“… A marvelous historical novel that demonstrates how a young American woman copes with one of the most cataclysmic events in postwar Europe.”
—Readers’ Favorite
Byline Budapest
A Charlie Atkins Cold War historical thriller
Europe, 1956. Hungarians rise against Soviet rule, and 23-year-old Charlie Atkins seizes her chance to prove herself as a reporter—defying her boss’s orders and flying into Budapest.
But Soviet tanks are already on the move. Trapped in a city under siege, Charlie races to get her story, uncover her missing father’s fate, and survive the deadly crackdown.
Inspired by true events, Byline Budapest is a gripping Cold War Thriller of courage, ambition, and the high price of chasing the truth.
Praise for Byline Budapest
“A riveting Cold War drama — richly researched and heartbreakingly human. Part history, part thriller, all heart — this novel immerses you in the streets of 1956 Budapest.”
—K.R. Kiehl, author of Saving Krakow
“If you like novels that balance grit with heart, or if you’ve ever wondered what it might feel like to stand at the edge of history with a notebook in hand, this book is for you.”
—Literary Titan
“I was living in Hungary as an 11-year-old boy in 1956 … The novel is extremely well-written … the plot unfolds in a slowly accelerating drama that keeps the reader turning the pages, unable to put the book down.”
—Readers’ Favorite
Also by Diane Wagner
Los Angeles, 1956.
Blue-eyed, elegant Evelyn Mumper is missing. Her handsome, ne’er do well husband, L. Ewing Scott, claims she ran off with another man.
Legendary prosecutor J. Miller Leavy takes the case even though there’s no dead body, no physical evidence of murder, and no admission of a crime.
Thirty years after Scott’s lurid, Los Angeles noir trial, Evelyn Mumper’s fate is finally revealed in an exclusive interview with Diane Wagner.
Praise for Corpus Delicti
“This squalid, nicely paced tidbit of 1950’s raunch is as satisfyingly emblematic as a Perry Mason rerun: the unsavory cast includes the cruel lounge-lizard of a husband; the lonely, rather spoiled older woman, the crusading D.A; and the liberal defender.”
—Kirkus Reviews
What really makes this story unique is Wagner’s report that Scott, who was released in 1978 at the age of 83, confessed his guilt for the first time at their last interview. Recommended for true crime collections.”
—Library Journal
“This journalistic tale reads like a thriller and comes complete with a truly shocking and disturbing ending.”
—Literary Guild
About Diane
Diane Wagner is a Seattle-based writer. She is the author of Byline Budapest and Corpus Delicti. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, the Asian Wall Street Journal, and she has written for film and children’s television.