Russia Books

This sequel to Ghelfi's outstanding debut (last year's "Volk's Game") is another high-stakes adventure set in the dark underworld of crime and corruption that plagues modern Russia. Col. Alexei Volkovoy, an ex-Special Forces soldier and one-man wrecking crew, is tasked to recover a missing Fabergé egg. His search puts him up against the Russian mob, Chechen guerrillas and powerful apparatchiks in the Kremlin, but none of them are a match for Ghelfi's cunning anti-hero. Volkovoy is not an especially likeable man -- he's violent, suspicious and irretrievably damaged -- but he's a fascinating one to read about. "Volk's Shadow" doesn't move with the lightning pacing of the first book -- in most parts it's more mystery than thriller -- but even so Ghelfi delivers the goods.

As Volk's Shadow opens,Volk is dispatched by the General to handle the bombing of AMERCO an oil company.His instructions are clear:Do not delay.Do not negotiate.Attack.It's clear after the op something is not as it seems.A female hostage disappears who knows alot more than she is telling.For this outing Volk is teamed with Lt. Golko Kachan a by the book investigator.Volk will use brutal methods to open doors that Kachan hesitates to employ.Volk's time served in Chechnya has brutalized him,but he can be compassionate.As a favor he searches for the young grandaughter of a friend for the elderly Masha.The young girl has been taken by a sexual predator.These seemingly unrelated cases will take Volk back to the Chechen mountains to confront an old enemy from Volk's past. As in VOLK'S GAME the writing is razor sharp with magnificent descriptions of the city of Moscow and the Chechen mountains.A first rate thriller all the way.Volk is the Russian answer to Mitch Rapp,Jack Reacher,and Jack Bauer.

In Volk's Shadow, Volk is an everyman character who through circumstances has developed his own morality. It is what we all do but because his circumstances are so extreme his morality or ethic is also extreme. Unlike most of us, Volk is aware that his morality developed through his history and did not come supernaturally. It was a theme started with Volk's Game. By developing Russia (in essence, it is a main character in this book) all of the characters are more understandable. Life is harsher and survival isn't a given in Russia. It is not unlike prison. And like prison, Russia has developed its own code of conduct. Also, like prison, there are sadists, thugs, victims, and survivors. Volk is a survivor who has managed to keep some of his humanity. As a reader, you are forced to ask yourself, who would you end up being?

In Moscow, terrorists apparently bombed the headquarters of AMERCO, an American oil company. The attackers take over the oil company's bombed out offices holding hostages. His superiors order Russian army Colonel "Volk" Volkovoy to breach the offices and do what it takes to bring down the Chechen terrorists.

However, nothing goes according to Volk's plan as they seem to be waiting calmly for his arrival. Volk knows betrayal is the norm in Putin's Russia, but wonders if he is to be sacrificed for someone's promotion. He follows clues of criminal activity as he begins to doubt the Chechens had anything to do with the Moscow bombing. From the brothels of Moscow to Chechnya he runs into betrayal after betrayal as he finds his investigation constantly expanding to include the surfacing of a valuable Faberge egg; the kidnapping of a preadolescent girl and a video of Russian massacre of Chechens. Yet as he misses his beloved Valya, he wonders if the murky Russian atmosphere will ever be clean as money seems to buy anything including crimes and culpability cover-ups.

There is so much going on that fans will wonder where suspicious, dedicated, yet ethical Volk gets the mental energy to keep up the incredible pace especially since he is a major cynic re Putin's Russia. The story line is fast-paced and filled with twists and betrayals, a way of life at least in Volk's Russia. Timely as the world watches the transition of power, Brent Ghelfi provides a deep dark thriller in which the real star is an alarming gloomy Russia fueled by oil economics and superpower return ambitions.

Harriet Klausner

It is the height of hubris to think that you can write something new, interesting, and important on the subject of war. Armed conflict has been at the center of discussion, writing, and study as far back as there has been writing. But Goemans has actually done it. This book is provocative, timely, and timeless. It should be read by anyone who is interested in war, peace, or history. (The case studies on World War I are easily worth the price of the book whatever you think of the main thesis!)

According to Clausewitz, an understanding of war cannot be meaningfully divorced from political life. Indeed, he maintains, whenever we attempt to do so, the many links connecting the two phenomena are lost and we are left virtually bereft of understanding. One of the several virtues in this tightly argued and scholarly tome by Stanford professor Hein Goemans is its meticulous and careful consideration of empirical evidence in assessing the interaction and influence of such interrelated factors in what he refers to as "war termination". Using the massive data concerning what specific factors helped to finally bring an end to the First World War to create a fascinating case study, Goemans marshals an articulate and convincing argument regarding the fashion in which these mutually reinforcing factors come to bear on the progress toward cessation of hostilities.

Goemans' thesis proceeds from a simple yet provocative premise; that leaders decide to either prosecute or cease fighting at least partly based on how the terms of settlement affect their postwar fate. The author argues that the belligerents make an initial assessment of their chances to succeed in their war aims based on what they learn from their engagements with the enemy, and that such battlefield assessment is a critical factor in determining what is possible in terms of settling the hostilities. He shows how different kinds of regimes blend this assessment with both their understanding of the international structure they are operating within as well as with their own domestic political considerations. According to the author, war settlement is only possible when a situation he refers to as "bargaining space" develops, i.e., both sides come to similar conclusions regarding the likely outcome as well as the advantages of settling now rather than later.

Goemans is at his best when arguing for a more sophisticated appreciation for how this multiplicity of factors interacts in a dynamic setting that is "realpolitik", and demonstrates how such mutually reinforcing factors influence the war goals and determination of future action by individual belligerents. For example, in a telling example Hoemans illustrates that in spite of a stunning defeat at Verdun, the French decided to escalate their war aims; their collective faith in the personal capabilities of Robert Nivelle were so great that they expected to gain the advantage despite all the setbacks. Likewise, his consideration of how domestic political circumstances and the subjective reading of the international situation by both German and Russian officials influenced the course and outcome of the war.

His scholarly approach as well as an unfortunate tendency toward continuing use of very carefully constructed terms and phrases may at times seem a bit repetitive and initially a bit off-putting to the general reader, yet understanding the academic tone of the book, seems perfectly understandable. The author is, after all, writing a book for other academics rather than for a general audience, even though I'm confident that many serious students of military history will find this particular academic book a fascinating and useful read. When all is said and done, this is a very interesting book, and it is one I highly recommend to those students of military history who appreciate the amazingly complex interaction of a welter of factors in determining the onset, progress, and termination of war.

Goemans has written a remarkable book. He offers a new answer to an oft overlooked question: why do wars continue and why do they stop? This question is all the more important because, as he points out, theories on the causes of war often try to predict why a war broke out, amounting perhaps to an explanation of the first shots fired, or first day a border is crossed. Intuitively, however, this is not why the study of war has such a prominent place in International Relations. Rather, it is the enormous amount of destruction, the lives lost, the cities and towns ruined that make war such a compelling subject. These horrific consequences of war, however, are not explained by any explanations of when first shots were fired, or when borders were first crossed, but must be explained by answering the question what made the war go on! Moreover, as he points out, an understanding of the causes of war termination might be logically prior to any understanding of the causes of war initiation. After all, leaders think about war and its consequences before they decide to get involved. The book also does an admirable job at generating new hypotheses; to pick just one, he presents a novel explanation for why countries sometimes choose to employ risky military strategies. One of the most important strengths of the book is that it does not just pay lip service to different methodological aproaches, but indeed integrates insights from rational choice, quantitative analysis and in-depth case studies. Overall, this is a remarkably ambitious book in many respects; even more remarkable is that Goemans actually pulls it off.

The Wolfhound is the story of a young boy who finds a lost Borzoi dog, and returns it to the Tzar at great personal risk. This story teaches kindness, integrity & courage. Despite the bland review given to the book 'officially', it is books like this one that, taken as a steady diet in a child's youth, develop character traits much desired in people! Children raised on stories such as this (with BEAUTIFUL illustrations) will not likely be found mistreating animals, & integrity and respect for life will become ingrained in their hearts! My children LOVED this book,it is one of our treasures! It encourages a love of good art in addition to the character building attributes of books like this. To label this story 'weak' is both short-sighted and ill-informed.

A wonderful,simple story of peasant boy that saves dog owned by aristocrat and the boy's reward. The illustrations are absolutely luminous and well worth the low price of the book. If you collect children's books, dog books, or want a first dog book for a child, buy this book.

This book is a must for borzoi lovers of all ages. The story is simple and touching. And the lovely illustrations capture the gentle beauty and magic of this very special breed--right down to the borzoi's intelligent, loving gaze.

What a slim volume brimming with juicy information "Women and the Family" is! Trotsky takes a hard look at the very big economic and social picture and how it will impact on women's emancipation and the development of the family. For example, the fight for electrification, mechanization, the need to curb alcoholism, educate women and children, create communal childcare are all discussed with the focus on how women and their families will be impacted. Sexuality, abortion rights, monogamy, religious influences and more are topics Trotsky addresses. One of the selections is in easy-to-read Q & A format but all the selections are quite readable and to the point. Two articles are written by Trotsky in exile. You can see the crushing contrast of gains women made in the early years of the Russian Revolution and how Stalinism eroded these gains. The introduction to the book contains useful overview of the role of women in the Russian Revolution, the gains of the first ten years, and the decline of those gains under Stalin. Although Amazon may list this book as out of stock from time to time, it's always available from booksfrompathfinder by clicking on "new and used" near the top of this page.

How can a book that begins, "The Russian Revolution was begun by women" not intrigue a serious reader interested in women's role in history? This sentence begins the introduction to Leon Trotsky's seminal work on women in a revolutionary society. In this collection of letters, articles, and greetings to political rallies, Trotsky takes up the question of woman's equality and emancipation.
In one article written in 1925 Trotsky explains, "from the enslavement of women grow prejudices and superstitions which shroud the children of the new generation..." and in 1937 with the consolidation of Stalinism in the Soviet Union, he writes, from exile, about the counter-revolution against women. The Stalinists have "forgotten that socialism was to remove the cause which impels woman to abortion and not force her into the "joys of motherhood" with the help of a foul police interference in what is to every woman the most intimate sphere of life." Reading this book today strikes me as both instructive and relevant to those who continue to struggle for full women's liberation.

The depth of revolutionary transformation brought on by social upheavals can be judged by how much the status and role of women in that society are altered. This author, Leon Trotsky, was one of the central leaders of the Russian revolution of 1917. In this set of essays, Trotsky examines the effect of that revolution on the status of women and the structure and function of the nuclear family. Prior to 1917, women in Russia were the virtual slaves of their husbands. The Russian revolution began a process of freeing women from this bondage. This book explains the huge advances in the rights of women that were made in the early days of the Russian revolution. This process, unfortunately, was cut short and betrayed by the bureaucratic caste led by Joseph Stalin that usurped political power from the workers. Trotsky also examines in this book how the reactionary leadership under Stalin and his successors rolled back the gains made by women. This contrast between the revolutionary treatment of women and the family under the leadership of Lenin and the reactionary policies of the Stalinist regime has important lessons for revolutionists today. This book is a must-read for today’s rebels.

I read Woolly Mammoth.
I though it was interesting because it tells you how they found it.
It talked about how they found and got the mammoths out of the middle of nowhere.
I think kids in grade 4 would enjoy this book.
I recommend this book because it is really interesting.

During the summer of 1997 a young boy discovered mammoth tusks sticking out of the tundra in Siberia. This book documents the efforts of a team of scientists from around the world to remove the mammoth from the permafrost. Information about the behavior, migration, and extinction of mammoths is included. Photographs from the expedition, diagrams, and maps round out the text. The text also raises the question of whether or not it would be ethical to clone mammoths if it became scientifically possible. The ultimate answer is left to the student. This book would be a great addition to any middle school library.

This book is an excellent resource for the classroom
teacher of upper elementary students. Not only are there
numerous interesting & little known facts about the various
types of Mammoths, but one of the participants in the recent
Zarkov excavation shares every facet of the two-year
expedition to unearth a Mammoth that has been preserved for
23,000 years! The photos in this book are excellent, and it
serves as a companion to the Discovery video "Raising the
Mammoth." My fifth graders actually loved this documentary,
and were delighted that the book includes much of the same
information along with bits of trivia about these mysterious
creatures. My students are constantly passing this book
around to share with each other. This is AMAZING because they
don't like to read! I highly recommend this book for its
educational value. You won't be disappointed!

This impressive collection of resolutions, reports and discussion transcripts captures the flavor of the Second World Congress of the Communist International, as was as giving a nearly complete documentary record of the proceedings. The two-volume work, with over 1,000 pages, part of the "Communist International in Lenin's Time" series, is the product of a large international team of researchers, translators and editors working under the direction of Pathfinder Press. The extensive Notes section, together with the carefully-prepared Introduction, Glossary, Chronology and Index, helps to orient the reader as to time and place, provides a solid grounding in the facts, and answers every question that might arise in the course of reading the book.

The Russian Revolution of November 1917 was an immense upheaval in a massive empire bordering on many countries of Europe and Asia. The impact of the Russian events flowed outward across the borders and soon began to be absorbed by millions of workers and peasants throughout the world. These masses learned that in Russia a party of revolutionaries had organized the poor and downtrodden to take over the country. The wealthy aristocratic landowners had been driven out by peasants with pitchforks in hand. The capitalist factory owners and bankers had been forthrightly stripped of all their financial and industrial property, ousted from their exalted status, and the employees had begun the process of organizing production in collaboration with a government that represented their interests: a government of workers and farmers.

What was the Communist International? Launched in the spring of 1919 by the Soviet Communist party, together with their comrades in other countries, it fulfilled the need felt by those millions of toilers to come close to this powerful new revolution, to learn about it, to emulate it, and to do in their countries what had been done in Russia. Further, it fulfilled the need of the Russian working people themselves to help to promote and organize world solidarity with the Russian Revolution. Only with this solidarity could the new proletarian regime survive the crippling onslaught of the armies of U.S. and European capitalism, in 1919 and 1920. The Soviet Communists, guided principally by Lenin, organized the Communist International to build leadership on a world scale to respond to these needs.

The Second World Congress, held in Petrograd and Moscow in the summer of 1920, brought together some 218 representatives of revolutionary organizations from 37 countries. There they engaged in over 3 weeks of intense political discussion, debate and decision-making. The fundamental slogan of the Congress: "Workers of the World and Oppressed Peoples, Unite!" encapsulates one of the central themes delegates struggled with: how to unify the workers movements in all countries with the masses of agrarian toilers; how to bring together the oppressed nations, struggling to achieve national liberation, with the workers movements in the capitalistically-developed countries. Other critical debates revolved around the nature of communist parties, their political program and organizational principles; the differences between the new communist movements and the now-discredited Socialist parties; and the relations between political parties of the working class and the trade unions. These discussions provide lessons that remain critical for fighting workers and farmers in today's world - a world full of promise for a new rebirth of genuine communism.

This impressive collection of resolutions, reports and discussion transcripts captures the flavor of the Second World Congress of the Communist International, as was as giving a nearly complete documentary record of the proceedings. The two-volume work, with over 1,000 pages, part of the "Communist International in Lenin's Time" series, is the product of a large international team of researchers, translators and editors working under the direction of Pathfinder Press. The extensive Notes section, together with the carefully-prepared Introduction, Glossary, Chronology and Index, helps to orient the reader as to time and place, provides a solid grounding in the facts, and answers every question that might arise in the course of reading the book.

The Russian Revolution of November 1917 was an immense upheaval in a massive empire bordering on many countries of Europe and Asia. The impact of the Russian events flowed outward across the borders and soon began to be absorbed by millions of workers and peasants throughout the world. These masses learned that in Russia a party of revolutionaries had organized the poor and downtrodden to take over the country. The wealthy aristocratic landowners had been driven out by peasants with pitchforks in hand. The capitalist factory owners and bankers had been forthrightly stripped of all their financial and industrial property, ousted from their exalted status, and the employees had begun the process of organizing production in collaboration with a government that represented their interests: a government of workers and farmers.

What was the Communist International? Launched in the spring of 1919 by the Soviet Communist party, together with their comrades in other countries, it fulfilled the need felt by those millions of toilers to come close to this powerful new revolution, to learn about it, to emulate it, and to do in their countries what had been done in Russia. Further, it fulfilled the need of the Russian working people themselves to help to promote and organize world solidarity with the Russian Revolution. Only with this solidarity could the new proletarian regime survive the crippling onslaught of the armies of U.S. and European capitalism, in 1919 and 1920. The Soviet Communists, guided principally by Lenin, organized the Communist International to build leadership on a world scale to respond to these needs.

The Second World Congress, held in Petrograd and Moscow in the summer of 1920, brought together some 218 representatives of revolutionary organizations from 37 countries. There they engaged in over 3 weeks of intense political discussion, debate and decision-making. The fundamental slogan of the Congress: "Workers of the World and Oppressed Peoples, Unite!" encapsulates one of the central themes delegates struggled with: how to unify the workers movements in all countries with the masses of agrarian toilers; how to bring together the oppressed nations, struggling to achieve national liberation, with the workers movements in the capitalistically-developed countries. Other critical debates revolved around the nature of communist parties, their political program and organizational principles; the differences between the new communist movements and the now-discredited Socialist parties; and the relations between political parties of the working class and the trade unions. These discussions provide lessons that remain critical for fighting workers and farmers in today's world - a world full of promise for a new rebirth of genuine communism.

This impressive collection of resolutions, reports and discussion transcripts captures the flavor of the Second World Congress of the Communist International, as was as giving a nearly complete documentary record of the proceedings. The two-volume work, with over 1,000 pages, part of the "Communist International in Lenin's Time" series, is the product of a large international team of researchers, translators and editors working under the direction of Pathfinder Press. The extensive Notes section, together with the carefully-prepared Introduction, Glossary, Chronology and Index, helps to orient the reader as to time and place, provides a solid grounding in the facts, and answers every question that might arise in the course of reading the book.

The Russian Revolution of November 1917 was an immense upheaval in a massive empire bordering on many countries of Europe and Asia. The impact of the Russian events flowed outward across the borders and soon began to be absorbed by millions of workers and peasants throughout the world. These masses learned that in Russia a party of revolutionaries had organized the poor and downtrodden to take over the country. The wealthy aristocratic landowners had been driven out by peasants with pitchforks in hand. The capitalist factory owners and bankers had been forthrightly stripped of all their financial and industrial property, ousted from their exalted status, and the employees had begun the process of organizing production in collaboration with a government that represented their interests: a government of workers and farmers.

What was the Communist International? Launched in the spring of 1919 by the Soviet Communist party, together with their comrades in other countries, it fulfilled the need felt by those millions of toilers to come close to this powerful new revolution, to learn about it, to emulate it, and to do in their countries what had been done in Russia. Further, it fulfilled the need of the Russian working people themselves to help to promote and organize world solidarity with the Russian Revolution. Only with this solidarity could the new proletarian regime survive the crippling onslaught of the armies of U.S. and European capitalism, in 1919 and 1920. The Soviet Communists, guided principally by Lenin, organized the Communist International to build leadership on a world scale to respond to these needs.

The Second World Congress, held in Petrograd and Moscow in the summer of 1920, brought together some 218 representatives of revolutionary organizations from 37 countries. There they engaged in over 3 weeks of intense political discussion, debate and decision-making. The fundamental slogan of the Congress: "Workers of the World and Oppressed Peoples, Unite!" encapsulates one of the central themes delegates struggled with: how to unify the workers movements in all countries with the masses of agrarian toilers; how to bring together the oppressed nations, struggling to achieve national liberation, with the workers movements in the capitalistically-developed countries. Other critical debates revolved around the nature of communist parties, their political program and organizational principles; the differences between the new communist movements and the now-discredited Socialist parties; and the relations between political parties of the working class and the trade unions. These discussions provide lessons that remain critical for fighting workers and farmers in today's world - a world full of promise for a new rebirth of genuine communism.

I have just read this book,found it amongst a box full this week and wish i had found it ages ago. Will now read it to my daughter.What a lovely story of a bygone era.Now i'd like to find out what happened in Masha as i understand this is the sequel.

This is a tremendous book. I read this book over and over as a young girl, and my daughter has done the same. When she is out of news books to read, she often picks this one up and reads it again! Actually, this book is the sequel to Masha, which tells the story of the Youngest Lady in Waiting - Masha Fredericks. Masha tells the story of how young Maria Fredericks came to be a students at the Smolni Institute for Noble Girls in St. Petersburg, Russia, and was chosen by the wife of future tsar Nicholas to be her lady in waiting. The Youngest Lady in Waiting takes up where Masha left off, and tells of her life in the court, and that of her best friend Sofie, who returns home to Petersburg society. before, during, and after the Decembrist uprising in the early 19th century. '

Read this book with your daughters and/or purchase it for them to read on their own!

I read this book as a seventh grader and I still love it! It is about Russia during the decemberist uprising, and in particular about a girl name Masha who is a Lady-in-Waiting to the Grand Duke and Duchess of Russia. She falls in love with Sergei and they plan a wedding but his work in the uprising becomes more impartant to him and Masha must make a choice between her new family and the man she loves. It is the best book and is even historically acurate!!

This is the first of three volumes in which a huge number of personal recollections have been carefully sifted and appropriate extracts selected, and then merged into a continuous narrative. The result is a masterpiece. "The March", the opening volume, describes a military machine and supporting administration unprecedented in human history, but just past the peak of its power, embarking on a vast undertaking that has been wholly underestimated in logistics, strategic and political terms. The most surprising revelation, for this reader at least, was the extent to which the disaster commenced almost from the moment that Napoleon's vast multi-national force crossed the Niemen into Russian Territory. Supply breakdowns and outright hunger were significant factors from the outset and the Grand Armee's route eastwards in summer heat was littered with the pathetic corpses of troops from a dozen countries who found suicide preferable to the continued misery of the march. The capture of Smolenko caused heavy losses, but these were minor compared with the hecatomb of Borodino, a horrific slugging match at which Napoleonic tactical genius was most notable by its absence. The first volume ends with the French entry into an eerily deserted Moscow. Readers who enjoy this volume - a feast for all Napoleonic and "War and Peace" enthusiasts - will want to go on immediately to the two subsequent volumes dealing with the occupation of Moscow and with the Retreat itself.

This is the first of three volumes, in which Mr. Britten-Austin paints a riveting picture of Napoleon's Russian Campaign in 1812. The concentration is on that part of the campaign aimed at Moscow, and the activities of other forces, detached to address different targets, are only covered in so far as they impact on the march on, stay-in and retreat from Moscow. A huge number of personal recollections have been carefully sifted and appropriate extracts selected, and then merged into a continuous narrative, linked almost seamlessly together by Mr.Britten-Austin himself. The result is a masterpiece. The feeling of immediacy is very pronounced and indeed at times the events, harrowing in themselves, are so graphically described by the participants that the reader has to pause, all but overcome by the horror and pathos of the narrative. "The March", the opening volume, describes a military machine and supporting administration unprecedented in human history, but just past the peak of its power, embarking on a vast undertaking that has been wholly underestimated in logistics, strategic and political terms. The most surprising revelation, for this reader at least, was the extent to which the disaster commenced almost from the moment that Napoleon's vast multi-national force crossed the Niemen into Russian Territory. Supply breakdowns and outright hunger were significant factors from the outset and the Grand Armee's route eastwards in summer heat was littered with the pathetic corpses of troops from a dozen countries who found suicide preferable to the continued misery of the march. The capture of Smolenko caused heavy losses, but these were minor compared with the hecatomb of Borodino, a horrific slugging match at which Napoleonic tactical genius was most notable by its absence. The first volume ends with the French entry into an eerily deserted Moscow. Readers who enjoy this volume - a feast for all Napoleonic and "War and Peace" enthusiasts - will want to go on immediately to the two subsequent volumes dealing with the occupation of Moscow and with the Retreat itself.

Soviet Russia, under the faith of Marxism, tried to stamp religiosity out of the country. Rather than compete in the marketplace of ideas, as should have been done (but which always results in great variance in beliefs), the approach that was taken was more akin to stubborn parents trying to tell their teenage daughter that they do not approve of her boyfriend. This, of course, does nothing to lessen the girl's interest in the boy. Much of what followed in the attempt to replace old Christian faith with the new Marxist faith entailed atrocities every bit as bad as those found during Christianity's darkest hours, and really wasn't all that different than the inquisition itself.

For fans of history, this is a look at a fascinating time after the Russian revolution. The time this book covers happens within twenty years of the two world wars and the great depression. Obviously, the first wide scale attempt to force atheism on a population would get overshadowed. A lot of good stories in here, written in an easy to read fashion. Stamping out faith wasn't the first concern of the communists, but government barbarities were set up to deal with the issue creating some interesting interactions with the uneducated populace. The most ambitious of plans had to be scrapped due to resistance.

I recently finished reading Angel of Vengeance by Ana Siljak. The story was rich with vivid descriptions of the life of the Russian people, those oppressed, the privileged, and those who endeavored to change the status quo. In light of events in the world today, I was intrigued with the background given on the various radical groups that attempted to engage the peasants to overthrow the government. Intertwined with all of this is the fascinating personal story of a young woman. The journey documented in the book of Vera Zasulich's internal outrage toward public officials, the validation of her feelings gleaned from her veracious readings of radical publications and her interactions with infamous terrorists, to her decision to act on her own and assassinate the governor is a winning combination. The unintended consequences of her actions extend the story to show us the impact she had on the world and individuals already familiar to us such as Oscar Wilde. This book is educational, thought provoking and very entertaining.

Ana Siljak's "Angel of Vengeance" is proof positive that every once in awhile, an extraordinarily talented academic historian can breathe life into a long-dead era and make it accessible to an audience far broader than his or her professional peers. This book is an absolute gem, impeccably researched, engagingly written with a narrative style that reflects the tensions and drama of her subject matter. The book chronicles the first act in the "Age of Assassinations," when an aristocratic woman with revolutionary sentiments killed the governor of St. Petersburg with a revolver she'd concealed under her clothing. Her subsequent trial became a spectacle, the pre-revolutionary Russian equivalent of the Lindberg trial of the 1930's. The assassination and trial became one of the keystone moments that fueled the revolutionary fever which ultimately toppled the Tzar's regime a few decades later.

Siljak has done an outstanding job of blending craft and research into a highly readable, fascinating snapshot of late-nineteenth century Russia. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

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