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pannapark's review against another edition
4.0
Death of a Dissident by Stuart M. Kaminsky, was such a pleasure to read. It is testament to Kaminsky’s skill as a wordsmith that he was able to create the austere world in which Moscow detective, Chief Inspector, Porfiry Rostnikov, moves. To quote Michael Carlson’s obituary in the Guardian following Kaminsky’s death in 2009, “When Kaminsky finally visited Russia in the 1990s, he took great pleasure in being introduced at a journalists' lunch as "the man who knows more about this city than any of us sitting here".”
In Death of a Dissident, the initial crime takes place early on and it is fascinating to follow Rostnikov as he literally limps along (he sustained a leg wound in WW2) following up clues with assistance from two remarkably different inspectors, the angelic looking Sasha Tkach and dauntingly vampiric Emil Karpo.
Kaminsky’s words evoke a Moscow burdened by the weather, communism, the KGB, scarcity and institutionalized distrust. It feels as if everyone is a spy with secrets to maintain and protect.
Rostnikov’s mind constantly travels along multiple trains of thought e.g. from the case at hand to trying to figure out how to fix his broken toilet to whether or not he can get himself into good enough shape to enter a competition for senior weight lifters.
I felt Rostnikov’s deep humanity and empathized with the moral ambiguity with which he is faced &/or reacts to situations. It all seems to make sense in the Russia of the 1980s depicted so seamlessly by Kaminsky.
In Death of a Dissident, the initial crime takes place early on and it is fascinating to follow Rostnikov as he literally limps along (he sustained a leg wound in WW2) following up clues with assistance from two remarkably different inspectors, the angelic looking Sasha Tkach and dauntingly vampiric Emil Karpo.
Kaminsky’s words evoke a Moscow burdened by the weather, communism, the KGB, scarcity and institutionalized distrust. It feels as if everyone is a spy with secrets to maintain and protect.
Rostnikov’s mind constantly travels along multiple trains of thought e.g. from the case at hand to trying to figure out how to fix his broken toilet to whether or not he can get himself into good enough shape to enter a competition for senior weight lifters.
I felt Rostnikov’s deep humanity and empathized with the moral ambiguity with which he is faced &/or reacts to situations. It all seems to make sense in the Russia of the 1980s depicted so seamlessly by Kaminsky.
burns_cheadle's review against another edition
4.0
Having read [b:A Cold Red Sunrise|654573|A Cold Red Sunrise (Porfiry Rostnikov, #5)|Stuart M. Kaminsky|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320003393l/654573._SY75_.jpg|640676] last year, and having enjoyed it very much, I decided it would be fun to begin my year's reading with all 16 books, in sequence, of the Porfiry Rostnikov series by [a:Stuart M. Kaminsky|11258|Stuart M. Kaminsky|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1236977907p2/11258.jpg]. The books are relatively short, snappy and quite entertaining so I am looking forward to this.
stevem0214's review
5.0
I've not read any of this series in at least 10 years. This being #1 in the Rostnikov series I guess it's been at least 20 years. Long enough that it was like reading it for the first time, except knowing the main characters. Great book and great series!
lisa_mc's review against another edition
4.0
The Inspector Rostnikov novels start in the waning years of the Soviet Union with “Death of a Dissident” and follow the main characters through the transition to a post-communist society. Porfiry Petrovich Rostnikov (who shares his first and middle names with the police inspector in “Crime and Punishment”) leads a group of police detectives slogging through murders, robberies, arsons and the like, while dodging the political ambitions of the higher-ups and working within a broken system as best they can, which often isn’t very effectively at all. They develop as professionals and as people through out the series, which also gives an accurate, intimate look at daily life in a changing Russia. Intertwining plots, a host of interesting characters and a spot-on look at corruption and politics lift this sometimes gritty, sometimes hopeful series above the fray.
martyfried's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book, although I think I would have liked it better if it was not an audiobook. I found it a little hard to follow some of the characters due to the unusual names, and I think I may have missed a little of what happened because of this, and also due to not paying attention part of the time as I listened while doing other things. But I think the KGB was involved behind the scenes in ways nobody suspected, including me. There was a lot of politics and resulting intrigue that was probably common in Russia during those times.
Reading this book gave me a better understanding of what it must have been like back then. Things were not easy in those days. People did what they had to do to get by, and the police often overlooked the petty crimes in order to solve the bigger ones.
Reading this book gave me a better understanding of what it must have been like back then. Things were not easy in those days. People did what they had to do to get by, and the police often overlooked the petty crimes in order to solve the bigger ones.
lberestecki's review against another edition
2.0
I was disappointed in this book. I studied Russian language and literature in college, and I love reading books that take place in Russia. I had a few problems with this book - first, it felt like the author was trying too hard to make the book seem "Russian" by trying to adopt typical Russian style. This served to make it obvious that the book was written by someone who didn't grow up in Russia. However, the biggest problem I had with the book was that I felt little to no suspense throughout the story, which was an issue considering it is a mystery - I just really didn't care much about what happened.
avid_d's review
3.0
My ebook copy was poorly proof-read.
The story was very enjoyable. Certainly it has tempted me to seek out the next in the series.
The story was very enjoyable. Certainly it has tempted me to seek out the next in the series.
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