content: I understand how this book must have caused one heck of a stir when it was first released. Sure, it talks about the rot that permeated the USSR, but what it really does is provide a window into one of the most closed societies in recent history via an authentic and strangely sympathetic character. Arkady Renko is a survivor and his story isn't the most pleasant one, but he refused to play the games swirling around him and concentrated on the murders that opened the book, making him the kind of stand-up person that's compelling to read about regardless of his being Soviet or not. I can't wait to find the other books in this series.