368 paĝoj
Lingvo: English
Eldonita je 13-a de novembro 2007 de Howes Limited, W. F..
"Beautifully told…a compelling portrait of a highly civilized society as it approached one of history's great upheavals. [Shows us that] there are moments when the tides of history will not be denied." ―Washington Post Zugzwang ―A chess term used to describe a position in which a player is reduced to utter he is obliged to move, but every move serves to make his position even worse. Ronan Bennett's new masterpiece of literary suspense unfolds in a city on the verge of revolution. On a blustery April day, a respected St. Petersburg newspaper editor is murdered in front of a shocked crowd. Five days later, Dr. Otto Spethmann, the celebrated psychoanalyst, receives a visit from the police. There has been another murder in the city―and somehow he is implicated. The doctor is mystified and deeply worried, as much for his young, spirited daughter as for himself. Meanwhile, he finds himself preoccupied …
"Beautifully told…a compelling portrait of a highly civilized society as it approached one of history's great upheavals. [Shows us that] there are moments when the tides of history will not be denied." ―Washington Post Zugzwang ―A chess term used to describe a position in which a player is reduced to utter he is obliged to move, but every move serves to make his position even worse. Ronan Bennett's new masterpiece of literary suspense unfolds in a city on the verge of revolution. On a blustery April day, a respected St. Petersburg newspaper editor is murdered in front of a shocked crowd. Five days later, Dr. Otto Spethmann, the celebrated psychoanalyst, receives a visit from the police. There has been another murder in the city―and somehow he is implicated. The doctor is mystified and deeply worried, as much for his young, spirited daughter as for himself. Meanwhile, he finds himself preoccupied by two new Anna Petrovna, a society beauty plagued with nightmares with whom he is inappropriately falling in love, and the troubled genius Rozental, a brilliant but fragile chess master on the verge of a complete breakdown. As Dr. Spethmann is drawn deeper into the murderous intrigue, he finds that he, his patients, and his daughter may all be pawns in a game larger in scope than anything he could have imagined. Punctuated with board-by-board illustrations of a chess match that plays out through the book, Zugzwang is a masterfully written novel packed with cliffhangers, romance, unforgettable characters, and a plot that keeps readers guessing to the very end.
Not totally sure about this book. It is illustrated sporadically with chess boards in various stages of play - I don't play the game myself so part of the plot may have passed me by. The plot is interesting without being especially gripping, but basically I found this to be a pleasant enough way to pass a couple of sunny afternoons. A not-quite-thrilling-enough thriller.
