The Winter Queen: A Novel (An Erast Fandorin Mystery) Review

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The Winter Queen: A Novel (An Erast Fandorin Mystery) Reviewby an interesting author. I recommend you search the web for "Boris Akunin" interviews, as well as other reviews of this book (they are overwhelmingly positive). Since the Editorial Review above adequately describes the novel, I'm not going to re-hash it and perhaps inadvertantly spoil something for a future reader. Instead, I'll use this space as I believe it's intended (namely, to tell you what I liked and disliked about the book).
As one of the managers employed by the world's largest bookstore chain I am exposed to, and actually find the time to read, a great number of mystery books. As such, and despite the need to overlook some of the far-fetched aspects of the plot (but hey, what's a secret agent story without a bit of unreality), I hereby pronounce this book to be A CUT ABOVE THE NORM (that's an officially copyrighted term-of-art, of course).
Seriously, though, I found this book to be quite enjoyable for, mainly, three reasons: Beautiful language, such as the opening sentence, "On Monday the thirteenth of May in the year 1876, between the hours of two and three in the afternoon on a day that combined the freshness of spring with the warmth of summer, numerous individuals in Moscow's Alexander Gardens unexpectedly found themselves eyewitnesses to the perpetration of an outrage that flagrantly transgressed the bounds of common decency;" the exotic historical settings (1876 Russia AND England); and, most importantly, superior characterization. The author does a good job of evolving a likeable but naive and pampered low-level agent (Erast Fandorin) into a more experienced but still wet-behind-the-ears, high-level agent (keep in mind the Fandorin adventures will span 12 books and many years in Erast's life, so there are probably better showings to come from our hero). Where Mr. Akunin (whose pen-name translates from the Japanese, or so I've read, as "villain" or "evil") really excels is in his creation of likable/sympathetic/ruthless "bad guys." In my opinion, nothing completes a work of violent entertainment like a great villain (think Alan Rickman in Die Hard, if you'll pardon the switch from books to movies). While it is, admittedly, pretty easy to spot the bad guys from a jaded-reader point-of-view, I can understand why Fandorin doesn't suspect them earlier given his level of experience in things cloak and dagger. Regardless, Akunin is able to overcome minor weaknesses in the story through positive characterization and interesting plot twists.
On a final note, just so you don't think this book is just for mid-thirties, male, computer-chair Jim West's, the Winter Queen was also read and enjoyed by one of my co-workers, a book-devouring, semi-retired, 70+ year-old woman.
I hope you like the book.The Winter Queen: A Novel (An Erast Fandorin Mystery) Overview

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