Born to slave-holding aristocracy in Richmond, Virginia, and educated by Northern Quakers, Elizabeth Van Lew was a paradox of her time. When her native state seceded in April 1861, Van Lew' s convictions compelled her to defy the new Confederate regime. Pledging her loyalty to the Lincoln White House, her courage would never waver, even as her wartime actions threatened not only her reputation, but also her life. Van Lew' s skills in gathering military...

Serena Frome, the beautiful daughter of an Anglican bishop, is being groomed for the intelligence services after a brief affair with an older man during her final year at Cambridge. She is sent on a secret mission and comes in contact with a promising young writer, Tom Haley, and while at first she loves his books, she then comes to love the man, and while trying to maintain her undercover life she breaks the first rule of espionage, trust no one....

"A thrilling tale of secretaries turned spies, of love and duty, and of sacrifice--inspired by the true story of the CIA plot to infiltrate the hearts and minds of Soviet Russia, not with propaganda, but with the greatest love story of the twentieth century: Doctor Zhivago."--