The Secret Rescue: An Untold Story of American Nurses and Medics Behind Nazi Lines

"THE SECRET RESCUE combines all of the elements that draw us to WWII stories: the daring of The Guns of Navarone, the suspense of The Great Escape, and the bravery reminiscent of Ill Met by Moonlight. It's the inclusion of so many women, though, that makes this story unique.'' -- Daily Beast

When 26 Army Air Force flight nurses and medics boarded a military transport plane in November 1943 on a mission to evacuate wounded and sick troops, they didn't anticipate a crash landing in Nazi territory.

Emerging from their battered aircraft, the Americans found themselves in Albania, a country rife with chaos and danger. With hunger and sickness as their constant companions, they hid at night with courageous villagers who shared what little food they had and risked death at Nazi hands to help them.

This mesmerizing account of the courage and bravery of ordinary people reveals for the first time an astonishing true story of heroic struggle and endurance.

“"The Secret Rescue is narrative history at its best. Cate Lineberry uncovers a fascinating, long-forgotten drama that captured the world's attention during the darkest days of World War II and transforms it into a gripping story of courage under fire." -- Daniel Stashower, author of The Hour of Peril: The Secret Plot to Murder Lincoln Before the Civil War”

"Meticulously recounted by Lineberry. Survivalists and history buffs will relish the daily escapades of this heroic American contingent." -- Publishers Weekly

"American nurses and medics, trapped behind enemy lines, hungry and haggard, dodging Nazis, hope dimming as winter gains strength. In Cate Lineberry's gifted hands, the true story of The Secret Rescue is a gripping and suspenseful tale, alive with rich details that carry readers along every step of this remarkable journey." -- Mitchell Zuckoff, author of Lost in Shangri-La and Frozen in Time

"Cate Lineberry has written a touching, thrilling, completely engrossing story of great courage under harrowing circumstances. This is a World War II story that few people have ever heard, but, after reading this book, no one will forget." -- Candice Millard, author of The River of Doubt and Destiny of the Republic

"Cate Lineberry has unearthed a little-known episode of World War II that has all the elements of a classic escape adventure. Carefully researched and compellingly told, The Secret Rescue is a suspenseful story of courage, audacity, and endurance behind enemy lines. I couldn't stop reading it." -- Gary Krist, author of City of Scoundrels

"The book combines all of the elements that draw us to WWII stories: the daring of The Guns of Navarone, the suspense of The Great Escape, and the bravery reminiscent of Ill Met by Moonlight. It's the inclusion of so many women, though, that makes this story unique." -- The Daily Beast

"A page turner." -- Medford Mail Tribune

"An impressive feat of history." -- Johns Hopkins Magazine

"The author crisply recounts the harrowing escape of 26 Army medics and nurses who crash-land in Nazi-occupied Albania in 1943 and struggle to survive a brutal winter." -- AARP The Magazine

Cate Lineberry is a former staff writer and Europe editor for National Geographic and the web editor of Smithsonian, and her work has appeared in the New York Times. She lives in the greater Washington, DC, area.

"THE SECRET RESCUE combines all of the elements that draw us to WWII stories: the daring of The Guns of Navarone, the suspense of The Great Escape, and the bravery reminiscent of Ill Met by Moonlight. It's the inclusion of so many women, though, that makes this story unique.'' -- Daily Beast When 26 Army Air Force flight nurses and medics boarded a military transport plane in November 1943 on a mission to evacuate wounded and sick troops, they didn't anticipate a crash landing in Nazi territory.Emerging from their battered aircraft, the Americans found themselves in Albania, a country rife with chaos and danger. With hunger and sickness as their constant companions, they hid at night with courageous villagers who shared what little food they had and risked death at Nazi hands to help them.This mesmerizing account of the courage and bravery of ordinary people reveals for the first time an astonishing true story of heroic struggle and endurance.

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