Helen Dunmore’s gripping thriller evokes a land ruled by whispers and watchfulness, where betrayal can come from those closest to you.
Leningrad in 1952: a city recovering from war. Andrei, a young hospital doctor, and Anna, a nursery school teacher, are forging a life together. Stalin is still in power, and the Ministry for State Security has new targets in its sights. When Andrei has to treat the seriously ill child of a senior secret police officer, he finds himself and his family caught in an impossible game of life and death.
Helen Dunmore
About the Author
Helen Dunmore, a prolific poet, novelist and writer for children and young adults, died of cancer at 64 in 2017. Her last collection of poetry won the Costa Poetry award posthumously.