It is 1994 and an idealistic Vanessa Parker enters the world of international aid, bringing with her youth and passion to do good in the 'Wild East' of Ukraine after the sudden collapse of communism. The country and its people completely win her heart. As does Dan, a jaded American Deputy Bureau Chief of USAID.

Older, wiser, Dan laughs at Vanessa's naivety. Corruption is rife. The mind-set of the Ukrainian people is at times impenetrable. Her efforts to coordinate millions of dollars worth of aid are met with ridicule, whilst the British aid experts throw up smoke screens. At times thwarted, Vanessa's determination to help is set when she meets the resourceful, magnificent wives of a Donetsk mining village threatened with pit closures.


But then Dan springs a bolt from the blue, which throws her into turmoil...


In a world where millions of dollars can either wash away in a moment's corruption, or turn around the lives of the neediest, Vanessa is then forced to pit her own naive desire to make a difference against the chaos of a country and people in transition



"A touching love story that illuminates the aid business. Compelling and enjoyable." CLARE SHORT, former Secretary of State for International Development