The Goddess of Warsaw

By Lisa Barr

This is a really good book. It is a story that starts with a young actress meeting with a famous movie star who is at the end of her career. Lena Browning had a lucrative and highly praised career as one of Hollywoods great actresses. Sienna Hayes a young, talented actress comes to Lena and asks to hear her story. She wants to know what motivated Lena to become an actress. Lena has a story to tell, and Sienna gets more than she bargained for.

Lena was born Bina Landau to a wealthy Jewish family in Warsaw Poland. In 1939 she was a leading lady of the Warsaw Theater. Then the NAZI’s came. She was not allowed to act on stage any longer. The Jewish people of Warsaw were forced to live in the Jewish ghetto by 1943. Bina married Jacub Blonski by 1943. The couple, along with Jacob’s brother Aleksander, live in the crowded ghetto. Bina decides that because of her blonde hair and pretty Aryan face she should use her looks to move out of the ghetto and become a spy. She works closely with her bother-in-law who she has secretly been in love with since she first met the two brothers. She and fellow Jews fight valiently, but to no avail. Bina escapes to the forest just before the NAZIs annihilate the remaining Jews in the ghetto and eventually escapes Poland.

Ten years later she finds herself in Hollywood, and is now know as Lena Browning, a famous leading lady. She never forgets her family and friends who were murdered by the NAZIs. She finally gets the opportunity to use her power as a sought after actress to get revenge on the NAZI who killed Jacub. Hopefully she will find the happy ending she never had.

This is an exciting book that has romance, sexy love scenes, murder and revenge. It was a page turner, and the characters were very distinct and interesting, even the bad guys. The ending is statisfying in a completely unique way.