A Traitor’s Heart (A Revol Rossel Thriller) by Ben Creed

Synopsis
Leningrad, winter 1952. An invisible killer known as Koshchei – a nightmare of Slavic folklore – stalks the streets, leaving a distinctive and gruesome mark upon its victims.

Three thousand kilometres away in a Gulag labour colony, threatened by the vicious criminals who rule the camp and tormented by the Arctic cold, former militia lieutenant Revol Rossel is close to death.

But then a brutal saviour descends from the skies: the state security interrogator who years ago ruined his life is back, tasking Rossel with tracking down the murderer.

As the hunt continues, the two men uncover riddle after riddle, including a clue to finding a weapon of unimaginable power – a weapon the Kremlin’s scheming plotters will kill for . .

My Review
I can’t believe it’s nearly two years since I read Ben Creed’s first book in his Revol Rossel series City of Ghosts, as I remember it so well. A Traitor’s Heart is the second in the series, and sees the return of Revol Rossel, part of the militia, Major Nikitin, his nemesis, and Vassay, Rossel’s love interest from the first book, and some wonderful new characters. A Traitor’s Heart sees Rossel serving an undetermined sentence in one of Russia’s Labour camps, at the behest of his nemesis Major Nikitin, the man who tortured him resulting in him losing two fingers. Life is hard, and Rossel is surprised and suspicious when Nikitin comes to the camp to free him to help solve the murders of two men in Leningrad, and he brings Vassay to help convince him to help. Together Rossel and Nikitin find themselves chasing a killer, referred to as ‘Koshchei the Immortal’ a figure from Russian Folklore as he murders, cuts out the tongues of his victims, replacing the tongue with a scroll of paper, with Italian script from The Mandrake by Machiavelli. Rossel and Nikitin find themselves in a race against time to find the elusive killer, which takes them from Leningrad to East and West Germany in search for answers.

I really enjoyed being back in 1950’s Leningrad with Revol Rossel, Major Nikitin; it felt like returning to old friends in a strange way. Rossel finds himself in the Artic in one of the Labour Camps, moving rocks so Russia can have a new railway. What I love about Rossel is his strength of character, he has the ability to adapt to the situation he finds himself in, not complain, but just get on with it. In the camp it is cold, there is little food and he respects the hierarchy of the other prisoners. Obviously when Major Nikitin offers him a way out, to have food and warmth, he takes it, even if he doesn’t trust Nikitin’s motives. Nikitin himself finds himself in different circumstances, no longer part of the frightening MGP, later known as the KJB, but is working for the Ministry of Defence, and finds himself the enemy of his old boss. The relationship between Rossel and Nikitin is fascinating; Nikitin’s torture of Rossel left him unable to pursue his career as a violinist after removing a couple of his fingers. It is surprising though how well they work together to investigate this case. Nikitin ia able to gain access to those in power and Rossel excels at putting the clues together to solve the puzzle. Into this strange dynamic, Ben Creed also brings in actor Tarkovsky, whom they meet as part of the murder investigation, and who accompanies them on their trip to Germany; a more unlikely triumvirate you will never meet.

Ben Creed’s writing and plotting of this book is amazing, I really enjoyed how the many different and disparate threads came together; Machiavelli’s Mandrake and The Prince, missing Nazi gold, the score of Wagner’s The Ring Cycle, and a hidden code. Ben Creed also captures the atmosphere and landscape of 1950’s Russia, a place where people still live in fear of being reported for saying or doing the wrong thing, sending them to prison or the harsh labour camps. Leningrad is still scarred by the war, derelict buildings, and has no colour in it, a grey and bleak place where there seems no joy, only fear. Politically there is also mistrust between the different ministerial departments, setting minister against minister, and the power play to run Russia after Stalin, all impacting on the murder investigation.

A you can probably tell I thoroughly enjoyed reading A Traitor’s Heart. What I loved most was the intelligent plotting of this book, it really had my mind working overtime, and kept me on the edge of my seat with the fast paced. The other aspect that makes this book such a brilliant read is the relaionship between the characters, especially Rossel and Nikitin, two very different men but who work well together. This is a fascinating that captures the zeitgeist of post war Russia, the fear and mistrust of the citizens that makes the perfect setting for this suspenseful and menacing thriller.

I’d like to thank Emma Dawson and Wellbeck for my copy of this book in return for my honest review.