Natasha waits and hopes for better times to return, not knowing whether she will ever see the people she cares for again. The Nazis look set to move out, but will the Smirnovs’ loved ones ever return to Kiev? Two years pass and the noise of Red Army planes is heard once again over Kiev, prompting new hope to rise up among the citizens of the city. The consequences of their relationship could be dire for both Natasha and Mark if they are discovered, and their future looks fragile. The family are further torn by war when Natasha’s father is taken away.ĭistraught Natasha turns to Mark, a Hungarian who she grows quickly fond of. But who is the mysterious soldier who steps in to rescue Natasha?Īs the harsh winter of 1941 draws in, the Smirnov family watch Jewish friends dragged from their homes, never to return. Her older sister Natasha watches as their frail grandmother stands up to a Nazi and pays a hard price. On the brink of marriage to her fiancé Alexei, Lisa’s happiness quickly turns to despair.

The eldest Smirnov son, Stanislav, sets off to fight for the Red Army at the front.

Life for teenage sisters Natasha and Lisa Smirnova is about to change beyond their worst fears.ĭespite Stalin’s assurances to hold the Ukrainian capital at all costs, Hitler has ordered his troops into the Ukraine and for the Russians and Ukrainians living there, it heralds a terrible time of fear, hunger and peril.Īll too soon, the danger of living under Nazi occupation impacts on the lives of the ordinary citizens.

Savaged Lands by Lana Kortchik