read: 09.01.19 - 11.01.19

Summary

MGB officer Leo is a man who never questions the Party Line. He arrests whomever he is told to arrest. He dismisses the horrific death of a young boy because he is told to, because he believes the Party stance that there can be no murder in Communist Russia. Leo is the perfect soldier of the regime. But suddenly his confidence that everything he does serves a great good is shaken. He is forced to watch a man he knows to be innocent be brutally tortured. And then he is told to arrest his own wife. Leo understands how the State works: Trust and check, but check particularly on those we trust. He faces a stark choice: his wife or his life. And still the killings of children continue...

Review

I LOVED THIS BOOK! I was stuck on what to read - I wanted a thriller but none of the ones on my shelf seemed very appealing. So, seeing as I have an exam about Russia next week, I thought that this book would be very fitting for 'revision'. It was basically just an excuse to spend more time reading than revising.

Firstly, I loved the historical setting of this book. Stalin's reign of terror is something that has fascinated me, and so to see the everyday life of someone who worked as part of the Secret Police was awesome. I thought it was so insightful to see what real Russia was like at the time as I only learn about the government, and what I thought was excellent was how the historical context didn't get in the way or hinder the text.

Secondly, the characters and plot were so good. Leo, the main character, was so interesting and his character development was so exciting to read about because it really showed the questioning attitudes of Russia as a whole about Stalin and Communist Russia. I loved the pacing of the book and the writing, I would sit for hours at a time and just solely read (my best reading time was reading 200 pages in one sitting). It was such a refreshing thriller which really captured my imagination.

My one nitpick would be that I didn't really like the character of Rasia, Leo's wife, who I assume we are supposed to like because she puts Leo in quite a few sticky situations. She was just quite annoying. Also, I felt like the plot twist at the end was a little farfetched but overall I didn't hate it - I think it was just a little too unbelievable.

rating: 10/10