A true story of love and war unfolds in the letters written by a young fighter pilot to the woman he adored and betrayed.
Four years before the outbreak of WWII, Ross was an introverted Flying Officer with the RAF and Alison a vibrant socialite. They met aboard a ship sailing from Africa to Southampton. Soon afterwards, they began to write to each other and by 1937 they were married. His letters chart an extraordinary love story damaged by a war that began in Europe but took hold of their lives in ways that could never be undone. After Alison died in 2007, Ross's letters were found and handed to his granddaughter. They reveal a man quite different from the one she thought she knew. Here was someone of great depth and intelligence, wrestling with his personal demons. His joy of flying is gradually eroded by his pacifist ideals as the war progresses. In 1942 he was Wing Commander of the 'forgotten squadron', 227, stationed in Malta. After an intense inner stuggle, he made a mistake that cost him the one thing he treasured above all else. This is not just their story told in a blend of fiction, essay and authentic letters, it is also a map of the human heart set against a backdrop of courage, lust and death.