Loving Two Women is a work of fiction in the romantic, historical fiction and interpersonal drama sub-genres, and was penned by author Matthew Lutostanski. With a storyline based on true events, our central protagonist Tadeusz finds himself stuck in the middle of a complex emotional drama when a letter arrives from a young woman who was his fiancée before the Second World War. Now married to the lovely Maria for many decades, Tadeusz faces facts about Ella, the woman he almost married, and how circumstance stole them from one another for so long. What results is a heartfelt exploration of the nature of love and loss, and the ties that bind us to our past.

Author Matthew Lutostanski has crafted a tender and original love story based on some very complex situations, and of course those that many people would have faced in the past after being separated by war. I very much enjoyed the historical aspects of the piece, tracing through the past and finding out what happened to Tadeusz during the conflict and why he started a new life in a new country. His relationship with the two women within the plot was sincerely and emotively penned, but for me, Maria was the real star of the work. Empathetic and expressive, her actions and dialogue delivered a powerful emotional performance that gave the story its realism and core values. Overall, I would recommend Loving Two Women to readers who enjoy unusual and heartfelt personal dramas as well as engaging writing and narrative style.

In Loving Two Women, Matthew Lutostanski takes the reader through the impact of world-changing events via the lens of two lives. Decades after the devastation caused by World War II, Polish immigrant Tadeusz lives a semi-retired life in England with his loving wife Maria. His life is turned upside down when he receives a letter from Ella, his fiancée from the pre-war days. The love of his life who was lost to him when he was captured and thrown into a Siberian concentration camp during the war. Memories of a long-forgotten time of his life flood his heart and rekindle a long-lost affection. The dilemma between his undying love for his wife and his reignited love for his former fiancée is the crux of this unusual story.

As he goes about his routine of managing the hotel he owns with his wife Maria, Tadeusz is content with his life. Little does he know that an unexpected letter is about to change everything. Matthew Lutostanski unfolds the series of events in the story of Loving Two Women in a gripping manner. I eagerly waited to turn the page and learn what happened next. The events following the first letter, the turmoil faced by Tadeusz, the dynamics of Maria and Tadeusz’s relationship – all these gave me a deep insight into the psychology of human relations. The topic is so volatile that it is easy to be judgmental. However, all I could feel was empathy with the conflicting emotions expressed by Tadeusz, Maria, and Ella. Love is not always black and white.