Ratline: Love, Lies and Justice on the Trail of a Nazi Fugitive

‘Hypnotic, shocking and unputdownable’ JOHN LE CARRE
‘Remarkable’ THE SUNDAY TIMES
‘Breathtaking, gripping, shattering’ ELIF SHAFAK
‘A taut and finely crafted factual thriller’ OBSERVER
‘A triumph of research and brilliant storytelling’ ANTONY BEEVOR
‘Extraordinary’ EVENING STANDARD

In this riveting real-life thriller, Philippe Sands offers a unique account of the daily life of senior Nazi SS Brigadefuhrer Otto Freiherr von Wachter and his wife, Charlotte. Drawing on a remarkable archive of family letters and diaries, he unveils a fascinating insight into life before and during the war, as a fugitive on the run in the Alps and then in Rome, and into the Cold War. Eventually the door is unlocked to a mystery that haunts Wachter’s youngest son, who continues to believe his father was a good man – what happened to Otto Wachter while he was preparing to travel to Argentina on the ‘ratline’, assisted by a Vatican bishop, and what was the explanation for his sudden and unexpected death?

Format: Paperback
Pages: 432
Imprint: Weidenfeld and Nicholson UK
Publication date: 29/04/2021