Description

---

"Yakovleva pick[s] up the torch from Philip Kerr’s Bernie Gunther series”. — The New York Times

“A superb read, with some unexpected turns right at the end."  — Crime Book of the Month, The Critic

"Fascinating reading. . . This series has legs!" — Publishers Weekly

On the eve of Soviet purges, Detective Zaitsev returns to solve the murder of a Red Army horseman — the second installment in the ultimate noir detective series

Perfect for fans of thrilling historical crime fiction, Philip Kerr’s Bernie Gunther novels, and Lara Prescott's The Secrets We Kept

As the Red Terror gathers pace, a horseman and horse mysteriously collapse in the middle of a race in Leningrad. Weary Detective Zaitsev, still raw from his last brush with the Party, is dispatched to the Soviet state cavalry school in Novocherkassk, southern Russia, to investigate. As he witnesses the horror of the Holodomor, and the impact of Soviet collectivisation, he struggles to penetrate the murky, secretive world of the cavalry school.

Why has this particular murder attracted so much attention from Soviet officials? Zaitsev needs to answer this question and solve the case before the increasingly paranoid authorities turn their attention towards him...

Don’t miss the second installment in the atmospheric and relentlessly dark detective series set in Stalinist Russia, where corruption, informers, and purges take paranoia to the next level.

About the Author

---

Yulia Yakovleva is a writer, theatre and ballet critic, and playwright. She is particularly known for two types of historical fiction set in Stalin-era Leningrad: the award-winning children’s chapter book series The Leningrad Tales that confront Soviet history, and the thrilling series of detective novels about Leningrad police investigator Vasily Zaitsev that began with Punishment of a Hunter. Yakovleva received her MA from School of Creative Arts of the University of Hertfordshire. She lives in Oslo, Norway, with her husband and son.

Ruth Ahmedzai Kemp translates literature from Arabic, German and Russian into English. Her work has been shortlisted for many prestigious prizes including the Helen & Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize.

Praise For…

---

"Dark humor undercuts despair and sardonic wit compensates for failure... Yakovleva captures the futility of living and working in such a blighted society, picking up the torch from Philip Kerr’s Bernie Gunther series”. — The New York Times

"Yakovleva's previous novel was an international hit. The follow-up suggests her investigator may become something of a Russian Montalbano."
--The Times (UK)

“Brilliantly realised… devilishly cunning.”
--SHOTS

“Offers a brilliant interplay of Communist manipulation, Soviet terror, Tsarist survivals, military rifts and kulak opposition... A superb read, with some unexpected turns right at the end.”
--Crime Book of the Month, The Critic