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From Publishers Weekly
The Soviet upheavals have fueled the glowing talent of Smith (Gorky Park), America's preeminent writer of Russia-based thrillers. Investigator Arkady Renko returns from exile on the Polar Star fleet to find the new Moscow a dramatic battlefield of warlords and entrepreneurs; behind it, as still as a painted backdrop, eight million people standing in line. An ingenious bomb kills Renko's informer the banker for freewheeling black marketeers-leading Arkady's team through the quicksand of mafia-dominated official graft. His workaholic forensics expert, Polina (who must wait in line for morgue time as well as for beets), identifies the bomb method, leading Arkady too close for aparatchik comfort. He is bumped from the case, but only after a clue from the dead man's fax (Where is Red Square?) points him toward a Munich connection. Meanwhile, he is stunned to hear his lost love, Irina, on Munichbased Radio Liberty and with his last bit of clout wrangles a barely official trip to Germany. His mastery of the Russian system stymies the Munich embassy and reunites him with Irina in the midst of nasty fellow citizens bent on national theft. With vital aid from a Munich cop, Arkady links the fax clue to Russian bureaucrats, the ethnic Checken mafia, and German bankers. The novel paints the new post-Soviet aura through the stoic hero's wry humor and leaves Arkady and Irina perfectly poised, like Russia itself, for whatever comes next. Major ad/ promo; author tour.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From AudioFile
Arkady Renko returns to another thriller full of Russian intrigue in a contemporary setting. Renko has been reinstated as an investigator, but once again he quickly has all sides after him. O'Keefe chooses to accent all the characters' speech heavily. Subtlety is lost, and the Russians tend to sound much the same. However, the narration is clear, and O'Keefe speaks each complicated name with clarity and ease. Nonetheless, he can't make up for an abridgment that lacks coherence. Smith's cryptic novels are devilishly hard to keep straight and the abridgment doesn't help. This presentation is an excellent draw to an unabridged recording or the full written text. R.F.W. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Back in the USSR,
By
This review is from: Red Square (Mass Market Paperback)
Martin Cruz Smith is a former journalist and magazine editor. "Red Square" is his third novel - after "Gorky Park" and "Polar Star" - to feature Arkady Renko and was first published in 1992.
Renko, the hero, works as an Investigator with Moscow's militia - more or less the standard police force - and has something of a chequered career. Never a truly 'practising' member of the Party, Renko hasn't always been thought highly of by those in authority. He has always wanted to catch the people responsible for the crimes he's investigating, regardless of the 'political' consequences - as a result of this, he was once dismissed from the Party for a lack of 'political reliability' and sentenced to a life in Siberia. He also appears to be something of a disappointment to his father, a very famous ex-General. (Arkady's opinion of his father - who is very ill as the book opens - isn't too high, either). However, after the events outlined in "Polar Star", he was reinstated to his former position - but is now working in a new Moscow that he barely recognises. "Red Square" is largely set in Moscow, Munich and Berlin in 1991 and is set in turbulent times : Germany has been re-unified and the breakup of the USSR is closing in. The book opens in August 1991, with Renko and his partner - an Estonian called Jaak Kuusnets - on their way to a meeting with Rudy Rosen. Although Rosen operates as a banker for the various factions of the Russian Mafia, he has agreed to Renko planting a transmitter in his car for the duration of a Mafia-sponsored illegal market. (This is largely due to the fact that the militia have enough to put Rosen away for a very long time). Despite turning informer, Rosen appears to feel relatively safe. The Chechen faction, headed up by Makhmud, constitutes his only real enemy, but - since all the factions require his services - he doesn't think he's under any real threat. His sense of security is reinforced by Mikhail Kim, his fearsome-looking Korean bodyguard, and his business partnership with Borya Gubenko - the head of the Long Pond Mafia. Unfortunately, shortly after a quiet conversation with Arkady at the market, Rudy is killed when his car goes up in flames - changing Renko's case from surveillance to a murder inquiry. One of the witnesses points the finger at Kim - and it seems clear the Korean was responsible for at least one of the two explosions. Although Arkady works most closely with Jaak, there are a couple of other members on the team he has assembled. Polina deals with the forensic work and is nearly as dedicated to her job as Arkady Renko is to his. Minin, on the other hand, is practically the anti-Renko : he remains devoted to the Party and is, in fact, the only Party member on the team. Renko's boss is a man called Rodionov - the City Prosecutor and an elected member of the People's Congress. When Renko meets with Rodionov to inform him of the investigation's progress, he's also introduced to General Penyagin - the recently appointed head of CID. Unlike his predecessor, Penyagin is a bureaucrat - not a detective risen from the ranks. Renko is stunned to discover that the third person attending the meeting, Max Albov, is a journalist. As the investigation unfolds, developments take Renko far and wide - even to the recently reunited Germany. However, Albov proves to be someone Renko just can't avoid. This is a hugely enjoyable book - in fact, the Renko series is just getting better and better as it goes along. The book is set in the USSR's dying days, a difficult time for all those used to playing the political game. As such, it's probably even more dangerous that it had been - especially for someone like Renko who only cared about catching the villain, rather than doing what was politically 'correct'. Highly recommended.
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Beginning of Brilliance,
By Anthony (Hollywood, CA United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Red Square (Mass Market Paperback)
The thing I like most about Smith's work is how well developed and deep his characters are. This isn't just straight action like the disasters I've read by John le Carre. Arkady Renko is up against corrupt bureaucrats, powerful businessmen and rival police organs. They provide him with inept assistants, the bare minimum of support and outdated equipment, yet somehow he still manages to get his man using his tenacity and brains. Renko's attitude is what drives this whole series of books-the sardonic, poetic, romantic and brilliant musings of our hero reveal such a deep character, which keeps us intrigued during any slow parts of the action. Arkady always makes some kind of funny mental comment while he's getting beat up in a subway tunnel or shot at or feasting on a russian dinner of stale bread, yogurt and a cucumber, and it just cracks me up. The plot is also amazing, twisting and turning in so many ways. The first three books are essential, but don't bother with havana bay, it's pathetic compared to these. All things must come to an end, though, and it was great while it lasted.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Intelligent Russian Thriller,
By richard_t "richard_t" (Overseas) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Red Square (Hardcover)
The third Arkady Renko novel by Martin Cruz Smith, Red Square is as strong as the first two. Smith's writing rises far above the typical spy / thriller genre. His characters are fully developed, flawed and nuanced. The dialogue is wonderful, down to Renko's self-effacing honesty and Irina's protective lies. Moscow detective Renko is heroic in a underdog sort of way. Here he confronts Russian mobsters in Moscow and Germany after the murder of an underworld financier and a fellow cop. It's simply good writing, good research, and a good plot. And Arkady's fans will be happy to see Irina again.
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