Child 44

By: Tom Rob Smith

Narrated by: Dennis Boutsikaris

Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award, Thriller and Suspense, 2009

Thriller Award Winner, Best First Novel, 2009

It is a society that is, officially, a paradise. Superior to the decadent West, Stalin's Soviet Union is a haven for its citizens, providing for all of their needs: education, health care, security. In exchange, all that is required is their hard work, and their loyalty and faith to the Soviet State.

Leo Demidov knows this better than most. A rising, prominent officer in the State Security force, Leo is a former war hero whose only ambition is to serve his country. To defend this workers' paradise - and to guarantee a secure life for his parents and for his wife, Raisa - Leo has spent his career guarding against threats to the State. Ideological crimes - crimes of thought, crimes of disloyalty, crimes against the revolution - are forcefully suppressed, without question.

And then the impossible happens. A different kind of criminal - a murderer - is on the loose, killing at will. At the same time, Leo finds himself demoted and denounced by his enemies, all but sentenced to death. The only way to salvage what remains of his life is to uncover this criminal. But in a society that is officially paradise, it's a crime against the state to suggest that a murderer - much less a serial killer - is in their midst.

To save his life and the lives of his family, Leo must confront the vast resources and reach of the security forces, with only Raisa remaining at his side, to find and stop a criminal that the State won't even admit exists.

©2008 Tom Rob Smith (P)2008 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"Child 44 is a remarkable debut novel - inventive, edgy and relentlessly gripping from the first page to the last." (Scott Turow)

A surprising hero in a hopeless world

Couldn't decide which was more chilling - the tale of a serial killer of children or Smith's harrowing description of life in Stalinist Russia following WWII. Takes a special skill to turn a state police goon into a sympathetic, compelling hero. Well-rounded characters and matter of fact description of a society nearly beyond imagining for those of us born into freedom. What's a policeman to do when there is a killer loose in a society so perfect crime does not exist? You'll enjoy Smith's answer to the question.

Deep Characters. Rich Setting. Great Plot.

Child 44 is probably one of the best stories I've read/heard in a long time. The characters and setting were deep and rich. Smith draws you into their lives, the paranoia, despair, and frustration of living and working in Stalin's Soviet Union. Although the setting and characters are the strength of the story, Smith doesn't use them as a crutch. The plot and story telling is well done and make it worth it. Definitely a must listen! I plan to get the rest of Smith's works.

terrific and dark atmospherics

Terrific, horrific, in many ways but as good an inside look and explanation of Stalinist Soviet Society at a turning point. Reading was enthralling and the brutality was hard to listen to but hard not to want to know what is next. A writer whose research must have been as difficult as the times he writes about - and his principal character is terrific.

Nail Biting Greatness

I decided to take a chance on this since it was getting good reviews. I am so glad I did! Having lived in a former soviet state at one time I understood that there was something about life there before my visit that was tragic. The trauma was such that even though they had a semblance of independence thay still looked over their shoulders and had to learn to trust that others might be interested in helping rather than causing trouble.

This book helps us understand what the oppressed soviet citizens endured for those 70 some years. We get to experience the culture from the perspective of one of the oppressors ala "Lives of Others". How can a policeman investigate a murder when murder does not happen in a utopian society? There is no inequality therefore no reason for crime (as only capitalism can produce criminals) and every action a person takes can attract unwanted attention and the dreaded 4am visit.

This is an excellent look into the culture and life of the soviet as well as a crime and political thriller with surprises all along the way. I got the trilogy on sale at audible so we'll see if the other stories can keep up.

Very good suspense novel

This kept my attention until the end. The narrator did well with different voices that brought this story to life.

Good but not great

This book was good, but it was not very believable. That being said, it is well written, and it does not glory in sadism.

Excellent story, excellent narration

Loved the character development and the story, the narration as well. All of it was great, highly recommend.

Riveting

Rarely is an audiobook so compelling, so absorbing from beginning to end, as this one was. I found myself sitting in the car after getting to work, wishing I could continue listening, and plugging the headphones back into my ears at the end of my 8 hours, eager to resume the tale.
Some stories have nothing but action. Some get carried away with descriptive passages. Some focus so intensely on characters that the story line is too thin. This one has the perfect balance of all three elements -- memorable characters, nail-bitting plot, and evocative descriptions.
I can hardly wait for the author's next book.

Excellent and Exciting

This is essentially a detective story set inside the Soviet Union near the end of Stalin's reign. You have to suspend disbelief with regard to some of the plot twists, but it's well worth it. In addition, the setting -- a communist state with higher regard for appearances than justice -- is like another character in the book. Be warned that the story involves the murders of children, and it's a little gruesome.

It appears that this book is the first in a possible series with the same protagonist. I'll listen to those that follow.

Intense, Suspenseful, Unbelievable

Many in Russia want to give up on democracy, they need to read this, if they are allowed.

How bad can a totalitarian government get? In this book under Stalin, the government gets so bad that a serial killer can continue to kill children, because the government insists that a serial killer could never exist in their country. So bad that the man trying to catch the serial killer must, do it without the government finding out or he will be killed himself.

Smith does not so much develop characters, as much as tear them down. It is an interesting way to structure a novel. The characters are deconstructed and then rebuilt. Even more interesting is the character of the country. At first glance you would think the citizens of such a country would be a back stabbing, hateful group of people. Instead you see how the people of the country come together to survive as a people. The people sacrifice themselves for the country, but not for the government. The people's reaction is different from some other similar countries such as North Korea.

I found the book to be suspenseful, exciting, intense, unbelievable, surprising, a real page turner. I highly recommend the book.