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ellensbookishcollection's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
This was the first book I have read in this series, or by this author. I don't usually go for books with crime/police, but this was a nice "breath of fresh air".
I belive its the 8th book in the series about Russian police officer Arkady Renko but it reads very nicely as a standalone book. The story was captivating and interesting. I'm not sure that I will go out of my way to get more books in this series, but im not opposed to trying another one! If you like crime novels, or even just suspense/mysteries, then I think you will also get some enjoyment out of this book.
I belive its the 8th book in the series about Russian police officer Arkady Renko but it reads very nicely as a standalone book. The story was captivating and interesting. I'm not sure that I will go out of my way to get more books in this series, but im not opposed to trying another one! If you like crime novels, or even just suspense/mysteries, then I think you will also get some enjoyment out of this book.
tatib22's review
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
2.0
lornahibberd's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
plantbirdwoman's review
3.0
Within a few days, the fearless reporter Tatiana Petrovna falls to her death from her sixth-floor apartment in Moscow and a mob billionaire name Grisha Grigorenko receives a bullet to the head and is buried with all the trappings of a lord.
Meanwhile, Tatiana's body is "lost" by the morgue, then found and secretly cremated. Investigator Arkady Renko is suspicious of connections between the two deaths. No one else cares to see any connections.
As usual, the cynical and analytical Renko is on his own as he pursues his investigation of Tatiana's death, even though the prosecutor's office has decided that there is no case. Tatiana supposedly committed suicide. But there is a witness who heard her screaming as she fell. Does a woman who commits suicide by jumping from a great height scream on the way down?
Renko goes to Tatiana's apartment and finds tapes in Tatiana's voice that describe horrific crimes. Her account of these crimes does not agree with the Kremlin's official versions. Did her investigations mark her as an enemy to the government and was that government involved in her death? Arkady Renko is determined to find the answer to that question.
The evidence found in Tatiana's apartment leads Renko to Kaliningrad, a Cold War "secret city" that seems to be at the center of the mystery. Tatiana's sister lived there and, there, Renko meets with a famous poet who was once Tatiana's lover. Kalinigrad also is the city with the highest crime rate in Russia. Human life seems cheap there.
The solution to the mystery lies in a notebook belonging to a professional interpreter - a professional interpreter who (coincidentally?) was murdered in Kaliningrad. The notebook is filled with cryptic drawings and mysterious symbols that constitute a language known only to the interpreter.
Arkady Renko's ward, the young chess prodigy Zhenya, gets his hands on the notebook and he and a friend, another chess prodigy, begin to crack the code and figure out what the notebook says. While they work on this project in Arkady's Moscow apartment, Arkady himself continues to pursue his investigations in Kaliningrad.
Tatiana is written with Martin Cruz Smith's typical combination of black humor, irony, and romance, as well as a keen understanding of Russian society and the way things work in the bureaucracy there. The characters are richly drawn and the story is entertaining. I didn't feel that it was one of Smith's best, but it was an enjoyable read and Arkady Renko is always a good companion.
Renko lives with an inoperable bullet rattling around in his skull and with the knowledge that that bullet could spell his doom at any time. He has been warned against exertion, but he has come to terms with the possibility of death and he chooses to pursue his calling in life, the investigation of crime, with stoicism and fatalism. And with passion, because, in spite of everything, he really does care about pursuing justice, difficult though that may be in the society in which he lives. The important thing to Arkady may not be that justice is actually achieved but that he stubbornly never gives up the fight to achieve it. Arkady Renko, cynic, may also be the last of the Russian romantics.
Meanwhile, Tatiana's body is "lost" by the morgue, then found and secretly cremated. Investigator Arkady Renko is suspicious of connections between the two deaths. No one else cares to see any connections.
As usual, the cynical and analytical Renko is on his own as he pursues his investigation of Tatiana's death, even though the prosecutor's office has decided that there is no case. Tatiana supposedly committed suicide. But there is a witness who heard her screaming as she fell. Does a woman who commits suicide by jumping from a great height scream on the way down?
Renko goes to Tatiana's apartment and finds tapes in Tatiana's voice that describe horrific crimes. Her account of these crimes does not agree with the Kremlin's official versions. Did her investigations mark her as an enemy to the government and was that government involved in her death? Arkady Renko is determined to find the answer to that question.
The evidence found in Tatiana's apartment leads Renko to Kaliningrad, a Cold War "secret city" that seems to be at the center of the mystery. Tatiana's sister lived there and, there, Renko meets with a famous poet who was once Tatiana's lover. Kalinigrad also is the city with the highest crime rate in Russia. Human life seems cheap there.
The solution to the mystery lies in a notebook belonging to a professional interpreter - a professional interpreter who (coincidentally?) was murdered in Kaliningrad. The notebook is filled with cryptic drawings and mysterious symbols that constitute a language known only to the interpreter.
Arkady Renko's ward, the young chess prodigy Zhenya, gets his hands on the notebook and he and a friend, another chess prodigy, begin to crack the code and figure out what the notebook says. While they work on this project in Arkady's Moscow apartment, Arkady himself continues to pursue his investigations in Kaliningrad.
Tatiana is written with Martin Cruz Smith's typical combination of black humor, irony, and romance, as well as a keen understanding of Russian society and the way things work in the bureaucracy there. The characters are richly drawn and the story is entertaining. I didn't feel that it was one of Smith's best, but it was an enjoyable read and Arkady Renko is always a good companion.
Renko lives with an inoperable bullet rattling around in his skull and with the knowledge that that bullet could spell his doom at any time. He has been warned against exertion, but he has come to terms with the possibility of death and he chooses to pursue his calling in life, the investigation of crime, with stoicism and fatalism. And with passion, because, in spite of everything, he really does care about pursuing justice, difficult though that may be in the society in which he lives. The important thing to Arkady may not be that justice is actually achieved but that he stubbornly never gives up the fight to achieve it. Arkady Renko, cynic, may also be the last of the Russian romantics.
richardwells's review
5.0
Though, for some reason, I don't have them all in my list of read books, I've read every installment of the Arkady Renko stories. He's a guy that I like to hang with, and I like his circle of intimates just as much, although this time out his sometimes girl-friend has turned into a thug-fucker (excuse the French, but I don't know Cyrillic,) and one can only hope Arkady has nothing to do with her - ever again. Victor, his partner, is alternately reeling on Vodka, and sober and sharp, and Zhenya, his kinda-sorta adopted and genius son from Chernobyl, is difficult and lovable as ever (with a chess champion love interest who introduces him to the charms of the harem - so to speak.)
It's gangster Russia, and corruption is an epidemic that touches everyone. A crusading journalist - did she jump or was she pushed? - is Arkady's latest case, which is not a case, or hardly a crime what with the body having disappeared - or been disappeared. Nevertheless, Arkady digs in, brings Victor along, as well as an old poet of the kow-tow school, and manages to involve everyone he loves at one level or another.
The action is tense; the dialogue is outstanding, witty, and sharp; Arkady is on top of his game, and even looking to his health with fewer vodka shooters, and a major cut back in cigarettes; and nothing is well in the world of Russian crime. There is a particular moment of high terror that involves an audio tape, and a downed Russian submarine, that could affect your dreams.
After "Three Stations," which I thought a major letdown, Tatiana comes charging, and it's a helluva read.
(A note on stars: 4 = really liked it; 5 = it was amazing. I loved this book, but was it amazing? I hate star ratings.)
It's gangster Russia, and corruption is an epidemic that touches everyone. A crusading journalist - did she jump or was she pushed? - is Arkady's latest case, which is not a case, or hardly a crime what with the body having disappeared - or been disappeared. Nevertheless, Arkady digs in, brings Victor along, as well as an old poet of the kow-tow school, and manages to involve everyone he loves at one level or another.
The action is tense; the dialogue is outstanding, witty, and sharp; Arkady is on top of his game, and even looking to his health with fewer vodka shooters, and a major cut back in cigarettes; and nothing is well in the world of Russian crime. There is a particular moment of high terror that involves an audio tape, and a downed Russian submarine, that could affect your dreams.
After "Three Stations," which I thought a major letdown, Tatiana comes charging, and it's a helluva read.
(A note on stars: 4 = really liked it; 5 = it was amazing. I loved this book, but was it amazing? I hate star ratings.)
psalmcat's review
4.0
It always takes me a awhile to get into the flow when I start the Renko books, but once I'm in, I'm totally in. This involves a translator, a coded notebook, Kaliningrad, and Zhenya trying to sort out his future.
Also, when did Arkady end up with a bullet in his brain??
Also, when did Arkady end up with a bullet in his brain??
micrummey's review
2.0
This is the first Renko novel I have read and found very little to grip me. Tatiana is a reporter who goes missing, presumed dead and there are connections to a murdered translator, his note book and the building of a Russian Nuclear submarine. I was disappointed in the ending concerning the submarine and it had a so what feel about it. This should have been so much better than it turned out to be.
nigelbrown's review
3.0
Pretty similar to previous Renko novels, well paced and enjoyable, but spoilt by a slightly sloppy ending. (even an Olympic rower wouldn't have been able to do that and the bullet proof poncho, very spaghetti western.) All in all good fun, but not his best.