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Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for allowing me to read this ARC!
Content Warning: death, non-graphic murder, suicide.
Sofie Morse is content. She's freshly married to a lawyer, living in a townhouse that she adores, with an upstairs neighbor she's befriended. The only thing missing, perhaps, is a brilliant career. Sofie, you see, is a journalist, one who has recently quit her job and struck off on her own. When she receives a call from one of the First Lady's aides, it seems too incredible to be believed. But Lara Caine, the secretive, USSR-born wife of the President, wants to write a biography. And she wants Sofie to write it.
As soon as I saw this on NetGalley, I knew I had to apply for an ARC. Ever since childhood, I've fostered a fascination with Russia and the Soviet Union. Growing older, it's led me to doing my own research on Stalin, Gorbachev and Lenin, to reading Tolstoy and Solzhenitsyn, and essentially loving anything Russian (or more broadly, Eastern European). I also love books about spies and political thrillers, so I was overjoyed when my request was accepted!
The very first page hooked me. Pitoniak has a lovely way with words, evocative descriptions that make you feel as if you're really in the room with Sofie or Lara, and she uses her wonderful grasp of language sharply and cleverly. Every single sentence feels as if it's building you up to something, to the next thrill and the next question that leaves you wanting more. The characters were fantastic -- Sofie, for example, feels incredibly real. She is by no means perfect, prone to making mistakes and jumping to conclusions, flaws which only serve to make her more likable.
Lara is fascinating, sometimes hard to understand but in a way that feels engaging rather than frustrating. I think that some people will be unsure about picking this one up due to its close similarities with the Trump presidency, but please, don't let that put you off. It can be difficult to read about issues that are happening in our own lives, but Pitoniak never cheapens it. The similarities are meaningful, and excellently handled.
Speaking frankly, there was nothing I didn't like about this beautifully rendered novel. I cannot recommend it enough. When it is finally released to the public, do yourself a favor and pick it up! I'll be on the lookout for more from Pitoniak. She may have found her way onto my favorite authors list!
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