In 1943, one year after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Luke Pierce, a high school senior at Hanford High, uncovers a secret that threatens to fracture his family and his sense of belonging; his mother, now deceased, was Jewish. Putting aside his dream to attend college, and torn between his father's contempt and his own conscience, Luke enlists with two of his childhood friends, Tim "Brock" Brockman and Stevie Cower.
As a soldier, he must carry both a rifle and the secret that could cost him his life if revealed. Against the backdrop of war, Luke's path to the front lines of the Battle of the Bulge becomes a journey from shame to faith, from silence to courage. Shadows Beneath the Stars is a sweeping World War II story of conflict, hatred, quiet heroism, and the power of forgiveness.