Marina is an elderly WWII survivor living in the US with her husband Dimitri. This is a dual story about Marina's fade into Alzheimer's disease and her memories of her war years in Leningrad. As her current life slips away from her, she vividly remembers her time as a guide in the Hemitage museum. The two stories flow seamlessly and the writing, including the description of the art, is gorgeous. Many of us in our book club didn't realize that so may Hermitage staff lived in the cellar of the museum during the worst of the war. The author's description of those years is moving and the people are brilliantly portrayed. Debra Dean also does an incredible job of describing what it must be like to lose one's grasp on the current time. Marina appears bemused initially and eventually she is totally helpless. The only reason I gave this 4 stars is that it felt incomplete. At 256 pages it reads more like a novella and I could easily have read another 200 pages. Great little novel!

This was a beautiful love story about a woman's slip into Alzheimer’s. She slips between her present day existence and her life during the German assault on Leningrad. The author describes the human condition with compassion and realism. It was a slice of life story that surrounded me with love and hope.

Good book to read along with City of Thieves.

Dean writes a beautiful tribute to the strength of the human spirit. This book pairs well with "Sara's Key."

enjoyed the book--recommend doing the virtual tour of the museum after you are finished reading

Our book club found this book to be too long, too boring. We thought there simply wasn't enough action and the characters were flat. BUT we were very intrigued by the Hermitage Museum and St. Petersburg. We all want to visit it. Unfortunately, that is not enough to get us to recommend the book. We just recommend you do some reading about St. Petersburg and the Heritage Museum!

the author caring handles the heartbreak of memory loss and the effect it has on family. she gives an insightful account of the siege of Leningrad which many of us knew very little.

Everyone enjoyed the book, but it wasn't a favorite. It was interesting to read how they survived in the museum. Very sad about the present day Marina.

We thought this book had beautiful descriptions, both of the art and of the scenes. The author clearly did a lot of research and wove in lots of historical fact into her flashback scenes, however some had trouble with the switching back and forth between past and present, as there is no clue given to let you know where you are. Overall, it earned a 3.75 from our group.

Life lesson through war and the atrocities that it can afflict but morality and humanity can prevail all through life in this book.

Good book with much to think about.

I enjoyed the historical information, learning enough about the siege of Leningrad and the efforts involved in saving the art at The Hermitage as well as the incredible struggles of the citizens to survive had me reading additional materials to learn more. The loss of memory as one ages even without the problems of Alzheimer's made me think strongly about sharing life's experiences with family now and wish I had asked my parents more about their histories. Throughly enjoyed the book.

Memory is a double edge sword in this novel. Marina tries holding on to her memories of the cherished paintings in the Hermitage Museum during the Seige of Leningrad while the devastating disease, Alzheimer’s is robbing her of them.