Gavin is a handsome American who heads to Prague to escape financial problems he's experiencing in the States. He meets Katka, a gorgeous Czech woman, and they fall in love. Like many women in the Czech Republic, Katka is desperate to escape the poverty that surrounds her and her family. So, along with Gavin and her best friend, Simona, they devise a plan to scam buyers of mail order brides. When Gavin is approached by Sal, a man interested in buying Katka he initially declines. When the potential buyer offers an obscene amount of money for Katka, he can't resist. He and Katka devise a plan for Kataka to escape during a connection in Amsterdam. But when the buyer tells her about Gavin's financial woes and promises these mistakes will be erased, Katka decides to stay true to the deal and remains with Sal.
Months after the deal, once Gavin that Katka hasn't followed through with the plan, he is riddled by guilt. It was he that suggested this deal. He can't help but think of the future they could have spent together. Gavin uses whateve means necessary and tracks down Katka's location. Instead of living the life that was promised to her, she's become an dancer/prostitute. She admits to Gavin why she agreed to this shift in the plan-she loved him so much she was willing to give anything for him to be relieved of the problems he was facing back in the States.
Gavin is ultimately put in the shoes of a buyer and must be willing to give anything in order to get Katka back. But what price is he willing to pay?
To be completely honest, Katka
was difficult for me to get into. The sentences are choppy and the storyline jumps around from the past to the present. But once I became accustomed to this, Katka
became easier to read. It's a very short read, barely over 100 pages. I think if the author added a bit more depth to the characters (perhaps explain a bit more about Gavin's reason for fleeing to Prague or about the family for which Katka is desperate to provide) Katka
would have been a more engaging read. In addition, I believe changing the format so the scenes flow a little more would be beneficial as well. Overall this is a good read, but I don't think it does the author's talent justice in the current format.