Two characters from opposite sides of the world meet in a country that is frequently in the news, yet we know so little about the life of its people.

Aleksandr, a chess prodigy from a rural village in Russia finds himself first in Leningrad where he meets people who have an influence on his life and then in Moscow.

Irina, from Cambridge, Mass., has cut all ties with her American life and is now in Moscow seeking to meet Aleksandr because of a letter she found among her late father's papers. Both are searching for answers to the meanings of their very disparate lives.

The subsidiary characters (both real and fictional), as well as the events described during this period in Russia's history make for an engaging and provocative read.

Wow! Alice La Plante has managed to get inside the the head of 65 year-old Dr. Jennifer White, an orthopedic surgeon who had to "retire" from her practice because she is suffering from dementia.

The author uses the device of a journal that Jennifer keeps to take us on the harrowing and frightening ups and downs of this disease that turns the person you know into a total stranger. We learn about Jennifer's life, her children and why she is suspect in the mysterious death of her best friend.

From the very first entry to the last line, this story holds your interest and then some.

Although the Cold War is long ended, events from this past suddenly become very much part of history professor Sam Gaddis' concern. He is soon involved in present day espionage experiences centered on some Cambridge students of the '30s who became Communists then acted as double agents and spies during WWII and the Cold War. While the book is not up to the standards set by Le Carre and Ludlum it has enough suspense and excitement to keep you turning pages to the very end.