THE LADY WAITING by Magdalena Zyzak

5 stars

 Both outrageous and outrageously original, this cool combo of art-heist-return-for-reward, Russian gangsters, and couple’s threesome with their assistant manages to simultaneously entertain and offend.  Destiny and coincidence serve as lightning strikes moving the plot breathlessly along.

Viva, a naïve and poor 21-year-old Polish woman, wins the immigration lottery for a chance to come to America. As she arrives in L.A., she picks up a wealthy woman stranded on the side of the road who profoundly changes her destiny and her luck. Bobby Sleeper, the woman she picks up, is also from Poland but from a wealthier family and living in luxury with her sexy, retired, movie director third husband, Sebastian.

Bobby offers Viva a position as their live-in-assistant, as well as eventually that of mistress of her husband as well as herself. Bobby is both comedic provocateur and victim of her own mischief, constantly spiraling out of control of her own life. She comes up with a scheme in conjunction with a past Russian mafia husband to steal back a stolen priceless artwork and get a piece of the huge reward money for its return. Mayhem, adventure, danger, and endless plot twists ensure.

Best of all, the tale gets told by a now 84-year-old Viva, still speaking her broken English, recalling the caper along with her humorous observations for girls reading her tale of how much society has changed in the meantime.

All that remains is the movie that’s sure to follow!

Thanks to Penguin Group, Riverhead Books and NetGalley for an advanced reader’s copy.

Stacy DeBroff

Stacy DeBroff, founder and CEO of Mom Central.com and social and digital consultancy, Influence Central, is a social media strategist, attorney, and best-selling parenting author. A sought-after expert for national media, she trend-spots regularly with national brands and speaks frequently to national and international audiences on a wide range of subjects, including influencer marketing, social media, entrepreneurship, and consumer trends. A passionate cook, gardener, reader, and tennis player, she adores this new chapter of post-college-age parenting.