He Lover of Death

Senka Skorikov, orphan and urchin, has been abandoned to the murky world of Moscow's gangster district. While picking a pocket or two, he glimpses the most beautiful woman he has ever seen and joins the gang of her overlord lover, The Prince, so desperate he is to meet her. Senka climbs the criminal ranks, uncovering a stash of precious metal, and gradually capturing the heart of his beloved Death - so named for the life expectancy of her lovers. But as the bandit community balks at his success on both fronts, threats on his life begin to pour in.

A dandy and his 'Chinese' sidekick seem to be taking an inordinate interest in Senka's welfare and it becomes clear that those threatening Senka are linked to a spate of murders, grizzly even by underworld standards. Fandorin must unweave a tangled web of narcotics, false identities and organised crime - but can he survive an encounter with the ever-alluring Death unscathed?

“Speedy is a marvellous creation, and Fandorin suitably opaque; the gangsters are variously grim and the aptly named femme fatale is a tidy piece of work.”

Boris Akunin shows how it should be done ... an absurdly imaginative story, surreal and comic ... irresistible The Times
Erast Fandorin is a delightful character like no other in crime fiction The Times
Akunin is an outstanding novelist ... Gloriously tongue-in-cheek but seriously edge-of-your-seat at the same time Daily Express
Self-indulgently enjoyable ... [Akunin's] artfully constructed novel also nods in thr direction of Arthur Conan Doyle Financial Times
A special treat for Akunin's fans Literary Review
He writes a cracking good story, full of vivid and interesting characters, and the pace never flags for a moment. -- Joanna HInes GUARDIAN
-- James Urquhart FINANCIAL TIMES
A brilliant and witty discovery! TELEGRAPH & ARGUS

Boris Akunin is the pseudonym of Grigory Chkhartishvili. He has been compared to Gogol, Tolstoy and Arthur Conan Doyle and his Erast Fandorin books have sold over eighteen million copies in Russia alone. He lives in Moscow.

Senka Skorikov, orphan and urchin, has been abandoned to the murky world of Moscow's gangster district. While picking a pocket or two, he glimpses the most beautiful woman he has ever seen and joins the gang of her overlord lover, The Prince, so desperate he is to meet her. Senka climbs the criminal ranks, uncovering a stash of precious metal, and gradually capturing the heart of his beloved Death - so named for the life expectancy of her lovers. But as the bandit community balks at his success on both fronts, threats on his life begin to pour in.A dandy and his 'Chinese' sidekick seem to be taking an inordinate interest in Senka's welfare and it becomes clear that those threatening Senka are linked to a spate of murders, grizzly even by underworld standards. Fandorin must unweave a tangled web of narcotics, false identities and organised crime - but can he survive an encounter with the ever-alluring Death unscathed?

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