There are some stories which are just a bummer no matter how you write it. Paul Johnson takes the hit for all of us by writing The Plot of Shame. The book examines the men who are buried in a sequestered portion of a U.S. military cemetery in France. This potion of the cemetery is for the men who were tried, convicted, and executed by the U.S. military during World War II. They don't have headstones with their names on them. An American flag can never fly over this part of the cemetery.

Johnson gives some background on how this plot came to be and then jumps into selected stories of some of the men buried there. I am conflicted on how to rate this book as it is more of a collection of true crime vignettes as opposed to a singular story. Additionally, the brutality of each episode is nothing but horrible outcomes for everyone involved. It can feel like a slog at times, but I don't think you can blame Johnson for it. He's working with what he has and has clearly done a tremendous amount of research.

Ultimately, this is a very niche book which is not going to uplift you in any way. It is well written, but I am not sure it comes together as a book because of its subject matter.

(This book was provided to me by Netgalley and Pen & Sword. The full review will be posted to HistoryNerdsUnited.com.)

Very informative! It's an interesting compilation. I wasn't sure exactly what to expect in this book & it was different from my expectations...

This book tells about the US Servicemen that were convicted & executed for crimes of murder & rape during World War II.

You can tell the author did a lot of research. He gives the background history of the victims & assailants, their ages, where they're buried & the story of what happened.

(I was able to preview this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.)

With a great eye to detail and a flowing narrative The Plot Of Shame by Paul Johnson explains not only why but how we had American soldiers killed on foreign soil not by “the enemy“ but fellow allies. So many honorable men went to fight in world war two that we had to eventually start skirting the rules and letting those of questionable integrity in our military. Even Britain’s most famous hangman and his son got in on meeting out judicial sentences. It seems like everything from rape of the native people to the killing a fellow military there wasn’t any egregious crime that wasn’t committed. We didn’t just take our criminal mindset with us, we also took our racism as well. Most of those tried and convicted of serious crimes were non-white soldiers. I think the author did a great job telling the stories and giving voice to victims most had never heard of before I know I hadn’t. This is definitely an unheard chapter in our history that I am glad Mr. Johnson saw fit to tell and a book I highly recommend. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.