Child 44

I enjoyed this. Ther are really two books here. The first is a tale of life in Stalins Russia. The other is a murder mystery. The end is a bit contrived but for a first novel it was quite an impressive debut. I found it to be worth reading.

Please read other reviews for a synopsis of the story. The first third of Child 44 is an extremely engaging read that graphically depicts the psychological torment of life in late Stalinist Russia. Mistrust is the common currency of virtually any social interaction including the intimacies of family and friends. Whether Tom Rob Smith's descriptive powers are more the result of an extremely fertile imagination or thorough research, this reader was quickly drawn into that frightening totalitarian world so grimly portrayed. The novel unfortunately becomes increasingly concerned with the suddenly enlightened and obsessed hero's quest to win over his estranged wife while finding the serial killer who is the author of countless murders of young children. The implausiblity of the story and of much of the action increases exponentially as Leo's search heads towards its climax. What had initially kept me up past my bedtime with excitement and anticipation became, if not a chore, an obligation worth seeing through to its less than satisfactory end.

Superbly researched. Without being preachy or heavy-handed, the author captures the essential fear that maintained Soviet Communist control over millions of people, while at the same time he takes us through an engaging mystery.

It is 3:06 A.M. and I've just finished the last page of Child44. The novel is set in Stalinist Russia (Stalin dies during the course of the tale). The hero, Leo, is at the beginning of the story a proud member of the Russian intelligence agency, MGB. His job is to ferret out spies and counter-revolutionaries. Without revealing too much of the plot, suffice it to say that Leo becomes involved in a covert investigation into a possible serial murderer. The novel is slow going at first but steadily picks up momentum until you have to stay up late, like me, to reach the very satisfying ending. I'm hoping that Child44 is just the first novel in a series featuring this surprisingly likeable detective.

This is the best book I've read in 2008. A literal page-turner, it evoked such graphic images in my mind. I'm easily annoyed by quirks, what I perceive as flaws such as repeat favorite words, and limp writing, and not once did I stumble upon any of these unpardonable wallbangers. This beautiful book just flowed seemingly effortlessly from beginning to end, captivating me. I read it by a quiet river in Mexico and was so riveted I forgot where I was.

Usually I leave substandard books behind when I travel--not this one. Had to haul it home and write this lame review that doesn't do justice to what a wonderful job Mr. Smith did. I'm amazed and impressed at the amount of research that must've gone into this, too--did the author live in Russia, I wonder?