ON June 6, 1944, the Allies launched their long-awaited invasion of Nazi Europe.

The day of the Normandy landings has done down in history as D-Day. It marked the beginning of the end of the war – although it couldn’t possibly have seemed like it to the thousands of Allied servicemen who gave their lives on that day, and during the subsequent push into occupied Europe.

Now, 70 years on, a new novel by York-born author Andy Johnson, himself a former soldier, tells the story of that momentous day.

Crucible Of Fate, the third in Andy’s sequence of Second World War novels, is a blow-by-blow dramatisation of the events of D-Day, concentrating on Sword Beach – and in particular on the actions fought by the 2nd Battalion of the East Yorkshire Regiment.

It has been written to recognise the sacrifice made by thousands of servicemen, says Andy, a former Dringhouses Primary School pupil who during 24 years with the Coldstream Guards saw service in Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan.

He retired in 2009 having achieved the rank of Regimental Sergeant Major, and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal.

The 44-year-old now lives in Stoke with his wife, Clare, a ‘Stoke girl’ – but all his family are still in York, he says, and he is chairman of the York branch of the Coldstream Guards Association.

Crucible Of Fate is his way of paying tribute to all those fellow soldiers who gave their lives years ago so Europe could be free.

“I think it is important for the younger generation to understand that the reason they enjoy the freedoms and liberties that they do is because once upon a time, a different generation knew their duty and did it,” he says.

“We should be enormously grateful for that and should never forget the sacrifices that were made.”

• Crucible Of Fate by Andy Johnson is published by Spiderwize, priced £11.99, Kindle version £2.99. A percentage of profits will go to military charities.