We Shall See the Sky Sparkling

Like other well-bred young women in Edwardian England, Lily Throop is expected to think of little beyond marriage and motherhood. Passionate about the stage, Lily has very different ambitions. To her father’s dismay, she secures an apprenticeship at London’s famous Imperial Theatre. Soon, her talent and beauty bring coveted roles and devoted admirers. Yet to most of society, the line between actress and harlot is whisper-thin. With her reputation threatened by her mentor’s vicious betrayal, Lily flees to St. Petersburg with an acting troupe—leaving her first love behind. Life in Russia is as exhilarating as it is difficult. The streets rumble with talk of revolution, and Lily is drawn into an affair with Sergei, a Count with fervent revolutionary ideals. Following Sergei when he is banished to Vladivostok, Lily struggles to find her role in an increasingly dangerous world. And as Russian tensions with Japan erupt into war, only fortitude and single-mindedness can steer her to freedom and safety at last.

Susana Aikin is a writer and a filmmaker who was educated in both England and Spain. She studied law at the University of Madrid and, later, creative writing at Manchester Metropolitan University. In 1986, she started her own independent-film production company, Starfish Productions, producing and directing documentary films that won her multiple awards. She started writing fiction full time in 2010. She lives between Brooklyn and the mountains of north Madrid, and she has two sons.