The Half Life of Valery K
From the author of The Watchmaker of Filigree Street and The Kingdoms, an epic Cold War novel set in a mysterious town in Soviet Russia with a slow burn romance at its heart.
In 1963, in a Siberian prison, former nuclear specialist Valery Kolkhanov has mastered what it takes to survive: the right connections to the guards for access to food and cigarettes, the right pair of warm boots, and the right attitude toward the small pleasures of life so he won't go insane. But one day, all that changes: Valery's university mentor steps in and sweeps him from the frozen camp to a mysterious unnamed city. It houses a set of nuclear reactors, and surrounding it is a forest so damaged it looks like the trees have rusted from within. In City 40, Valery is Dr. Kolkhanov once more, and he's expected to serve out his prison term studying the effect of radiation on local animals. His research is overseen by an imposing but surprisingly kind KGB officer, Shenkov, whose trust Valery feels a strong urge to win. But as Valery begins his work, he is struck by the questions his research raises-ones even Shenkov is afraid to answer. Why is there so much radiation in this area? What, exactly, is being hidden from the thousands who live in the town? And if he keeps looking for answers, will he live to serve out his sentence? Based on real events in a surreal Soviet city, and told with bestselling author Natasha Pulley's inimitable style, The Half Life of Valery K is a sweeping new adventure for readers of Stuart Turton and Sarah Gailey.BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
This book had such an interesting premise that I had to pick it up from my local library and it sure was a good read!
It was a great Cold War-era novel about nuclear reactors, Russia, corrupt KGB officers all the usual characters of the time. What I didn't know going in, is how much of this novel is based on real events. I knew about the gulags and the KGB's notorious tactics of getting their way and arresting folks for no reason but did not know that City 40 was a real place and how much of this novel was based in fact.
Having read that in the afterward section at the end of the book, my whole perspective of Valery, Shenkov, and the citizens of City 40 changed and brought about feelings of astonishment at just how corrupt and just plain evil the Russian government can be to its people.
Overall a really good/captivating read, and history lesson.
It was a great Cold War-era novel about nuclear reactors, Russia, corrupt KGB officers all the usual characters of the time. What I didn't know going in, is how much of this novel is based on real events. I knew about the gulags and the KGB's notorious tactics of getting their way and arresting folks for no reason but did not know that City 40 was a real place and how much of this novel was based in fact.
Having read that in the afterward section at the end of the book, my whole perspective of Valery, Shenkov, and the citizens of City 40 changed and brought about feelings of astonishment at just how corrupt and just plain evil the Russian government can be to its people.
Overall a really good/captivating read, and history lesson.
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