Anya's Story

Anya Series, Book 1

By: Julia Gousseva

Narrated by: Dawn Adkins

Anya, a 17-year-old high school graduate, can't wait to marry her high school sweetheart and have a secure and stable life with him. Even when Russia is thrown into political turmoil and economic hardships, from food shortages and long grocery lines to exorbitant prices and late-night monetary reforms, Anya believes that love will persevere. Then, life takes an unexpected turn, and Anya has to face deceit, betrayal, and humiliation from the person closest to her.

As Anya struggles to regain control of her life, she finds herself in a small northern town on a Soviet submarine base where she is faced with the new challenges she could not have imagined. What happens in that town tests Anya's passion for life, her ability to love, and changes who she is in fundamental ways, as fundamental as the changes in Russia itself.

Anya's story, with its loves and tragedies, is played out against the background of the Gorbachev years and the collapse of communism. The disintegration of the old comfortable Soviet system is mirrored perfectly in Anya's own life as her sense of security is threatened, both by the precariousness of everyday existence in a crumbling state and by the shocks in her own love life.

©2014 Julia Gousseva (P)2016 Julia Gousseva

Excellent young adult novel highly recommended

I enjoyed this book very much, for a number of reasons. Anya and I are approximately the same age born around the same time., So it was very interesting to me to hear a story from the point of view of a Russian girl Who I could relate to the time with. I have always been fascinated with the Soviet union probably primarily because of me growing up during the height of the Cold War. This book was very easy to understand it had a beautiful flow and the narration was excellent. I was very satisfied I received this review copy from the author publisher or narrator

Good Listen with Nice Narration

What made the experience of listening to Anya's Story the most enjoyable?

The cast of characters and story made it a fun, interesting listen.

What did you like best about this story?

The plot.

What does Dawn Adkins bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Strong, steady voice.

Any additional comments?

"This review copy audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost."

Haunting tale of endurance

The best book I've read for some time.

This book grabs you by the collar and drags you into a fast paced, exciting world...the action is relentless and keeps you absorbed right to the end

a gripping adventure with plenty of intrigue and suspense and current climate credible politics

very hard to put down

The multiple layers of the tale open out like a flower but keep you guessing until almost the end

The plot was fast paced and gripping, all the more intense because it was an entirely possible scenario.


This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBoom dot com."

Very realistic

A good YA novel. Anya is an interesting character, and the parts about her life in the Murmansk area, with her submariner husband, felt very realistic and especially interesting. Great narration, too!

Soviet submarines and love

I enjoyed this story a lot. Anya felt like a real character, and all the Russian/Soviet details felt authentic. Great narration, too!