Concordia Evgenievna Antarova was a unique woman of especially firm character. After much study and dedication with a natural singing talent, Antarova rose to become Soviet Russia's greatest opera star. She possessed a singing and performance talent that could not be suppressed or equaled. During her later life, she acted as a mentor for those wanting a future in the arts. At the same time Antarova had a second life of a deeply spiritual person. Nonetheless, she and her husband were arrested and exiled to concentration camps, and where her husband died.

After her release and during her isolation in her Moscow apartment, she received inspiration and revelation that culminated in her massive novel Two Lives, about the search for a spiritual life that transcended the corporeal life. At the same time, she promoted a life for the the benefit of family, society and nation.

Daniel H. Shubin has translated several books from Russian into English and authored many on Russian philosophy, religion and history.