Akunin has written a number of series, but the most successful is that which stars Erast Fandorin as a suave nineteenth century detective. I think there are probably in excess of ten books in the original Russian series. A selection of these have been translated into English, however I hasten to add that the translation has not always taken place it what would have seemed to be the most logical order. Chronological would have been a nice order I feel, but never mind. There are enough translated now for you to be going on with, with a new book having appeared every year since I was at university, and so my initial frustration at having to read them in the wrong order has now worn off!

To describe the style of the novels is difficult, but let’s start by saying that they are excellent. In some ways they are very reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes, especially in terms of the dark Victorian atmosphere that they conjure up. The majority of the action is set in Russia however, and this adds some extra spice into the equation. Everything seems far more wild and dangerous for Fandorin in Moscow and Saint Petersburg than it did for Holmes and Watson in the Home Counties In some ways the stories remind me of Agatha Christie, in so far as it is to some extent possible to make deductions and identify the culprit from the clues laid in the narrative. But on a literary level, these books are far, far ahead of Agatha Christie. Don’t get me wrong – I’m a massive fan of Agatha Christie and must have read at least two thirds of her detective fiction, but for me it’s the equivalent of watching a soap opera when I’m tired. You read Christie because it’s gripping and because Poirot makes you laugh; you don’t read Christie for it’s literary merit. The Fandorin books, on the other hand, are really quite beautifully written. It feels quite astonishing to read prose which flows so perfectly in a translation, but I honestly couldn’t fault it, and even if the plots weren’t terrifically exciting, the books would be worth reading for the descriptive passages alone

The plots are, of course, exceptionally exciting, and contain far more action than any of the authors I’ve mentioned previously. Whilst Holmes might admittedly carry a pistol, Fandorin can be known to engage in a spot of Russian Roulette. He is also skilled in Japanese martial arts, and a master of disguise. And he needs to be! The villains he comes up against are dark in the extreme, and I have to warn you up front that these are not novels were the bad people go to prison and the good people die happily ever after. Unfortunately often, the good people appear to die whilst the baddies get clean away

The first novel in the series is The Winter Queen, published in other countries under the title “Azazel”. This is the saddest book in the entire series (it had me in tears) and I’d recommend reading it before you progress onto any of the others, because it will help you to make sense of several things in Fandorin’s character which might otherwise seem strange. After that, I guess the order isn’t so terribly important.

The book I have been reading over the past couple of days is called “Special Assignments” and actually consists of two separate Fandorin stories; “Jack of Spades” and “The Decorator”. The Jack of Spades is a fairly light-hearted story; amusing and action-packed. I enjoyed it greatly. “The Decorator” is a truly chilling story, I would almost venture to call it horror rather than crime, and it left me not wanting to sleep with the lights off If you don’t like blood and guts and gore, it may be worth avoiding! I didn’t quite cry this time, but nevertheless the ending was as sad as it was unexpected.

An excellent birthday present from my parents. I look forward to getting the next in the series next Christmas )