A Dispatch from the Hermitage
The most cursory glance at the news headlines stirs up a sense of impending doom regarding the current state of American civic and societal life. We are living in an era basking in cruelty and hostile to knowledge. Culture, education, and the arts are decried as useless and even polluting. Like many, I find myself minimizing my news consumption, pulling away from social media, and retreating from discourse.
Ever since I learned to read, I’ve turned to books for comfort, inspiration, and companionship. Given the present national affairs and recent personal challenges, I find myself spending almost every free moment–whether that be a ride on the subway or a rainy afternoon at home–with a book in my hand. Lately, the mystery genre (and its manifold sub-genres) have captured my imagination.
The Devil Aspect by Craig Russell transported me to the former Czechoslovakia at the cusp of the Second World War. Two intertwined narratives drive the novel: a police detective hunts Prague for an increasingly brutal serial killer mimicking Jack the Ripper, and a Jungian psychiatrist performs experimental therapy on a small group of infamously violent inmates held within an isolated medieval castle. The inclusion of a possible supernatural element adds another thrill to Russell’s book.
The recently published Whistle by Linwood Barclay utilizes small-town settings, model train foamers, and parallel timelines to fashion a fun and compelling story straddling the boundaries between mystery and horror. Whistle reads like a love-letter to classic Stephen King novels such as It and Needful Things, and this book evoked warm memories of discovering King and other authors as a younger reader.
Currently, I have the luxury of access to advanced reading copies of upcoming mysteries and other books. One title which I hope finds an audience upon its release this coming July is Inner Space by Polish-Canadian author Jakub Szamalek. The novel takes place in the International Space Station, where tensions between the American and Russian astronauts quickly escalate after a strange occurence. Interestingly, this book was written in Polish and translated into English. Due to the draconian cuts to the National Endowment for the Arts and the possible elimination of the agency itself, far fewer foreign language works will be translated, and American readers will be greatly impoverished.
These are the books that have excited me during the past several weeks. If you have any titles or authors to share, I would love to hear your suggestions.