by Giuliano da Empoli ; translated by Willard Wood ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 31, 2023
An authoritative but skewed look at recent Russian history.
Part fiction and part freewheeling analysis, an insider's look at the world of Vladimir Putin.
The book's narrator is Vadim Baranov, a fictional stand-in for Vladislav Surkov, the young ideologue and spin doctor known as "Putin's Rasputin." Baranov becomes attached to Putin in the late 1990s, when Putin is the largely unknown head of the FSB. With his background in theater and television, Baranov becomes part of media-savvy billionaire Boris Berezovsky's campaign to promote Putin as a strong, decisive, fear-inspiring replacement for the boozing, ideologically soft Boris Yeltsin. The Russian people, Putin's supporters say, crave a return to the time when the Kremlin "set the tone" and "had a certain moral superiority over the private sector." And also when cell phones didn't ring during performances of the Bolshoi Ballet. Culturally hip with references to Sex and the City, Johnny Depp, and Putin's appearance on Larry King Live, the cooly detached Baranov is less interested in exposing the sins of the president, to whom he refers as tsar, than tossing off pithy observations, opinions, and hard insights in what amounts to an epic monologue. With elements of Baranov's personal life mixed into the narrative, the book can be quite entertaining—though not for those unhappy with Baranov's essentially admiring portrait of Putin, which da Empoli, who was an advisor to former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, does little to diffuse. First published in 2022 in France and then Italy, this bestselling, prize-winning quasi-novel was viewed by some as dangerous propaganda at a time when Putin was waging war in Ukraine. "Power is like the sun, like death: you can’t look at it head-on," the author writes, highlighting one of his own shortcomings.
An authoritative but skewed look at recent Russian history.Pub Date: Oct. 31, 2023
ISBN: 9781635423952
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Other Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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by Thomas Piketty ; translated by Willard Wood
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by Pierre Singaravélou & Karim Miské & Marc Ball ; translated by Willard Wood
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by Janet Evanovich ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 5, 2024
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.
Stephanie Plum’s 31st adventure shows that Trenton’s preeminent fugitive-apprehension agent still has plenty of tricks up her sleeve, and needs every one of them.
The current caseload for Stephanie and Lula—the ex-prostitute file clerk at her cousin Vincent Plum’s bail bonds company, who serves as her unflappable sidekick—begins with two “failures to appear.” Eugene Fleck is suspected of being Robin Hoodie, who robs from the rich and, yes, distributes the proceeds to the poor. Racketeer Bruno Jug, who’s missed his court date on charges of tax evasion, is also suspected of drugging and raping a 14-year-old. But neither of these fugitives can hold a candle to Zoran Djordjevic, aka Fang, a self-proclaimed vampire wanted in connection with the gruesome fate of his late wife and three other missing women. As usual, Stephanie’s personal life is just as helter-skelter as her professional life as a bounty hunter. She’s managed to get herself engaged both to Det. Joe Morelli, of the Trenton PD, and Ranger, a former Special Forces agent who runs a private security firm; she thinks she may be pregnant; and she’s willing to marry the father, whichever of her fiances that turns out to be. On top of it all, her nothingburger schoolmate Herbert Slovinski suddenly pops up at one of the funerals she ferries her Grandma Mazur to, hitting on her relentlessly and gilding his importunities by cleaning and painting her shabby apartment and laying new carpet. Luckily, Lula’s on hand to offer cupcakes that stave off the worst disasters, and whenever this hodgepodge threatens to slow down, another FTA appears, or fails to appear.
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781668003138
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
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by Alex Michaelides ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 5, 2019
Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.
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New York Times Bestseller
IndieBound Bestseller
A woman accused of shooting her husband six times in the face refuses to speak.
"Alicia Berenson was thirty-three years old when she killed her husband. They had been married for seven years. They were both artists—Alicia was a painter, and Gabriel was a well-known fashion photographer." Michaelides' debut is narrated in the voice of psychotherapist Theo Faber, who applies for a job at the institution where Alicia is incarcerated because he's fascinated with her case and believes he will be able to get her to talk. The narration of the increasingly unrealistic events that follow is interwoven with excerpts from Alicia's diary. Ah, yes, the old interwoven diary trick. When you read Alicia's diary you'll conclude the woman could well have been a novelist instead of a painter because it contains page after page of detailed dialogue, scenes, and conversations quite unlike those in any journal you've ever seen. " 'What's the matter?' 'I can't talk about it on the phone, I need to see you.' 'It's just—I'm not sure I can make it up to Cambridge at the minute.' 'I'll come to you. This afternoon. Okay?' Something in Paul's voice made me agree without thinking about it. He sounded desperate. 'Okay. Are you sure you can't tell me about it now?' 'I'll see you later.' Paul hung up." Wouldn't all this appear in a diary as "Paul wouldn't tell me what was wrong"? An even more improbable entry is the one that pins the tail on the killer. While much of the book is clumsy, contrived, and silly, it is while reading passages of the diary that one may actually find oneself laughing out loud.
Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.Pub Date: Feb. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-250-30169-7
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Celadon Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2018
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