Blood Is Thicker Than War : Brothers and Sisters on the Front Lines

From the author of Triage and Searching for Augusta, comes a history of love, hate, jealousy, and revenge between brothers and sisters during times of war through the ages.

Journey back through time to discover remarkable accounts of parents who waved off their sons and daughters, never knowing if they would ever see them again. One mother saw no less than ten of her sons between the ages of eighteen and thirty-seven, dispatched to the frontline in the First World War. The biggest “real” band of brothers that ever served their country, but to discover how many made it back and who this dear lady was, you will have to read the rest. War is completely indiscriminate when it comes to inflicting suffering and heartbreak on families, particularly when one’s own blood takes up arms to fight with, and in some cases against their own kin. These stories recount some of the prime examples of families divided and united in some of the direst conflict.

When British police discovered the body of a dead woman, who locals knew as the “Crazy Cat Lady” they found a small bundle of possessions that revealed a truly incredible story of two amazing sisters who served behind enemy lines as elite Special Operations Agents (SOE) during World War II.

Martin King is an acclaimed Emmy Award–winning British historian and author of twelve published titles who has lived in mainland Europe since 1981. He speaks German, Dutch, Italian, Latin, and French. In frequent demand as a public speaker, he has lectured at many universities and schools along with British and US military bases throughout the world. In 2005, the History Channel hired Martin as their historical consultant on the acclaimed series Cities of the Underworld, and in 2007 he became the historical consultant and writer on the hit series Greatest Tank Battles, which is still one of the most-watched military documentary series ever made. Shortly thereafter, he accepted an invitation to work as a presenter on an episode of the series Narrow Escapes with British Academy of Film Award (BAFTA)–winning documentary makers, WMR.

In 2014, Martin became the executive producer and appeared in the Emmy Award–winning documentary titled Searching for Augusta: The Forgotten Angel of Bastogne. The renowned documentary is currently being screened across America on PBS and Netflix.

He has been received at the Pentagon, West Point Military Academy, Valley Forge, and the US Embassy in Brussels. His campaign work for World War II veterans recently led to the US military personnel who presented him with a “Services to Education” certificate at Joint Base USAF Fort McGuire-Lakehurst-Dix in New Jersey. The local municipality recently made Martin an honorary citizen for his work with war veterans and elected him as a “European Cultural Ambassador.”

Michael Collins is a military historian and author who has co-written several books with Martin King, including Voices of the Bulge, The Tigers of Bastogne, The Fighting 30th Division, To War with the 4th, Warriors of the 106th, and Lost Voices: The Untold Stories of America’s World War I Veterans and their Families. He also associate produced the Emmy Award–winning documentary Searching for Augusta: The Forgotten Angel of Bastogne. He specializes in twentieth-century history, specifically World War I and World War II. He lives in Western Massachusetts, and is widely renowned as a leading archivist and researcher.