BOOK COVER
BOOK DETAILS
Pub Date: June 2, 2026
Genre: Espionage Thriller
Publisher: Bancroft Press
Page Count: 348
Format: HC/eBook
ISBN: 9781610887113
Price: $27.99 HC/$7.99 ebook
ABOUT THE BOOK
“A taut and compelling example of World War II fiction and a fine historical thriller.”
—Alan Furst, New York Times bestselling author of Night Soldiers
In Miriam in the Shadows, award-winning author John Winn Miller delivers a heart-pounding World War II thriller that explores the cost of resistance, betrayal, and survival.
Spring 1944. The world is holding its breath.
While the Allies prepare to storm the beaches, the real threat lies deep inside a Nazi-occupied coal mine in northern France, where the Third Reich races to arm V-2 rockets with radioactive warheads.If they succeed, London burns, and D-Day is over before it begins.
Enter Miriam Maduro—a 26-year-old Jewish mother from Amsterdam, trained at the British Special Operations Executive’s “gangster school” to be a saboteur and silent killer. Captured and tortured by the Nazis, she escaped—twice—with the help of Jake Rogers, an American cargo ship captain with secrets of his own.
The SOE taps into Miriam’s survivor’s guilt and maternal instinct to coerce her into one final mission: infiltrate the concentration camp/rocket facility disguised as an engineer’s assistant and destroy it from within. Meanwhile, Jake’s story runs parallel—recruited by Naval Intelligence officer Ian Fleming, only to be betrayed by real-life MI6 villain Claude Dansey, who uses Jake as bait to sabotage Miriam’s mission and destroy the hated SOE from the inside. When Miriam discovers Jake is a prisoner just miles away, she faces the ultimate question: Will she complete her mission and save D-Day, or save the man she loves?
Delivering high-stakes espionage, historical depth, and an unforgettable heroine, Miriam in the Shadows takes readers deep into the world of espionage, deception, and sabotage.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John Winn Miller is an award-winning investigative reporter (Pulitzer finalist), foreign correspondent, editor, newspaper publisher, screenwriter, movie producer, and novelist. He was named to the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame in 2026. The Lexington native also produced four indie films, including Band of Robbers, written and directed by Adam and Aaron Nee.
Miller has taught media literacy classes at his alma mater, the University of Kentucky, and Transylvania University. He is also a second-degree black belt in Shaolin karate. Miller and his wife, Margo, live in Lexington with two standard poodles and a Maine Coon cat. Their daughter Allison Miller is an actress- screenwriter-director who most recently starred in the ABC series, A Million Little Things.
Miriam in the Shadows is the third novel in his Peggy C series following The Hunt for Peggy C and Rescue Run.
TIMELY TIE-INS
May
- Screen Free Week – 4-10
- Get Caught Reading Month
June
- D-Day – 6
- Father’s Day – 21
- Summer Reading Roundups
July
- Independence Day – 4
- Paperback Book Day – 30
SAMPLE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
- What inspired the premise of Miriam in the Shadows? Was it based on real-life events or purely fictional?
- What novels do you think are comparable to Miriam in the Shadows?
- This is your third World War II novel. What connects the three and what drew you to write about World War II?
- If Miriam in the Shadows were to become a feature film or streaming TV series, who would you like to see portray Miriam?
- In Miriam in the Shadows, the Germans come close to developing an atomic bomb. How close did they really come?
- Miriam in the Shadows is chock full of real historical figures like Ian Fleming, Warner Heisenberg, and Winston Churchill. Why and how did you stay true to what they really did and said?
- Your novels have been praised for their extensive historical details and authenticity. Can you share some of the most fascinating facts you uncovered during your research?
- You have an extensive background as a writer, including being an award-winning investigative reporter, editor, foreign correspondent, newspaper publisher, and screenwriter. How did that background help or hinder you as a novelist?
- Miriam Maduro is an unusual World War II hero. She’s a young Jewish mother who escaped torture by the Nazis and now struggles with survivor’s guilt. Why did she decide to go on one more mission to Nazi-occupied territory?
- What are you working on now?
PRAISE
“An entourage of fascinating characters, an engaging premise, all briskly paced, makes for a taut, tight thriller.”
—Steve Berry, author of The Templar Legacy
“In the shadows of espionage, John Winn Miller blends historical facts with human fictions for a unique adventure to grab readers’ eyes.”
—James Grady, New York Times bestselling author of Six Days of the Condor and the upcoming Shadows on Sidewalks
“In my experience as a historian of special operations and espionage, I have rarely come across a novel that evokes ‘true life’ like this book. Miriam in the Shadows is a great story, a compelling historical novel of the SOE in France during WW2, impeccably researched, with historical figures accurately portrayed and new characters so well created!”
—James Stejskal, former Special Forces and CIA officer, historian, author of No Moon as Witness and The Snake Eater Chronicles
“Highy recommended…Thoroughly absorbing, realistic, and packed with insights about World War II that readers will find engaging and thought-provoking. This is why Miriam in the Shadows is highly recommended for libraries and readers seeking authentic, gripping World War II and Jewish survivor experiences. The story’s ability to delve into the mechanics of motivation, survival, love, and ethical responses to adversity will also make it a draw for book clubs.”
—Midwest Review
“FIVE STARS…Miriam in the Shadows is a smart, gripping novel that respects both its subject matter and its audience. It rewards attentive readers with depth, authenticity, and a protagonist whose courage feels earned rather than embellished.”
—Manhattan Book Review
“An electrifying World War II spy thriller that is deeply atmospheric, propulsive, and profoundly human….This, the third book in the Peggy C series, can be enjoyed as a standalone thriller. While longtime readers will appreciate the deeper history between Jake and Miriam, the novel provides ample context for new audiences and its espionage-driven plot unfolds with clarity and momentum on its own.”
—BestThrillers.com
BOOK DETAILS
Pub Date: May 17, 2022
Genre: Memoir / Christian Inspirational
Publisher: She Writes Press
Page Count: 304
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 978-1647429003
Price: $15.99