Italy, November 1944. The "forgotten front" of the European war has the Allies bogged down in mud, snow and ice before the formidable Nazi Gothic Line north of Florence, and Italian natives are desperate. Advancing steadily towards Italy are the forces of Tito and Stalin. The author uses actual accounts in the form of previously unpublished G.I. letters, wartime journals and other historical sources to tell the story of the military, political and espionage efforts by the Western Allies that culminated in the early surrender of Axis forces in all of Italy on May 2, 1945.