Under Two Flags - by Janis Robinson Daly (Paperback)

About the Book

Berlin, 1916. Boston-born opera singer Josephine Marzynski is trapped in Germany during World War I. Torn between her music studies and loyalty to America, she discovers the truest anthem of freedom is the one she creates.

Book Synopsis

When dreams collide with war, survival becomes the ultimate performance.

In October 1916, eighteen-year-old Josephine Therese Marzynski leaves Boston for Berlin to pursue her dream of studying opera at Germany's most prestigious music conservatory. Living with family friends and immersing herself in German culture, she finds unexpected beauty and friendship in the heart of enemy territory.

But when America enters the Great War in April 1917, Josephine's world transforms overnight-from welcomed student to enemy of the state. Trapped in Berlin as rationing tightens and suspicion mounts, Josephine must navigate daily police check-ins, bureaucratic interrogations, and the constant threat of internment. Her survival depends on German friends who risk their own safety to protect her, while she struggles with divided loyalties between her American identity and the people who have become her chosen family.

Based on the true story from Josephine's memoir and set against the backdrop of a city slowly starving under the weight of war, Under Two Flags is a gripping tale of resilience, moral complexity, and the transformative power of music in humanity's darkest hours. As Josephine fights to secure passage home, she confronts impossible choices that will test everything she believes about loyalty, survival, and the true meaning of patriotism.

Review Quotes

"Janis Robinson Daly provides an intimate and refreshingly personal perspective. Rather than focusing solely on battlefields and generals, she places us inside the heart of a young woman whose greatest weapon is her voice. This novel...is thoughtful, immersive, and emotionally sincere without becoming sentimental. In the end, Under Two Flags reminds us that patriotism, identity, and art are rarely simple." -Suzie Housley, Midwest Book Review