Synopsis

When the war starts in Ukraine, a finance professor Viktor Yurchenko decides to flee to the US together with his elderly mother and three young kids (his wife passed away). They miraculously escape out of their small town, Irpin’, under the raining Russian missiles and through the improvised bridge across the freezing river. The family manages to fight their way onto a scarce night train to Warsaw from an overcrowded railway platform in central Kyiv. They are now out of danger. Viktor’s in-laws, Igor and Tamara, are less lucky: they stay in Irpin’ under Russian occupation. For months, nothing is known about their whereabouts.

After arriving in Washington DC, Viktor’s family originally plans to stay with his young niece, Anna Levenko, who recently started a new job at a prestigious international company. That’s the only relative Viktor has got overseas. But Anna’s apartment is tiny, and his family is huge. Anna brings up her dilemma to one of her friends at work, Teresa Jameson.
Teresa is a big executive at their company. She has a large home in a ritzy area of Washington and plenty of extra space (her husband Lenny recently moved out, so it’s just Teresa and her little daughter Erica living there). Teresa does not want to host anyone in her house, as she hopes to reconcile with Lenny as soon as possible. But she offers temporary shelter to the refugee family. Quickly, she wishes she didn’t. On the day of their first meeting, everything goes wrong. She can’t stand Viktor, who appears an annoying and unappealing person. She also didn’t expect the chaos a large family with little kids could bring to her perfect house.

However, as Teresa gets to know Viktor and his family better, she realizes that it’s fun to be around them. Viktor turns out a much more attractive man than she thought originally. They have a lot in common, including their academic background and research interests. Teresa notices Viktor’s partiality for her and wants to explore their relationship further.

Meantime, events in Ukraine are heartbreaking. Anna’s mother Olena and grandmother Maria run to the bomb shelter in the middle of the night as the attack on Kyiv unfolds. The missiles destroy their apartment, but luckily, they don’t get hurt. Viktor’s father-in-law, Igor, ends up in the hospital in Kyiv, badly injured by Russian soldiers. His wife Tamara gets killed. At one point, Maria and Olena visit Igor in the hospital and find him in critical condition. He reveals to them that long ago, he committed a major mistake, which changed the course of Maria’s life. He cannot reverse the harm, but he gives Maria a clue to finding her late husband’s family.

Back in Washington, Teresa and Viktor are about to go on their first date. But right at that time, Lenny signals that he wants to come back. Teresa realizes she might be missing out on something great. However, she wants to give her marriage a chance. The date never happens, and Viktor and his family move out.

A few weeks later, however, Teresa witnesses Lenny hitting on another woman. Just a few months ago, she would have looked the other way and let it go. But not this time. She ends her unhappy marriage and starts a relationship with Viktor.

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Review

We all know about the war in the Ukraine, but many of us don’t understand how it impacts the citizens and families. This novel sheds light on a small part of that war and its impact on one family. There is more to this book than just the war; there are family secrets, romance, infidelity, and starting over.

This book starts off fifty years in the past before moving to the present. The war is raging, and Viktor needs to leave the country with his three children and mother. He also manages to leave with two dogs and a cockatoo. It was a challenge to go, but he pressed forward to ensure a better life for his children. I admired his fortitude during this whole ordeal.

Teresa, Lenny, and Erica are a family in D.C., but there are cracks that no one can see until it is too late. I felt for Teresa and what she put up with from Lenny. He was not a good man and showed his true colors soon enough.

Multiple storylines come together in the end. At first, I was a little confused because of the dual timeline, but once I uncovered that portion, I could understand the various characters and how they related. I think the story that intrigued me the most was Solomon’s family. He was married to Maria and died suddenly many years ago. However, Maria never knew his family, where he came from, or if he had any family left. I didn’t understand his secrecy and not sharing his family history with his wife. There are hints of the truth near the end, but will everything be resolved?

This novel blends history, family, and love to create an intriguing tale. The book does leave you wondering at the end—not a cliffhanger per se, but will a search pan out?

There is a second book that features one of the characters from this book, Anna. While it is probably not a sequel, I imagine we will see several returning characters and possibly obtain answers to the questions at the end of this novel.

This was an enjoyable read, and we give it 4 paws up.

About the Author

Valeriya Goffe was born and raised in Kyiv, Ukraine and spent most of her adult life in the USA. She resides in Washington DC together with her husband, Bill, and a nine-year-old daughter, Elizabeth. You can often find their family golfing, playing tennis or hiking at the Rock Creek Park. They are also frequent visitors at the Jekyll Island, one of the Georgia’s incredible Golden Isles.

Valeriya’s daytime job involves writing analytical reports and managing complex financial sector projects at a large international organization. Previously, she worked in financial services consulting, auditing and in academia. Valeriya holds a PhD degree in finance from the Kyiv National University of Economics in Ukraine and an MBA degree from Kogod School of Business, American University in Washington DC. She is also a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Charterholder and a member of the Accounting Advisory Board at the Kogod School of Business. Valeriya enjoys learning foreign languages. She is trilingual in English, Russian, Ukrainian and also speaks French and Spanish.

While she finds her business career quite rewarding, Valeriya’s life would not be complete without creative writing. She writes a travel and family blog, and she published her debut fiction novel, Secrets We Keep, in 2024.

Valeriya’s writing is very closely intertwined with travel, from which she gets many of her plots and characters. Over the years, she has visited many countries in America, Africa, Middle East, Europe, and Asia. No matter where she goes, she manages to find some interesting stories which need to be shared with the readers. These stories eventually end up on her travel blog or in one of her books. Africa in particular has left a large imprint on Valeriya’s life and given her a lot of inspiration. She has also been quite lucky to explore the countries of Central Asia which are rich in historical heritage, natural beauty and also interesting personalities. Some of these adventures will be reflected in her future books.

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