The Fifteen

Murder, Retribution, and the Forgotten Story of Nazi POWs in America

De: William Geroux

Narrado por: Arthur Morey

The revelatory true story of the long-forgotten POW camps for German soldiers erected in hundreds of small U.S. towns during World War II, and the secret Nazi killings that ensnared fifteen brave American POWs in a high-stakes showdown.

“In the pantheon of American history, it’s very hard to find compelling, original stories, and even harder to find authors worthy of them. In The Fifteen, William Geroux delivers the goods.”—John U. Bacon, New York Times bestselling author of The Great Halifax Explosion

The American government was faced with an unprecedented challenge: where to house the nearly 400,000 German prisoners of war plucked from the battlefield and shipped across the Atlantic. On orders from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Department of War hastily built hundreds of POW camps in the United States. Today, traces of those camps—which once dotted the landscape from Maine to California—have all but vanished. Forgotten, too, is the grisly series of killings that took place within them: Nazi power games playing out in the heart of the United States.

Protected by the Geneva Convention, German POWs were well-fed and housed. Many worked on American farms, and a few would even go on to marry farmers’ daughters. Ardent Nazis in the camps, however, took a dim view of fellow Germans who befriended their captors.

Soon, the killings began. In camp after camp, Nazis attacked fellow Germans they deemed disloyal. Fifteen were sentenced to death by secret U.S. military tribunals for acts of murder. In response, German authorities condemned fifteen American POWs to the same fate, and, in the waning days of the war, Germany proposed an audacious trade: fifteen German lives for fifteen American lives.

Drawing on extensive research, journalist and author William Geroux shines a spotlight on this story of murder and high-stakes diplomacy, and on the fifteen American lives that hung in the balance—from a fearless P-51 Mustang fighter pilot to a hot-tempered lieutenant colonel nicknamed “King Kong.”

Propulsive and vividly rendered, The Fifteen reminds us that what happens to soldiers after they exit the battlefield can be just as harrowing as what they experience on it.

©2025 William Geroux (P)2025 Random House Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

“With dogged research and a narrative that parachutes readers into some of the most dangerous corners of World War II, Geroux has brought to light a sweeping story from the homefront that was not just forgotten—most Americans never knew it even happened to begin with. A dynamic, high-stakes tale that will leave readers questioning not only their loyalties and beliefs but the value of life itself.”—Bradford Pearson, National Magazine Award winning author of The Eagles of Heart Mountain

“In the pantheon of American history, it’s very hard to find compelling, original stories, and even harder to find authors worthy of them. In The Fifteen, we get a surprising drama about 400,000 German POWs held at hundreds of camps throughout small-town America—and a series of murders that took place there. William Geroux unearths this off-beat subject and delivers the goods, including the high-stakes diplomatic showdown in the war's final months. Highly recommended—trust me!”—John U. Bacon, New York Times bestselling author of The Great Halifax Explosion

“A compelling exploration of the experiences of prisoners of war in WWII.”—Booklist

Interesting and Largely Forgotten History

This book deals with two largely forgotten aspects of World War II history: First, the large number of German POWs in the U.S. and their treatment, and, second, German reprisals against a number of U.S. POWs to try to create bargaining chips for a prisoner exchange.

On the first subject, there were almost 400,000 German POWs in the U.S. Most were treated well and many worked, mostly in agriculture. Many wanted to stay here after the war. However, the U.S. authorities, especially at first, left the German prisoners to their own devices within the camps. This led to a number of German on German reprisals and murders or coerced "suicides." The book chronicles the U.S. investigations and trial of the alleged culprits, which resulted in a number of death sentences.

On the second subject, the Germans subjected a number of U.S. prisoners to largely sham charges and "trials" that also resulted in death sentences, with the apparent aim of using the condemned in a prisoner exchange.

The lack of any due process on the German side is not surprising. The investigatory methods and proceedings on the U.S. side--not to mention the severity of the sentences in some cases--are perhaps even more shocking and somewhat disgraceful. I write this as a lawyer, and a rather conservative one at that. Of course, you can draw your own conclusions.

How does it all turn out? Well, no spoilers here. Read the book.

There are some nits. First, the book is a little plodding at points. Second, there is at least one glaring--and repeated--factual error. The author repeatedly refers to German prisoners having "transistor radios"--which were not invented until after the war. A small error, but it makes you wonder about the other material. Third, the narration is very monotone.