From the New York Times bestselling authors and NCIS team comes their most harrowing true story yet.

After the success of their first two books, Ghosts of Honolulu and Ghosts of Panama, Harper Select will publish the next installment from Mark Harmon and Leon Carroll, Jr., Ghosts of Sicily: The True Story of the Naval Intelligence Agents Who Courted the Mob to Fight Nazis in America and the Battlefields of Italy, on April 14, 2026.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260114717447/en/

Courtesy of Harper Select, an imprint of HarperCollins Focus.

It's 1942, and New York City is at war. German U-boats are sinking ships just miles offshore, and Washington, DC is convinced that waterfront spies are providing intelligence targeting the ships. To thwart the threat, the Office of Naval Intelligence reaches out to those with the most sway along the waterfronts of Brooklyn and Manhattan – the mob. The result will be a triumph for the ONI and one of the most successful and controversial operations in the long history of what we now know as NCIS.

The Navy’s alliance with Charles “Lucky” Luciano and his organization will send New Yorker Tony Marsloe and his fellow ONI officers on an international odyssey that includes holding secret meetings with legendary criminals, hunting clandestine spy rings operating on U.S. soil, and conducting daring undercover missions behind the bloody frontlines of the invasion of Italy.

“As much as the hit TV show, NCIS, taught us about the intrigue and importance of naval intelligence, Mark Harmon and Leon Carroll, Jr. have exponentially deepened that interest with their successful 'Ghosts of…' series,” said Matt Baugher, Senior Vice President and Publisher of HarperCollins Focus. “The subjects of their books are real heroes doing unbelievable work in settings that are just as explosive as any fictional story. This current book is, in my opinion, their best one yet. The Navy teaming up with the Mafia? Truly incredible. We’re honored to partner with them on these stories that need to be told.”

“When I joined NIS in 1980, I knew little of its remarkable history,” added Leon Carroll, Jr. “This book adds another chapter to the ONI/NIS/NCIS legacy, previously unearthed by the Ghosts of Honolulu and Ghosts of Panama. Once again, I feel honored to showcase the ingenuity of Naval Intelligence officers, in this case, teaming with notorious mob figures during WWII in the Ghosts of Sicily.”

In addition to towering historic figures like Meyer Lansky and General George Patton, readers will encounter a kaleidoscope of agents and gangsters who not only shaped the war in Italy but the future of international crime itself.

“The history of World War II has always been fascinating to me, and there have been many books written,” said Mark Harmon. “The Office of Naval Intelligence/ONI played a huge part in the invasion, and new details uncovered a riveting, complex story. All records were burned after WWII. Why? Read Ghosts of Sicily and find out.”

Ghosts of Sicily will be released on April 14, 2026, and will be available in hardcover, ebook, and audiobook formats. Pre-order your copy wherever books are sold, and don’t miss the exclusive signed edition, available only through Barnes & Noble.

---

Other Books from Mark Harmon and Leon Carroll Jr.

Ghosts of Honolulu: A Japanese Spy, A Japanese American Spy Hunter, and the Untold Story of Pearl Harbor, follows a U.S. naval counterintelligence officer working to safeguard Pearl Harbor and a Japanese spy ordered to Hawaii to gather information on the American fleet. On December 7, 1941, their hidden stories are exposed by a morning of bloodshed that will change the world forever.

Ghosts of Panama: A Strongman Out of Control, A Murdered Marine, and the Special Agents Caught in the Middle of an Invasion, follows U.S. Naval Intelligence agents in late 1980s Panama, focusing on agent Rick Yell, as they operate undercover in a dangerous narco-state under dictator Manuel Noriega.

ABOUT MARK HARMON:

MARK HARMON starred as Leroy Jethro Gibbs on NCIS and also served as executive producer of the show. On the new CBS series, NCIS: Origins which explores the early career of Gibbs, Harmon serves as narrator in addition to executive producer. In other television work, Harmon received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for the critically acclaimed The West Wing and for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Special for Eleanor and Franklin: The White House Years. Other credits include Reasonable Doubts, for which he received two Golden Globe nominations, Chicago Hope, From Earth to the Moon, St. Elsewhere, and Moonlighting.

ABOUT LEON CARROLL, JR.:

LEON CARROLL, Jr. co-authored the New York Times bestseller Ghosts of Honolulu. He previously served as technical advisor on the hit drama NCIS for twenty-one seasons and is currently working on the new show NCIS: Origins. Previously, he was a commissioned officer in the United States Marine Corps, attaining the rank of Major. Leon then began a twenty-year career as a Special Agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS). He served in seven different locations, including tours as a Special Agent Afloat on the USS Ranger (CV-61) and as the Special Agent in Charge of NCIS offices in the Republic of Panama and the Pacific Northwest.

ABOUT HARPER SELECT:

Harper Select, based in Nashville, TN, publishes an exclusive number of hand-selected memoirs and narrative nonfiction each year. Recent NYT Bestsellers include books from Joanna Gaines, Mark Harmon, Leon Carroll, Jr., and Loyola Chicago’s Sister Jean.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260114717447/en/