quippe | Entries tagged with boris akunin

The Blurb On The Back:

Erast Fandorin returns to Moscow after an absence of six years, only to find himself instantly embroiled in court politics and scandal. His old friend General Sobolev - the famous 'Russian Achilles' - has been found dead in a hotel room, and Fandorin suspects foul play. Using his now-famous powers of detection, Fandorin embarks on an investigation, during which the political and the personal may become dangerously blurred. With the assistance of some formidable martial arts skills, acquired while Fandorin was in Japan, our eccentric and ingenious hero must endeavour to discover not so much whodunnit, as why.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

The final third of the book lets it down (IMHO), but it's still an enjoyable read and it's nice to see Akunin get some humour and humanity into Erast Fandorin through the use of his Japanese sidekick. Definitely worth a read if you're familiar with the series, but the publishers are doing readers a disservice by translating them out of order.

The Blurb On The Back:

The Russo-Turkish war is at a critical juncture, and Erast Fandorin, broken-hearted and disillusioned, has gone to the front in an attempt to forget his sorrows. But Fandorin's efforts to steer clear of trouble are thwarted when he comes to the aid of Varvara Suvorova - a 'progressive' Russian woman trying to make her way to the Russian headquarters to join her fiancé.

Within days, Varvara's fiancé has been accused of treason, a Turkish victory looms on the horizon, and there are rumours of a Turkish spy hiding within their own camp. Our reluctant gentleman sleuth will need to resurrect all of his dormant powers of detection if he is to unmask the traitor, help the Russians to victory and smooth the path of young love.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

An exciting, rollicking take on spy mystery thrillers, this is a well crafted book and definitely worth a read. I would however, recommend that you read the Erast Fandorin mysteries in their correct order - The Winter Queen, Turkish Gambit, Murder on the Leviathan and The Death of Achilles and not in their translation order.

The Blurb On The Back:

On 15th March Lord Littleby, an English eccentric and collector, is found murdered in his Paris house together with nine members of his staff. A gold whale is found in the victim's hand - a badge owned only by first class ticket-holders on the maiden voyage of the Leviathan, the world's largest steamship.

Commissioner Gauche of the French police is called to solve the 'Crime of the Century' and narrows the syspects down to ten, who are forced to eat every meal together in the ship's Windsor Suite. Amongst these ten is the elegant young Erast Fandorin. Can he discover the murderer's identity before Gauche?

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Enjoyable and well-written I found this immensely better than The Winter Queen. Definitely worth a few hours of anyone's time.