Rate: 2/5

Medium: KindleBook

Overview (No Spoilers): Tom Rob Smith’s thriller Child 44 is based in Stalin’s Soviet Russia. While I consider myself fairly well read, this was one of my first books, which took the Russian perspective during that time period. While I enjoyed Smith’s writing style, I had a hard time reading this book based on the likeability of the characters and the violent/helplessness of the general premise. I’d also never considered the perspective of the Russian people and the deep seeded fear and suspicion that Soviet system bred, along with the brute violence and death administered by the MGB task forces under the guise of the betterment of the government. Overall, Child 44 was a predictable, suspense filled journey of Leo coming to terms with many flaws of the government he had blindly served his whole military carrier. Will he risk his life, along side his parents, to protect his wife while searching for a serial killer who manages to evade detection within the confines of the Communist value system?