From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Hanns and Rudolf - a gripping true story of unsolved murder, war, and injustice in Nazi-occupied Florence

'I absolutely devoured The Einstein Vendetta... Remarkable. Totally compelling' Edmund de Waal

'Can't express how moved I am. An absolute triumph. So much more than a mere book' Allan Little

'Thomas Harding is a researcher of the first rank' Daily Express

'Harding evokes time and place beautifully, while paying forensic attention to detail. The result is a slow burn of cliff-hangers to keep the pages turning’ Spectator

'The Einstein Vendetta will tug at your heartstrings and prompt righteous outrage. Harding captures beautifully the general atmosphere of wartime Tuscany' Telegraph
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Italy, Summer 1944

A unit of German soldiers arrives at a villa near Florence. Villa Il Focardo is home to Robert Einstein, cousin to the most famous scientist in the world, Albert Einstein – a prominent enemy of the Nazi regime. Having renounced his German citizenship a decade earlier, Albert’s safely in America, well beyond Hitler’s reach.

The same is not true for his cousin.

Twelve hours after arriving, the soldiers have vanished – and a family is dead. This crime – and what happened next – still haunts those who survived.

Who ordered it? Who was involved?

And why did they get away with it?

This is the untold story of the Einstein vendetta.