The girl they left behind
Veletzos, Roxanne
Genre:
On a freezing night in January 1941
a little Jewish girl is found on the steps of an apartment building in Bucharest. With Romania recently allied with the Nazis
the Jewish population is in grave danger so the girl is placed in an orphanage and eventually adopted by a wealthy childless couple who name her Natalia. As she assimilates into her new life
she all but forgets the parents who were forced to leave her behind. As a young woman in Soviet Romania
Natalia crosses paths with Victor--an important official in the Communist regime that she used to know as an impoverished young student. Now they are fatefully drawn into a passionate affair despite the obstacles swirling around them and Victor's dark secrets. When Natalia is suddenly offered a one-time chance at freedom
Victor is determined to help her escape
even if it means losing her. Natalia must make an agonizing decision: remain in Bucharest with her beloved adoptive parents and the man she has come to love
or seize the chance to finally live life on her own terms
and to confront the painful enigma of her past.
Target Readership: