A Life in Fragments
Our Love, His Murder, My Resistance
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A Life in Fragments
Narrated by:
Myanna Buring
Pre-order Now for £15.66
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Narrated by:
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Myanna Buring
The photo of Alexander Litvinenko lying on his deathbed in November 2006, poisoned by polonium, caused shockwaves around the world. But how did it come to this? And why are the lessons he provided still important now, twenty years on? In Marina Litvinenko’s compelling new memoir, A Life in Fragments, we find out exactly why and discover the inspirational personal story behind the public tragedy.
Marina met the man who would change her life on her thirty-first birthday; she was a dancer while he was an agent in the Russian security services. They fell in love and soon had a son, Anatoly. But Russia in the 1990s was a difficult place in which to live a happy family life; soon, Alexander was uncovering corruption at the heart of the state in the aftermath of the communist era. His fearless investigations led to his arrest and imprisonment on false charges; eventually the Litvinenkos had to escape the country, seeking political asylum in the UK.
Litvinenko remained an outspoken critic of Putin’s regime, which could not be tolerated. His murder left Marina seeking justice for her husband, but she was obstructed every step of the way by Russia. Even the British government appeared reluctant to hold Russia to account, and it wasn’t until 2016 that a public inquiry finally confirmed it had been a ‘state sponsored murder’. Marina had won her battle, providing hope to all those who continue to fight to reveal the crimes of Putin’s regime and to deliver justice for the victims.©2026 Marina Litvinenko (P)2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
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Critic reviews
Heart-stoppingly moving. This deeply personal story of the murder – martyrdom might be a better word – of one of the most consequential defectors in Russia’s history is the definitive account of one of the major political crimes of modern times. Marina Litvinenko’s beautifully written story has the power to appal and enrage, and arouses once again the demand for justice against all those who were guilty of her husband’s death (JOHN SIMPSON)
The writing, like Marina herself, shines with a luminous fearlessness. This is a ferociously beautiful account of one woman’s fight for justice after the loss of her husband, her country and the old world order. Marina Litvinenko is a beacon and an inspiration in these dark times (LUCY PREBBLE)
Powerful and moving - a story of personal bravery and determination which highlights the reality of Putin’s Russia (GORDON CORERA)
Beneath Sasha’s bed-stricken photo and a series of others, Marina reveals a love story forged in the chaotic collapse of the Soviet Union and a rejection of the modern-day Russia that followed. A gripping tale of defiance, principle, and hope (JAMES WATERHOUSE)
Powerful and deeply personal, this is one woman’s testimony of how Vladimir Putin’s Russia destroyed the man she loved, and how slow many were to recognise the broader threat. The intimate, inside story of Alexander Litvinenko’s poisoning is as shocking today as the first sight of the photograph on his deathbed 20 years ago (SARAH RAINSFORD)
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