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Child 44

Child 44, Book 1

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 OVER 2 MILLION COPIES SOLD
AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER IN OVER 30 LANGUAGES
A THRILLER UNLIKE ANY YOU HAVE EVER READ

MOSCOW, 1953.
Under Stalin’s terrifying regime, families live in fear. When the all-powerful State claims there is no such thing as crime, who dares disagree?

An ambitious secret police officer, Leo Demidov believes he’s helping to build the perfect society. But when he uncovers evidence of a killer at large – a threat the state won’t admit exists – Demidov must risk everything, including the lives of those he loves, in order to expose the truth.
But what if the danger isn’t from the killer he is trying to catch, but from the country he is fighting to protect?

Nominated for seventeen international awards and inspired by a real-life investigation, CHILD 44 is a relentless story of love, hope and bravery in a totalitarian world. From the screenwriter of the acclaimed television series, THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY.©2008 Tom Rob Smith (P)2008 Simon & Schuster, UK Historical International Mystery & Crime Mystery Suspense Thriller & Suspense Fiction Crime Russia Exciting Stalin
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Authors want to capture their audience in their first lines, first chapter, and Tom Rob Smith certainly does that. The story opens in 1933. Two starving young children hunt, ensnare an emancipated cat for food, but they were not alone hunting for meat, the older brother is taken, such is the existence of families during the Ukraine famine.
Fast forward twenty years and a series of horrific child murders are taking place but as 'there is no crime' in this totalitarian society, there is no official investigation.
This is a bleak but compelling, all too believable portrayal of life under Starlin's grim regime where 'for the greater good' people live in fear of the state, where no-one is above suspicion, where presumption of guilt not innocence is the norm.

More compelling, thought provoking than enjoyable

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Brilliantly read. A really shocking book in it’s telling of Stalinist Russia but with a great story interwoven with it. Highly recommended.

A riveting listen

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I love the detail in which the author introduced me to a culture of spies and fear

the book supplants you into Soviet culture of fear and control

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Really good story, great narration and on to the next one! Really enjoyed this one.

Excellent!

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4–4.5 stars. I'm generally nervous about books that run well over 12h. I tend to find long novels overwritten and poorly edited - most I feel would benefit from a fair bit of trimming. This held my attention for the full 14h. There were one or two moments where I felt a few small trims could have been made but that's being overly picky.

A gripping, tightly plotted, well crafted and intelligent thriller that kept me engaged. The political, historical and geographical setting was interesting and well drawn, if grim, gruesome and at times traumatic, and it felt more sophisticated than your standard thriller. A really satisfying listen that kept me gripped to the end.

The characterisation was reasonably well conceived, but in fact I think that's perhaps where it's not a full five shiny stars for me. I'm not sure I buy the ending either (and a couple of elements resolve a touch conveniently for believability, IMO), but none of that stops it from being a captivating and satisfying read, against a backdrop that I found fascinating and unsettling.

(I couldn't help picturing Daniel Craig as Leo - quite a few of the action scenes had a definite 007 feel for me!)

Satisfying thriller with some depth

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