Martin Cruz Smith
Gorky Park (1981)
Author: Martin Cruz Smith
Genre: Thriller (Espionage)
Plot Summary:
Homicide Chief Investigator Arkady Renko has never lost a case. This gets put into jeopardy when three mutilated bodies are found in the popular Gorky Park. As he sorts through the clues, he must battle his own unit, the KGB, FBI and New York police in order to figure out the truth. SPOILER: Osborne, the American fur-trader, is actually a double informant, working for the KGB and FBI.
Geographical Setting: Moscow and New York
Time Period: One year during the 1980's
Series: Arkady Renko series (Book 1)
Appeal Characteristics:
Martin Cruz Smith's Gorky Park is a complex, compelling dark-toned novel that draws the reader into the mysterious world of Soviet Russia. The pace begins slow, but soon builds to a powerful climax. Readers who enjoy a strong, but flawed main character will be delighted with Chief Investigator Arkady Renko. Renko is an honest, but cynical man who truly loves his country, but also can see its flaws. Readers will enjoy following him throughout the many twists throughout this novel. Readers who also like to learn about mysterious places will be drawn into the world of Soviet Russia under the Brezhnev era as Smith weaves it into the storyline.
Read-alikes: For those who enjoy a strong central character in investigative stories and settings in Russia, they might enjoy The Winter Queen by Boris Akunin. This novel is set in Tsarist Russia and follows a Russian police clerk who must solve a case of a public suicide that is linked to a secret organization that is fighting the social class structure. Polar Star by Cruz Smith is the next in the Arkady Renko series and follows him as he begins work on a Soviet Factory ship and is ordered to find the murderer of a female crew member. Readers that enjoy Cruz Smith's writing style and the Arkady Renko character will continue to love this series with this book. In John Fullerton's Monkey House readers are taken to war torn Sarajevo, where police superintendent Rooso must investigate a murder by the city's civilian militia. Just like the Moscow setting in Gorky Park, The Monkey House shows the hardships of life in Bosnia. The Monkey House also features an honest, strong character like Arkady Renko. In City of Ice by John Farrow, an investigator in Montreal fights against a biker gang that has ties to the Russian mafia. Readers will enjoy this book for its honest and independent protagonist and wintry settings. Readers that would like to get out of the cold weather, but remain interested in areas of intrigue and a strong, interesting protagonist might enjoy reading Los Alamos by Joseph Kannon. It is set during 1945 in New Mexico, during the Manhattan project. A security man has been killed and it's the job of former police reporter turned Army Intelligence agent Mike Connolly to find out who did it and why.
Red Flags: Negative views on US and USSR, two sex scenes; violence and strong language appear throughout this book.
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