Turkish Gambit: Erast Fandorin 2 (Erast Fandorin Mysteries) - Hardcover

Akunin, Boris

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 029764551X ISBN 13: 9780297645511

Publisher: W&N, 2005

Synopsis

The Russo-Turkish war is at a critical juncture, and Erast Fandorin, broken-hearted and disillusioned, has gone to the front in an attempt to forget his sorrows. Captured by the Turks, he wins his freedom in a game of backgammon, before finding himself the unlikely rescuer of Varvara Suvorova - a 'progressive' Russian woman trying to make her way to the Russian headquarters to join her fiancé.

Fandorin's efforts to steer clear of affairs of state are thwarted when a traitor is discovered within the Russian camp. Within days, Varvara's fiancé has been accused of treason, a Turkish victory looms on the horizon, and there are rumours that one of Lady Astair's Azazel orphans may be making his own bid for power.

Our reluctant gentleman sleuth will need to resurrect all of his dormant powers of detection if he is to unmask the traitor, help the Russians to victory and smooth the path of young love in the third sparkling page-turner from Boris Akunin.

'Akunin...seems able to carry off whatever detective genre he turns to, and makes no bones about incorporating his diverse knowledge into his books' plots. The result is a barnstorming success.' Time Out

About this title

Review

An intricate thriller (Red)

What Akunin's books have in common is charm, elegant writing, abundant wit - and Erast Fandorin...He is a delightful characters like no other in crime fiction. (Marcel Berlins TIMES (18.12.04))

Boris Akunin's fast-paced detective mysteries, with their exotic locations and light-hearted pastiche nineteenth-century prose, have sold over 10 million copies in Russia. TURKISH GAMBIT, his third novel, stays true to the winning formula. (Tom Roundell TLS (24 & 31 December 2004))

Without Fandorin the novels would simply be romps, but his presence provides a note of pathos that has led to comparisons in Russia with Gogol and Tolstoy. This is the 19th century evoked in all its absurdity, but also in the knowledge that it is a fragile world whose inflexible certainties will soon be shattered. Akunin is a sly writer, maintaining mystery to the end and closing the novel on a sombre note that confirms he underlying seriousness. (Joan Smith SUNDAY TIMES (2.1.05))

an intricate thriller. (Alex Clark RED (February 2005))

this is...the best so far...[a] sheer swashbuckling frenzy, perhaps in the style of George MacDonald Fraser. (Omer Ali TIME OUT (5-12 January 2005))

Turkish Gambit offers a refreshing new perspective on the classic crime story. (WATERSTONE'S BOOKS QUARTERLY (January 2005))

There's much to enjoy in Akunin's thrillers. His novels are historical pastiches of high quality with the additional pleasure of an unfamiliar Russian perspective on world affairs...Akunin is a hugely entertaining writer. (Andrew Taylor SPECTATOR (15.1.05))

There is a hint of Gogol, more than a hint of Tolstoy, and a generous dollop of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle...Akunin is the most playful of wrtiers, and it would be madness to take his stylish romps too seriously. (David Robson TELEGRAPH (16.2.05))

Very elegant and assured. The period detail - both comic and dashing - glitters impeccably. Akunin has designed his own diorama of a world at war, but it's unlikely that history was quite as entertaining as this. (Philip Oakes LITERARY REVIEW (February 2005))

Book Description

The new bestselling thriller from Boris Akunin.

About this edition

• Publisher: W&N
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 029764551X
• ISBN 13: 9780297645511
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320