Child 44: Tom Rob Smith

This Book really pulls you in, but was disturbing. It started out in a Village in the Ukraine in 1933 where everyone is dying of hunger. One woman kept a cat alive through the whole ordeal while she herself staves after letting the cat free. A little boy sees the cat head to the woods and he and his brother hunt it. The eldest boy is murdered in the woods and the little boy can't find any trace of him. The book then fast forwards to 1953 in Moscow where a little boy is thought to be murdered, but since in this society "there is no crime" it gets covered up. The investigator catches a cold after diving into an icy river to retrieve a person they suspect of being a spy. He realizes after bring him in that the man is in fact innocent. When he stays home to fight his fever the boss sends a doctor to make sure the investigator- Leo is in fact sick. The doctor, after seeing he is sick tells Leo's attractive wife that he will tell the truth if she sleeps with him, she puts a knife to his neck even though she knows it may result in her death. When Leo goes back to work he finds out his wife's name is mentioned in the "spy's" confession before he was killed. It was obviously added by the doctor. Leo has to follow his wife and determine if she is in fact a spy, knowing it would mean her death. He loses her on the train and goes to his parent's to ask their advice. They tell him to turn her in, that the three of their lives are more important than hers. Just then there is a knock on the door and it is his wife, he finds out she has been eating dinner with them once a week and his parents have grown quite attached to her, but are willing to sacrifice her life. During dinner he finds out she went to the DR after work and found out she is pregnant. When Leo has to report to his boss, to his surprise he says his wife is innocent. The story progresses to more and more suffering. Leo finally admits there is a murderer and sets out to find him defying the country. The story twists and turns explaining the first chapter in a way I would have never guessed. Child 44 ended up being the murdered child of one of Leo's friends. This was an excellent book.