Book Review: Child 44

I try not to read the same authors over and over again with my monthly Audible credits, but instead continue to try new authors to get a taste for what I like and don't like. Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith was a highly reviewed book on Audible and I had it in my wish list for a bit, but was always a bit skeptical to pull the trigger and purchase it. Well a few weeks I broke down and made this my latest listen/read through and I have to say I was not disappointed.

The book started out with a huge plot twist that has major ramifications throughout the novel. Child 44 is set in communist Russia and you follow a police Officer through his trials and tribulations of arresting those who had supposedly committed crimes against the state. I know a bit about communist Russia but this book really brought that world alive to me. It told much of the small villages hatred of the new regime and the extremely dangerous day to day life of those in bigger cities like Moscow.

This book followed a really typical progression for me it started off really fast and then came close to a complete stop leaving us with a great last hour or so of pure non stop action. The middle of this novel was really where I struggled, it seemed to kind of drag on a bit and just sort of beat around with the impending climax. But when the end came there were so many plot twists and so many questions answered that it made up for some of the less enjoyable moments of the book.

For about 1/2 of the book I was ready to just pan this novel, but for me the sign of a great book is one that even after I finish it I start to think about it through my day. The ending for Child 44 was truly a remarkable one and I would highly recommend sticking with this book and really living through this amazing tale.