The Revolution Sagas Series

As the Nazis sweep across Europe, Jewish teen Max and his parents flee persecution in Germany for Holland, where Max finds friends and a life-altering romance. But when Hitler invades in 1940, Max escapes to Chicago, leaving his parents and friends behind. When he learns of his parents' deportation and murders, Max immediately enlists in the US Army. After basic training he is sent to Camp Ritchie, Maryland, where he is trained in interrogation and counterintelligence.   Deployed to the OSS, Max carries out dangerous missions in Occupied countries. He also interrogates scores of German POWs, especially after D-Day and the Battle of the Bulge, where, despite life-threatening conditions, he elicits critical information about German troop movements.   Post-war, he works for the Americans in the German denazification program, bringing him back to his Bavarian childhood home of Regensburg. Though the city avoided large-scale destruction, the Jewish community was decimated. Max roams familiar yet strange streets, replaying memories of lives lost to unspeakable tragedy. While there, however, he reunites with someone from his past, who, like him, sought refuge abroad. Can they rebuild their lives… together?   This epic story about a Ritchie Boy is Libby Hellmann's tribute to her late father-in-law who was active with the OSS and interrogated dozens of German POWs.

WS&B is a finalist for Foreword Magazine's 2017 INDIES Book of the Year Awards in the War/Military Category! WS&B won the IPPY Silver Medal in the War/Military Category in 2017. IPPY is the Independent Publisher Book Awards. WS&B was a finalist for the 2017 Chicago Writers Association Book of the Year award (Indie Fiction)   As World War II rages across Europe and the Pacific, its impact ripples through communities in the heartland of America. A farm girl is locked in a dangerous love triangle with two Germans soldiers held in an Illinois POW camp ... Another German, a war refugee, is forced to risk her life spying on the developing Manhattan Project in Chicago ... And espionage surrounds the disappearance of an actress from the thriving Jewish community of Chicago's Lawndale. In this trio of tales, acclaimed thriller author Libby Fischer Hellmann beautifully depicts the tumultuous effect of war on the home front and illustrates how the action, terror, and tragedy of World War II was not confined to the front lines.   Libby Fischer Hellman powerfully illustrates what individuals could have faced while living in such perilous times. This is an engaging read with much food for thought." Judi Gigstad, BookReporter   Fast-reading and well told, the three tales are intriguing, smoothly written and enjoyable. (5 Stars) Theodore Feit, Vine Voice   Libby Hellman has created the perfect novel traveling back to another time and place." Reviews by Teri   An entertaining and a thought-provoking read…The author's passion for the topic also shines throughout the book. Brian Johnson, Public Libraries Online   Libby Hellmann's prose is powerful. Every part of her WW II era yarns are methodically researched, taut, twist-filled and colorful with well developed supporting characters. A gripping performance.' Charles J. Masters, "Gliderman of Neptune, The American D-Day Glider Attack"   "Well-crafted and interesting…strong emotion and a sense of threat carry the story along." Historical Novel Society   "Libby Fischer Hellmann is one of the few authors who can surprise me nearly every time I pick up one of her books. Here, the surprise comes in her clear understanding of the World War II homefront, almost as though she had lived it herself." Buried Under Books, Lelia Taylor

In 1968 two young Vietnamese sisters flee to Saigon after their village on the Mekong River is attacked by American forces and burned to the ground. The sole survivors of the brutal massacre that killed their family, the sisters struggle to survive but become estranged, separated by sharply different choices and ideologies. Mai ekes out a living as a GI bar girl, but Tam's anger festers, and she heads into jungle terrain to fight with the Viet Cong. For nearly ten years, neither sister knows if the other is alive. Do they both survive the war? And if they do, can they mend their fractured relationship? Or are the wounds from their journeys too deep to heal? In a stunning departure from her crime thrillers, Libby Fischer Hellmann delves into a universal story about survival, family, and the consequences of war.      

A woman discovers her parents were not the people she thought they were. Who is she? And why is someone trying to kill her? Lila Hilliard returns home to Chicago for the holidays only to find someone is stalking her. Her father and brother are trapped in a fire, and she senses someone is following her. As she desperately tries to figure out who is after her and why, she uncovers information about her father's past that ties him to the volatile movement of young activists during the late Sixties. Which means her parents were not the people she was told they were. Who were her parents? And why was the secret kept from her? As Lila looks for answers, a man on a motorcycle slows, pulls out a a semi-automatic, and aims it at her. Suddenly a stranger darts out, pulls her to safety, then disappears. Who is this stranger? Is he Lila's stalker? The story then takes us back to the late Sixties in Chicago where 6 young people gathered during the Democratic Convention. Through their stories, the truth about Lila's family is gradually revealed, and the threat to Lila in the present becomes clear. (A plus: some of the scenes in the historical section are suddenly relevant again) Part thriller, part historical novel, part love story, Set The Night on Fire reveals the resolution to Lila's family secrets. It also tells an extraordinary tale about the stormy Chicago 1968 Democratic convention, SDS, the Black Panthers, women's issues, and a group of idealists who were sure they would change the world.

Anna & Nouri fall in love, move to Tehran, and marry. Four months later, the shah is deposed. Anna, a young American studying in Chicago falls in love with fellow-student Nouri, the son of a wealthy Iranian business executive. Anna, whose parents are divorced and remote, eagerly moves to Tehran where she marries and is embraced by Nouri's family. A few months later, however, in February 1978, the Shah is deposed and the Islamic Republic of Iran is formed. Life turns upside down for the couple as men, but especially women, are restricted in their activities, clothing, and behavior. Arrests and torture are frequent, education for women is prohibited, and Anna cannot travel without her husband's permission. Although she tries to conform to please her husband and new family, Anna chafes under the oppression, while Nouri seems to embrace it. Anna grows increasingly unhappy, and as events become more explosive, so does Nouri. Anna is desperate to return to America, but Nouri refuses to allow it. Tension builds until a shattering event changes everything and plunges Anna into a tumultuous—and dangerous—vortex, raising the possibility she will never leave Iran alive.

Honors and Accolades: — Finalist in Foreword Review Magazine's Thriller of the Year contest 2013 — "Notable Page-Turner" in Shelf Unbound Magazine's Book of the year — 2014 — Honorable Mention in Chicago Writers Association Best Fiction Book 2013 On the eve of the Cuban Revolution, headstrong 18-year-old Francesca Pacelli flees from her ruthless Mafia-boss father in Havana to the arms of her lover, a rebel fighting with Fidel Castro. Her father, desperate to send her to safety in the US, resorts to torture and blackmail as he searches the island for her.  So begins the first part of a spellbinding saga that spans three generations of the same family. Decades later, the family is lured back to Cuba by the promise of untold riches. But pursuing those riches brings danger as well as opportunity, and ultimately, Francesca's family must confront the lethal consequences of their choices. From the troubled streets of Havana to the mean streets of Chicago, HAVANA LOST reveals the true cost of chasing power instead of love.  HAVANA LOST is award-winning author Libby Fischer Hellmann's tenth novel and third thriller that explores how strife and revolution affect the human spirit. The novel is a testament to Hellmann's gift for authentic historical detail as well as her talent for writing compulsively readable thrillers. "A many-layered adventure…smart writing, done in accomplished style by an author who never talks down to her readers." Mystery Scene Magazine "A riveting historical thriller… This multigenerational page-turner is packed with intrigue and shocking plot twists."Booklist  "A sprawling tale… the story of the Cuban revolution, as well as the Cuban military efforts in Angola, is fascinating…" Publishers Weekly "Hellmann's writing has matured considerably since her early novels. Her plotting has become more solid and assured, her characters more realistic, her settings wonderfully described. This is a fine, extremely well told novel." Deadly Pleasures  "Masterfully crafted…Hellmann has a superb gift for the colorful depiction of her characters. I can't imagine any noir aficionado not enjoying Havana Lost. "A Literary Reeder