Author(s): Carlo D'Este

Military

Fatal Decision is a powerful, dramatic, moving, and ultimately definitive narrative of one of the most desperate campaigns of World War II by an author whose previous books on the Normandy and Sicily campaigns have been hailed as masterful. In the winter of 1943-44, Anzio was a small resort and port just south of Rome. But with Allied troops repelled at Monte Cassino, the plan was a surprise amphibious landing at Anzio on 22 January 1944, the destruction of the German supply line followed by the liberation of Rome, thirty five miles to the south. The reality was bad management, external meddling, poorly relayed orders and uncertain leadership. The result was carnage as the Anzio beachhead became a death trap, with Alied troops forced to fight for their lives for five dreadful months in a throwback to the trenches of WWI. The eventual victory was muted and bitter. Mixing flawless research, drama and combat with a brilliant narrative voice, Fatal Decision is one of the best histories ever written of a World War II military campaign.