to Switzerland with Hilde’s daring assistance to keep Ciano's final wish: to see the diaries published for use by the Allies. When American spymaster Allen Dulles learned of Edda's escape, he sent in Frances De Chollet, an “accidental” spy, telling her to find Edda, gain her trust, and, crucially, hand the diaries over to the Americans. Together, they succeeded in preserving one of the most important documents of WWII.
Drawing from in‑depth research and first-person interviews with people who witnessed these events, Mazzeo gives readers a riveting look into this little‑known moment in history and shows how, without Edda, Hilde, and Frances's involvement, certain convictions at Nuremberg would never have been possible.
May 3, 2024
I really liked it as audiobook storytelling. The audio talent at 1.2x speed had the right flare for the drama, and I enjoyed her Italian and German accents. I suspect I wouldn’t have enjoyed it as much reading it as a book. I have more tolerance for a little melodrama or repetition when it’s delivered by good audio talent.
The title is terrible. These fascist women were not in the Resistance and as pointed out in the prologue, this isn’t a heartwarming story of moral people doing the right thing for the right reasons. Their reasons were more lowbrow - love, revenge, self-serving leverage, etc.
But it is a pretty fascinating story of how these women were the protagonists in the intrigue, spy and life-and-death drama story of harboring and transporting the Ciano diaries that were eventually impactful for bringing Nazis in Nuremberg to justice. The author does a great job of setting the scenes and created strong images of the big dramatic moments. I feel like I watched it as a movie vs. only an audiobook.
The book sticks pretty close to the primary narrative arc. Any broader context is in direct service to how it might be impacting the primary actors vs. some histories I’ve read recently that use a historical story as jumping off point to explore broader themes. Which is fine, I like both approaches. This approach does make for tighter dramatic tension. It’s probably also a good storytelling decision because on a broader scale, most of the characters are terrible humans. Even if she’s not directly “political” per se, Edda was still pals with Hitler for goodness sake.
All in, good entertainment.
The title is terrible. These fascist women were not in the Resistance and as pointed out in the prologue, this isn’t a heartwarming story of moral people doing the right thing for the right reasons. Their reasons were more lowbrow - love, revenge, self-serving leverage, etc.
But it is a pretty fascinating story of how these women were the protagonists in the intrigue, spy and life-and-death drama story of harboring and transporting the Ciano diaries that were eventually impactful for bringing Nazis in Nuremberg to justice. The author does a great job of setting the scenes and created strong images of the big dramatic moments. I feel like I watched it as a movie vs. only an audiobook.
The book sticks pretty close to the primary narrative arc. Any broader context is in direct service to how it might be impacting the primary actors vs. some histories I’ve read recently that use a historical story as jumping off point to explore broader themes. Which is fine, I like both approaches. This approach does make for tighter dramatic tension. It’s probably also a good storytelling decision because on a broader scale, most of the characters are terrible humans. Even if she’s not directly “political” per se, Edda was still pals with Hitler for goodness sake.
All in, good entertainment.
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