Valley of the Purple Hearts - Hardcover

by Rick Destefanis (Author)

He arrived in Vietnam at eighteen, untested and uncertain. The men of Second Squad would teach him how to fight-and what surviving a war could cost.

Buck Marino has barely entered adulthood when he is sent into combat with the 101st Airborne. There he meets Sergeant Rolley Zwyrkowski, a seasoned squad leader whose courage, humor, and fierce devotion to his men make him everything Buck hopes a soldier can be.

In the months following the 1968 Tet Offensive, Second Squad battles its way through the jungles and mountains of I Corps-from Hue and Phu Bai into the deadly A Shau Valley. Enemy soldiers, hidden booby traps, sniper fire, and sudden firefights make every patrol a test of courage, loyalty, and survival.

But the war is changing Rolley.

As constant combat strips away the young sergeant's humor and hope, his conflict with an inexperienced lieutenant places the entire squad in danger. Buck can only watch as the man he admires grows increasingly willing to sacrifice himself to protect his soldiers.

Then Buck meets Army nurse Janie Jorgensen.

With Janie, he begins to imagine a future beyond the war. Yet the deeper he descends into violence and loss, the harder it becomes to believe he can return home-or that the boy she loves will survive inside the soldier he is becoming.

When Rolley risks everything for his men during a brutal battle, Buck must find the courage to challenge a reckless officer and save the friend who taught him how to survive.

Winner of the 2017 Best Indie Book Award for Mainstream Literary Fiction, Valley of the Purple Hearts is an unflinching Vietnam War novel about brotherhood, first love, sacrifice, and the invisible wounds carried home from combat.

Perfect for readers seeking an emotionally driven Vietnam War historical thriller with authentic combat, brotherhood, love, sacrifice, and the lasting damage of war.