Child 44

Murder investigation | Totalitarian regime
I had to constantly remind myself that this is not a dystopian fiction. Inspired by a real-life investigation, it is set in the USSR under the rule of Stalin – Moscow, 1953.
The story follows Leo Demidov, a high-ranking State Security operative, a believer. The politics of that time is portrayed in the most not boring way possible in the first few chapters. As Leo is forced to investigate an officer's son's death on the railway track which has been reported as an accidental death, he notices something off. To disregard an official report is not an easy task for Leo. He is a believer. A believer in the party, a believer in the society the leaders have formed. In this society there is no crime. To believe that a murder has occurred is to have lost faith. That is blasphemy. “An elaborate charade that fools no one”
There is constant threat to life looming over every citizen's head, as soon as they are twelve years of age. Children are obedient, adults are law abiding, everyone is wary, like prey in a forest. There is no forgiveness, no trust. And it is imperative to catch one spy even if it costs innocent lives. There is a uniform love for the leader in all – children and adults, officials and housewives. It is an unusual combination of fear and pride. Or more likely it is just fear masquerading. It is an unforgiving story and pulls no punches. The reality must have been equally horrifying if not worse. A gripping story, each sentence pulling my eyes to the next.
As the story moves forward and when the façade unravels before Leo's eyes, the hunter becomes the hunted. On realizing that public opinion as well as law is not on the side of truth, but on the side of the Party, Leo is forced to embark on his mission to solve a string of child murders, with only his wife by his side; and even that relationship is hanging by a thread.
There is a calmness to the brutality in the story. It comes unexpected and makes the least noise. The act of violence is never elaborated. There are never descriptions of murder dragged out. All quick and efficient like any job well done, a routine – nothing to be made a fuss about. This further adds to the bleakness of the environment.
The colors in a book sets a mood. What are the colors in this book? There is bright red, excessively red, a little too much just to be safe. The is red on the white snow. There is grey in the sky and dark brown bark in the mouths of dead little children.

It would be a shame for you to miss this book.

I really liked the way the author brought the terrors of Stalinist Russia to life. The fear, the resignation, the apathy. Well researched. The story itself was not so much to my liking, but interesting enough to keep me reading on. The characters seemed pretty real with their own agendas and motivations. What bugged me was that we didn't get to know what Vasili's personal problem with Leo was. Was it purely a competition thing? Or a way to show his obsessive and psychotic character? The transformation of Leo was nicely done, didn't seem too far fetched and was neatly explained by his tendency to selective perception through his childhood experience. All in all a good read with vivid descriptions, but I would have wished for a stronger crime story.