THE WINTER QUEEN, by Boris Akunin, translated by Andrew Bromfield, Random House, 245 pages, $19.95.
"The Winter Queen," by Boris Akunin (real name: Grigory Chkhartishvili), is the first in a series of crime novels already published to great acclaim in Russia, and his first to hit the United States.
Set in Moscow in May 1876, the novel begins with a talented young student from a wealthy family shooting himself to death in public at the Alexander Gardens. Was the cause decadence or boredom? To find out, the commander of the Criminal Investigation Division of the Moscow Police sends its newest member, Erast Fandorin, a charming young man, to investigate.
Askunin describes him this way: "The youthful Mr. Fandorin was only serving his third week in the Criminal Investigation Division, but as an experienced sleuth and a real old hand, Xavier Grushin could tell for certain that the boy would never make a go of it. He was too soft, too delicately raised. Once, during the first week, Grushin had taken him along to the scene of a crime (when the merchant's wife, Krupnova, had her throat cut). Fandorin had taken one look at the dead woman, turned bright green, and gone creeping back all the way along the wall out into the yard. True enough, the merchant's wife had not been a very appetizing sight. . . . Anyway, Xavier Grushin had been obliged to conduct the preliminary investigation and write the report himself."
Fandorin is more successful, however, than his superiors predict. He quickly concludes that the death in the gardens is part of a complex plot that includes other deaths, seemingly the result of a game of Russian roulette. Notably, each victim leaves his fortune to an orphanage run by the English Lady Astair. In the apartment of the first man who died, Fandorin finds a signed photograph of a stunningly beautiful woman, which turns out to be important evidence.
Using his active intuition, the young detective starts an investigation that takes him ultimately from Moscow across Berlin and London to St. Petersburg, where he discovers a terrorist conspiracy of worldwide proportions. Part of the appeal of his character is that, as someone no older than 20, he is interesting to the people he questions, but they have a hard time taking him seriously.
Each chapter includes an original, lengthy heading, as in the first, saying, "in which an account is rendered of a certain cynical escapade." In fact, that slightly playful style pervades the text as well, as the author weaves a subtle satirical streak through a series of murders committed for very serious reasons. The style is ingratiating, so the reader is likely to be hooked early on, then become fascinated by both the story and the characters.
Akunin's approach is both sophisticated and accessible, with a certain Victorian flair. His hallmark is surprise. By the time the reader has digested the first chapter, he knows nothing can be counted upon. Virtually everything will turn out differently than he expects. But the journey is well worth it.
E-MAIL: dennis@desnews.com