Sasha defines Valentina as poison when he first meets her on the Kamchatka peninsula.  She is challenged by his air of superiority and vows to humble him.  Sasha can’t resist her, and by the time she leaves to return to Moscow, his beloved homeland has become its own prison.  Sasha bids Kamchatka proshchai (farewell) and follows Valentina there, intending to persuade her to return as his wife. He arrives in Moscow just as Valentina is set to leave for England to continue her spy training prior to deployment to France.  Sasha joins the Russian Army, is captured by the Germans, and is recruited into the pro-German “Russian Liberation Army,” and also sent to France.  There, he and Valentina meet again.  Seeing the war is about to end and that a Russian who has fought on the western front most likely will face execution or a hard labor camp, Valentina defects to the United States.  Feeling responsible for Sasha, Valentina is able to communicate how she can be reached if he can defect.  He does, and they become uneasy roommates.  Valentina got religion during the war and will not permit smoking, alcohol, or pre-marital sex in the home they rent.  Valentina can work and socialize in the community, because her impeccable English lets her hide in plain sight. But Sasha is a virtual house prisoner whose only language is Russian.  If it is known they are Russians, they will be accused as spies in a nation gripped by McCarthyism.  If they are repatriated according to the Yalta agreement at the end of the war, they will certainly be executed.  The issue comes to a head when Valentina’s date declares it his patriotic duty to root out infiltrating Russian spies. Years in writing, the novel is thoroughly researched for historical and geographic accuracy.