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Приключения Пелагии (серия «Провинціальный детективъ») #1
Die weißen Hunde
In a remote Russian province in the late nineteenth century, Bishop Mitrofanii must deal with a family crisis. After learning that one of his great aunt’s beloved and rare white bulldogs has been poisoned, the Orthodox bishop knows there is only one detective clever enough to investigate the Sister Pelagia.The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, extraordinarily clumsy, and persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything.As Pelagia bumbles and intuits her way to the heart of a mystery among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.”
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
88 people are currently reading
1394 people want to read
About the author
Boris Akunin
297 books1,648 followersReal name - Grigory Shalvovich Chkhartishvili (Russian: Борис Акунин; Georgian: გრიგორი შალვას ძე ჩხარტიშვილი; Аlso see Grigory Chkhartishvili, Григорий Чхартишвили), born in Tbilisi, Georgia, in 1956. Since 1958 he lives in Moscow. Writer and translator from Japanese. Author of crime stories set in tsarist Russia. In 1998 he made his debut with novel Azazel (to English readers known as The Winter Queen), where he created Erast Pietrovich Fandorin.
B. Akunin refers to Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin and Akuna, home name of Anna Akhmatova, Russian poet.
In September of 2000, Akunin was named Russian Writer of the Year and won the "Antibooker" prize in 2000 for his Erast Fandorin novel Coronation, or the last of the Romanovs.
Akunin also created crime-solving Orthodox nun, sister Pelagia, and literary genres.
His pseudonyms are Анатолий Брусникин and Анна Борисова. In some Dutch editions he is also known as Boris Akoenin.
B. Akunin refers to Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin and Akuna, home name of Anna Akhmatova, Russian poet.
In September of 2000, Akunin was named Russian Writer of the Year and won the "Antibooker" prize in 2000 for his Erast Fandorin novel Coronation, or the last of the Romanovs.
Akunin also created crime-solving Orthodox nun, sister Pelagia, and literary genres.
His pseudonyms are Анатолий Брусникин and Анна Борисова. In some Dutch editions he is also known as Boris Akoenin.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 220 reviews
June 24, 2018
Well, this was a fast and pleasant read (dead dogs and dead people please me, just what kind of person I am?), one you surely crave for when you're vacationing. It combined many things I enjoy as a reader - mystery, self-made detectives, plot twists, half serious - half humorous narration and a badass red haired heroine. OK, she was as much badass as being a orthodox nun in XIX century provincial Russia allowed, but still, she was quite extraordinary. Sister Pelagia - that's her name - is Holmes-like character that drives the whole story forward and still remains quite mysterious, which only made my appetite for next books in series bigger.
Don't be mistaken - the murders are quite gruesome, those of people as much as those of dogs (and to be honest I kind of cared more for dogs...). But Akunin masterfully managed to balance it all well enough and made a perfect old fashioned detective story.
An additional treat was the stylized language of the novel, but I'm not sure if it preserved its peculiar charm in translation.
Looking forward for more sister Pelagia action and adventure!
Don't be mistaken - the murders are quite gruesome, those of people as much as those of dogs (and to be honest I kind of cared more for dogs...). But Akunin masterfully managed to balance it all well enough and made a perfect old fashioned detective story.
An additional treat was the stylized language of the novel, but I'm not sure if it preserved its peculiar charm in translation.
Looking forward for more sister Pelagia action and adventure!
January 3, 2019
Akunin just couldn't help it - he HAD to put his nun investigator in a revealing dress and create a situation where she would describe the shape and color of her breasts.
Otherwise, it was a fine escapist murder mystery set in XIX century Russia. Akunin deploys a very stylized faux-old-timey Russian language a la Gogol, et al, but it managed not to bother me too much. I might read another one.
Dogs die, just FYI.
Otherwise, it was a fine escapist murder mystery set in XIX century Russia. Akunin deploys a very stylized faux-old-timey Russian language a la Gogol, et al, but it managed not to bother me too much. I might read another one.
Dogs die, just FYI.
March 31, 2012
Do you remember this show "Father Dowling Mysteries" or "Father Dowling Investigates" in UK (or "Detektyw w sutannie" for all my Polish comrades)?
This book is like this show, only in 19th century Russia. There is a fatherly, protective provincial bishop Reverend Mitrofanii and there is witty, a little-to-pretty-to-be-a-nun Sister Pelagia. And there are some dead people, dead dogs, sex scandals and what not.
Boris Akunin stays true to the tradition of the Russian novel and starts the book off with lengthy introductions of various characters that might or might not reappear in the book and includes all their names, nicknames, surnames and patronymics. I really don't have the brain power to process all that. I prefer when the characterization is short and to the point like when Akunin describes Anton Antonovich von Haggenau who "used to be a German, but he completely recovered."
Strangely enough, the only character about whom we know very little is Sister Pelagia. We don't know why she ended up as a nun (it is clear it hasn't always been her calling) or why Mitrofanii singled her out. I suppose it will all be revealed slowly in following books.
The mystery itself revolves around some white bulldogs that drop dead one after another and Synodical Inspector who arrives from St Petersburg like the Spanish Inquisition bent on eradicating everything that is not Russian Orthodox Church, be it the Old Believers or even "older" believers, i.e. pure pagans.
Akunin is a true master of leaving the clues for you all over the book without making anything too obvious. He is not one of those rubbish crime writers, who will withhold an important piece of information revealed to the detective in the story but not to the reader. No, Akunin gives you all, whether you can piece together before Sister Pelagia is an entirely different matter.
If you like well-crafted intrigues, try Akunin. I thought "Pelagia and the White Bulldog" was amazing and apparently that is his 'weaker' series.
This book is like this show, only in 19th century Russia. There is a fatherly, protective provincial bishop Reverend Mitrofanii and there is witty, a little-to-pretty-to-be-a-nun Sister Pelagia. And there are some dead people, dead dogs, sex scandals and what not.
Boris Akunin stays true to the tradition of the Russian novel and starts the book off with lengthy introductions of various characters that might or might not reappear in the book and includes all their names, nicknames, surnames and patronymics. I really don't have the brain power to process all that. I prefer when the characterization is short and to the point like when Akunin describes Anton Antonovich von Haggenau who "used to be a German, but he completely recovered."
Strangely enough, the only character about whom we know very little is Sister Pelagia. We don't know why she ended up as a nun (it is clear it hasn't always been her calling) or why Mitrofanii singled her out. I suppose it will all be revealed slowly in following books.
The mystery itself revolves around some white bulldogs that drop dead one after another and Synodical Inspector who arrives from St Petersburg like the Spanish Inquisition bent on eradicating everything that is not Russian Orthodox Church, be it the Old Believers or even "older" believers, i.e. pure pagans.
Akunin is a true master of leaving the clues for you all over the book without making anything too obvious. He is not one of those rubbish crime writers, who will withhold an important piece of information revealed to the detective in the story but not to the reader. No, Akunin gives you all, whether you can piece together before Sister Pelagia is an entirely different matter.
If you like well-crafted intrigues, try Akunin. I thought "Pelagia and the White Bulldog" was amazing and apparently that is his 'weaker' series.
July 22, 2020
I have read Akunin's The Winter Queen, which I enjoyed, but apparently not enough to think I should rush out and buy the next in the series. This one had me looking at options before I was even finished. I often miss any intended humor on the printed page. I might have missed some here, too, but I also laughed out loud in a few places. Perhaps it was the opening sentence that set that mood for me.
I thought the characterizations of the reverend Mitrofanii and Sister Pelagia more than caricatures but not quite fully-fleshed. Still, I liked them both and they drove the novel. Quite a bit of plot, of course. I even remarked to myself that there were scenes reminiscent of westerns and that someone really ought to make a film. The setting is pre-Soviet Russia. There are references to Russian literature, some of which I'd read and some not. The Bishop and Pelagia even have a discussion about whether Dostoyevsky, in Crime and Punishment, needed Raskolnikov to kill the money lender's servant in order for there to be the proper outrage for his crime. It was a short discussion, but still...
The ending is a surprise. The very very very ending has Pelagia looking out the window and seeing the beginning of installment two of the series: Pelagia and the Black Monk. This isn't a spoiler, you can learn maybe more by reading the GR description. I'm quite likely to make a couple of clicks and have a good used copy coming my way. 4-stars for this - it isn't literary enough to be more than that, but I'd be tempted for the pure enjoyment.
... But I should tell you that, come the apple festival of Transfiguration Day, when the sky begins to change from summer to autumn, it is the usual thing for our town to be overrun by an absolute plague of cicadas, so that by night, much as you might wish to sleep, you never can, what with all that interminable trilling on all sides, and the stars hanging down low over your head, and especially with the moon dangling just above the tops of the bell towers, for all the world like one of our renowned "smetana" apples, the kind that the local merchants supply to the royal court and even take to shows in Europe.One sentence and you get a religious festival, cicadas, stars, the moon and apples. I'm glad I don't have to diagram it! There aren't many of such length, by the way, but the author's ability to cover more than one thought in a short space continues throughout.
I thought the characterizations of the reverend Mitrofanii and Sister Pelagia more than caricatures but not quite fully-fleshed. Still, I liked them both and they drove the novel. Quite a bit of plot, of course. I even remarked to myself that there were scenes reminiscent of westerns and that someone really ought to make a film. The setting is pre-Soviet Russia. There are references to Russian literature, some of which I'd read and some not. The Bishop and Pelagia even have a discussion about whether Dostoyevsky, in Crime and Punishment, needed Raskolnikov to kill the money lender's servant in order for there to be the proper outrage for his crime. It was a short discussion, but still...
The ending is a surprise. The very very very ending has Pelagia looking out the window and seeing the beginning of installment two of the series: Pelagia and the Black Monk. This isn't a spoiler, you can learn maybe more by reading the GR description. I'm quite likely to make a couple of clicks and have a good used copy coming my way. 4-stars for this - it isn't literary enough to be more than that, but I'd be tempted for the pure enjoyment.
March 24, 2009
What a treat! This was the second book by Boris Akunin I have read; a year or two ago I read The Winter Queen and enjoyed that as well.
What made this book so fun for me was the voice and setting. We're in Czarist Russia, in the provinces. The plot revolves around an attempted power-grab by a representative of the Russian Orthodox Church. We're rooting for the local bishop and the smart, capable Sister Pelagia (pronounce it pyellaGAYa), to thwart him. Some people (and some white bulldogs) are murdered; you'll have to read the book to see if and how evil is thwarted.
This seems simple enough, but it's in Russia, in a period I never read about, so I don't have the cultural background Akunin can assume in his Russian readers. I love that feeling, of being where I don't understand things that the characters know intimately. It's curiously like reading Neuromancer or even anything by Jane Austen. Or consider reading a western: when the sheriff ambles out onto the dusty main street, two six-guns on his hips, we know what that means, but if you were not from around these parts, you'd might need some schoolin'. Similarly, we know that there's a built-in conflict between farmers and ranchers, and that water, fences, and cheating at cards can get a man shot. What a treat to be from outside the culture, and get to observe its denizens going about their lives in the hands of an accomplished writer.
An example from this book will show you what I mean. The visiting procurator (the bad guy) tries to get the public behind him to wrest power from the local Bishop (the good guy) by pointing out how soft he is on the Old Believers, who should be brought back to the Orthodox fold. It's dangerous for them to be allowed their faith, bad for the morals of the children, dangerous for society.
So I asked my local informant on czarist Russia about "Old Believers"; it turns out that they were (and are) religious conservatives who didn't want to westernize under Peter the Great. "Think of them as Amish," he said. So imagine a church rep in the US trying to stoke the flames of fear about Amish terrorists; it could be a very funny premise.
But it's not just satiric references to Russian culture; it's the whole voice of the piece. I suspect it's very well translated, that the nuance of the original Russian is preserved. We hear clearly the way people tiptoe around issues, how they slyly disrespect each other. In addition, the author has a wonderful way of inserting the storyteller's voice; it doesn't smell like 20th or 21st-century prose. It's not from around here, in time or space, and that gentle "otherness" is enchanting.
What made this book so fun for me was the voice and setting. We're in Czarist Russia, in the provinces. The plot revolves around an attempted power-grab by a representative of the Russian Orthodox Church. We're rooting for the local bishop and the smart, capable Sister Pelagia (pronounce it pyellaGAYa), to thwart him. Some people (and some white bulldogs) are murdered; you'll have to read the book to see if and how evil is thwarted.
This seems simple enough, but it's in Russia, in a period I never read about, so I don't have the cultural background Akunin can assume in his Russian readers. I love that feeling, of being where I don't understand things that the characters know intimately. It's curiously like reading Neuromancer or even anything by Jane Austen. Or consider reading a western: when the sheriff ambles out onto the dusty main street, two six-guns on his hips, we know what that means, but if you were not from around these parts, you'd might need some schoolin'. Similarly, we know that there's a built-in conflict between farmers and ranchers, and that water, fences, and cheating at cards can get a man shot. What a treat to be from outside the culture, and get to observe its denizens going about their lives in the hands of an accomplished writer.
An example from this book will show you what I mean. The visiting procurator (the bad guy) tries to get the public behind him to wrest power from the local Bishop (the good guy) by pointing out how soft he is on the Old Believers, who should be brought back to the Orthodox fold. It's dangerous for them to be allowed their faith, bad for the morals of the children, dangerous for society.
So I asked my local informant on czarist Russia about "Old Believers"; it turns out that they were (and are) religious conservatives who didn't want to westernize under Peter the Great. "Think of them as Amish," he said. So imagine a church rep in the US trying to stoke the flames of fear about Amish terrorists; it could be a very funny premise.
But it's not just satiric references to Russian culture; it's the whole voice of the piece. I suspect it's very well translated, that the nuance of the original Russian is preserved. We hear clearly the way people tiptoe around issues, how they slyly disrespect each other. In addition, the author has a wonderful way of inserting the storyteller's voice; it doesn't smell like 20th or 21st-century prose. It's not from around here, in time or space, and that gentle "otherness" is enchanting.
January 16, 2013
I *love* this book! It's not your typical mystery because Akunin goes off on these tangents about the history of the town it's set in, and who the people are, and things like that. I loved that, though. It never felt confusing or made the story bog down, because Akunin is really good at telling stories within stories.
And the main character, Pelagia, is a hoot. She's a clumsy and awkward nun who's brilliant at solving mysteries, but the credit for it goes to Bishop Mitrofanii because, you know, he's a man and a bishop and all that. But he's not overbearing or sexist at all; he knows Pelagia should get the credit, but she doesn't like the spotlight and he takes guilty pleasure in his fame. Still, they're really good friends, almost like a real father and daughter. So when Mitrofanii's aunt writes him about a crisis--her beloved and rare bulldog has been killed--he sends Pelagia to investigate.
Surprisingly, Pelagia wraps up the mystery of the dead bulldog in the first half of the book; she knows it's only part of a larger mystery that probably involves an inspector from the capital who's come to challenge the temporal and spiritual leaders of the town. The solution to the mystery is the climax of a courtroom scene that happens only after several false solutions have been found and discarded. The book ends with the promise of the next book, Pelagia and the Black Monk--literally ends with an ellipsis that I bet leads into the first sentence of that book.
An interview with Akunin at the end of my copy of this book reveals that he wanted to show that popular literature and good fiction could be the same thing. He definitely approaches his fiction with literary skill and the attitude that good writing is important to any kind of story. I'm fascinated with his insights into modern Russian literature and look forward to reading as many of his books as I can get.
And the main character, Pelagia, is a hoot. She's a clumsy and awkward nun who's brilliant at solving mysteries, but the credit for it goes to Bishop Mitrofanii because, you know, he's a man and a bishop and all that. But he's not overbearing or sexist at all; he knows Pelagia should get the credit, but she doesn't like the spotlight and he takes guilty pleasure in his fame. Still, they're really good friends, almost like a real father and daughter. So when Mitrofanii's aunt writes him about a crisis--her beloved and rare bulldog has been killed--he sends Pelagia to investigate.
Surprisingly, Pelagia wraps up the mystery of the dead bulldog in the first half of the book; she knows it's only part of a larger mystery that probably involves an inspector from the capital who's come to challenge the temporal and spiritual leaders of the town. The solution to the mystery is the climax of a courtroom scene that happens only after several false solutions have been found and discarded. The book ends with the promise of the next book, Pelagia and the Black Monk--literally ends with an ellipsis that I bet leads into the first sentence of that book.
An interview with Akunin at the end of my copy of this book reveals that he wanted to show that popular literature and good fiction could be the same thing. He definitely approaches his fiction with literary skill and the attitude that good writing is important to any kind of story. I'm fascinated with his insights into modern Russian literature and look forward to reading as many of his books as I can get.
August 24, 2016
Don't you love it when a novel surpasses your expectations. This one did in every aspect: the story, the thrill, the mystery and a twist in the final chapter.
The story occurs in the province of Zavolzhsk in Russia which started to lose its peace with arrival of a synodical inspector from St Petersburg who's a sly fox and has a secret agenda.
Meanwhile in the estate of Drozdovka, a white Bulldog which belong Marya Afanasievna (the owner of the estate) is poisoned, and she's afraid for her two-remaining dogs. She writes to her nephew Mitrofanii (Who is the Bishop of Zavolzhsk) and asks him to investigate the matter since he had helped the police in previous cases. Bishop Mitrofanii sends sister Pelagia in his place (who is clumsy, yet has a sharp mind and a good observation) to find the truth. However, on her way she witnesses the discovery of two headless bodies which were pulled out of the river on the edge of Drozdovka estate.
Could the two incidents be related? or is it a mere coincidence?. It's up to sister Pelagia to find out.
The story occurs in the province of Zavolzhsk in Russia which started to lose its peace with arrival of a synodical inspector from St Petersburg who's a sly fox and has a secret agenda.
Meanwhile in the estate of Drozdovka, a white Bulldog which belong Marya Afanasievna (the owner of the estate) is poisoned, and she's afraid for her two-remaining dogs. She writes to her nephew Mitrofanii (Who is the Bishop of Zavolzhsk) and asks him to investigate the matter since he had helped the police in previous cases. Bishop Mitrofanii sends sister Pelagia in his place (who is clumsy, yet has a sharp mind and a good observation) to find the truth. However, on her way she witnesses the discovery of two headless bodies which were pulled out of the river on the edge of Drozdovka estate.
Could the two incidents be related? or is it a mere coincidence?. It's up to sister Pelagia to find out.
January 8, 2019
I seem to entice traps when I pick up a book. I think I am reading a book that is a murder mystery, or a historical fiction, or some dabbling in magic realism.
And then all of a sudden, I am transported back to a lecture theatre where some guy is lecturing us on some obscure theory.
With powerpoints, but he doesn't know how to use PowerPoint. So he has copied his entire lecture text on to one slide in PowerPoint. But as the text box is too large, he can't use the slideshow function (actually, I doubt he fucking knows what that is anyway), and so scrolls down the screen of his text box of black 12 point text on the grey background screen of the program for a 60 mins of my life I will never get back.
Right, so now we have established I am still traumatised from an anthropology course I took (and quickly dropped after 3 weeks of this not getting better) 15 years ago, we can appreciate I dislike when I think of and re-live this when I read.
It's a murder mystery with nuns in 18th C Russia. Stop lecturing me on moral philosophy!! WHY CAN'T YOU JUST BE FUN?!?!
When the book was just murder and mystery, it was fun. When it felt like the School of Philosophy had commandeered my lounge room for their weekly meetings (which is a joke, my School of Philosophy doesn't believe in meetings. Ever.) not so much.
And then all of a sudden, I am transported back to a lecture theatre where some guy is lecturing us on some obscure theory.
With powerpoints, but he doesn't know how to use PowerPoint. So he has copied his entire lecture text on to one slide in PowerPoint. But as the text box is too large, he can't use the slideshow function (actually, I doubt he fucking knows what that is anyway), and so scrolls down the screen of his text box of black 12 point text on the grey background screen of the program for a 60 mins of my life I will never get back.
Right, so now we have established I am still traumatised from an anthropology course I took (and quickly dropped after 3 weeks of this not getting better) 15 years ago, we can appreciate I dislike when I think of and re-live this when I read.
It's a murder mystery with nuns in 18th C Russia. Stop lecturing me on moral philosophy!! WHY CAN'T YOU JUST BE FUN?!?!
When the book was just murder and mystery, it was fun. When it felt like the School of Philosophy had commandeered my lounge room for their weekly meetings (which is a joke, my School of Philosophy doesn't believe in meetings. Ever.) not so much.
November 26, 2007
I first picked up one of Akunin's novels because I needed a book to read, and one of the cover blurbs referred to his character Fandorin as a Russian James Bond. This didn't prove correct, he was very much a character all his own, and in many ways much deeper than Fleming's super spy. Akunin's Fandorin novels are excellent historical fiction, with carefully put together depictions of 19th century Russia, and very well formed characters.
Sister Pelagia is even better. An unambitious and slightly awkward nun, as an openly acknowledged tribute to G.K. Chesterton, she is surrounded by a host of fascinating characters. The story takes place in the province of Zavolzhsk, which is somewhat far from the capital of St. Petersburg, but being drawn into the politics of that far off capital. The reliance on such a small locality for his story is a real strength for Akunin who is able to use this to create a more detailed and complex story than in the more swashbuckling Fandorin novels. The novel begins with a seemingly minor mystery, the death of a particular white bulldog, in the country home of a wealthy widow, but leads into a story that delves into the politics of the day, the religious life of Russia and the Russian provinces, and the entire structure of the province's society.
Sister Pelagia is even better. An unambitious and slightly awkward nun, as an openly acknowledged tribute to G.K. Chesterton, she is surrounded by a host of fascinating characters. The story takes place in the province of Zavolzhsk, which is somewhat far from the capital of St. Petersburg, but being drawn into the politics of that far off capital. The reliance on such a small locality for his story is a real strength for Akunin who is able to use this to create a more detailed and complex story than in the more swashbuckling Fandorin novels. The novel begins with a seemingly minor mystery, the death of a particular white bulldog, in the country home of a wealthy widow, but leads into a story that delves into the politics of the day, the religious life of Russia and the Russian provinces, and the entire structure of the province's society.
October 15, 2017
I found the first of Boris Akunin’s novels about a Russian Orthodox nun who is assigned by her bishop to rather unorthodox solving of mysteries even more delightful than the Erast Fandorin series. Pelagia is a less distant figure than Fandorin and I loved that she was capable of surreptitiously feeding dogs at the table and general mischief (and I like the Bishop Mitrofanii who is a wonderful combination of power and humility!) The omniscient narrator provides a great deal of dry wit that’s also very enjoyable. I’m now eager to seek out the other two Pelagia novels (I believe the last has yet to be published in the US!)
November 17, 2019
I found that I enjoyed Akunin's other series, so I picked this one up.
This one features a nun sleuth, one that doesn't quite fit into the scheme of things in the Russian church, but can solve mysteries nonetheless. In this one, somebody killed a dog, in order for the dog's owner to die of grief, and reap an inheritance.
It's fine, but I liked the other series better.
This one features a nun sleuth, one that doesn't quite fit into the scheme of things in the Russian church, but can solve mysteries nonetheless. In this one, somebody killed a dog, in order for the dog's owner to die of grief, and reap an inheritance.
It's fine, but I liked the other series better.
August 29, 2020
Както винаги Акунин ни пренася умело в едни вълнуващи времена, както само той умее. Историята е интересна, но някак мудна и изпълнена с толкова герои, че е малко уморително да ги проследиш, но пък очарователните описания и типичният елегантен хумор компенсират. Сестра Пелагия е симпатичен образ, но отстъпва доста на колоритния Ераст Фандорин.
Голямо разочарование беше дефект в печата, който ме лиши от страниците между 96та и 113та. Ако купувате изданието от 2005 г. бъдете внимателни.
Голямо разочарование беше дефект в печата, който ме лиши от страниците между 96та и 113та. Ако купувате изданието от 2005 г. бъдете внимателни.
November 25, 2009
This is the first in the Sister Pelagia trilogy, where, as the special envoy of His Grace Bishop Mishenka Mitrofanii, Sister Pelagia, a most unorthodox Russian Orthodox nun, uses her instinct, logic and knitting needles to solve crime and escape scrapes.
If you haven't read Akunin's mysteries before, this would be a delightful introduction. His other series features a different main character, Erast Fandorin, but I prefer Pelagia as she has a better sense of humor and the characters in the Pelagia books are less sinister but no less predictable than the characters of the Fandorin books.
Akunin's characters' dialogue is clever and the social-historical backdop to his books of Tsarist Russia in the 1870's is never off the mark.
Pelagia and the Black Monk is next and the Red Cockerel is third, although technically speaking this is not necessarily a trilogy: there could be more stories about Pelagia.
If you haven't read Akunin's mysteries before, this would be a delightful introduction. His other series features a different main character, Erast Fandorin, but I prefer Pelagia as she has a better sense of humor and the characters in the Pelagia books are less sinister but no less predictable than the characters of the Fandorin books.
Akunin's characters' dialogue is clever and the social-historical backdop to his books of Tsarist Russia in the 1870's is never off the mark.
Pelagia and the Black Monk is next and the Red Cockerel is third, although technically speaking this is not necessarily a trilogy: there could be more stories about Pelagia.
September 6, 2010
Wonderful language, very reminiscent of Bulgakhov at his satiric best ("He used to be a German, but he recovered" is one sentence that made me laugh). Wonderful characters, including the bulldogs, who are bred so that they slobber excessively (like that is a most desirable trait!). Really enchanting book that made me smile on almost every page. The only reason I am not giving it 5 stars is that it is a tad too digressive for my plot-driven tastes. Though one digression is set off in different type and introduced thus: "For those who are following our tale only in order to discover how it concludes... it is permissible to omit this brief section completely. No damage will be caused to the elegant line of the narrative as a result." Really, how cute! :)
April 23, 2009
I loved this satirical little tale. There was both a well researched account of the vicissitudes of Empirical Russian provincial political life and a little window into the heart of man. I found it both highly amusing and historically interesting. Apparently Akunin has said that the problems that Russia faces now closely resemble or at least can take lessons from 19th century Russia. I am looking forward to reading more of Akunin's work. His less satirical and more historical works; Turkish Gambit and The State Councillor, I have heard, have been made into excellent movies.
June 23, 2020
I tried but I couldn’t get into it.
I prefer his fandorin series.
I prefer his fandorin series.
May 16, 2010
A tale of murder and mystery in pre-Revolutionary Russia. Bishop Mitrofanii has managed to establish an enviable level of peace and prosperity in his region by exerting measurable influence on many of the local nobility and officials. In matters of faith, he tends to his flock and tolerates those who may not follow the beliefs of the Church strictly, but are otherwise harmless. But this equilibrium is endangered by a letter from his extremely wealthy aunt and a visit from the Synodical Inspector Vladimir Lvovich Bubenstsov. The letter contains a plea for assistance in the ongoing murderous attacks on the wealthy woman's white bulldogs she has devoted much of her life to breeding. Three perfect specimens, almost completely white, bow-legged, and extremely slobbery, have become the target of an assassin, and these attacks have had a detrimental impact on the owner's health and well-being. The discovery of the headless bodies of a man and child is a harbinger of the tensions Bubenstsov presence will provoke. He attributes these murders to pagans taking souvenirs for godless ceremonies and sees this event as evidence that the Bishop has been neglecting his duties to extirpate disbelief. Bubenstsov has the zeal and ambition of a reformed sinner, and is therefore feared by most. Fortunately for Bishop Mitrofanii, he has a secret weapon to help him solve the mystery of the bulldogs--Sister Pelagia, a young, clumsy nun who is a devoted, if poor knitter. Sister Pelagia is very astute, observant, and intuitive despite her youth. In discovering the fiend behind the attacks on the bulldogs she will uncover fiend behind the even bigger mystery. It's all extremely satisfying.
September 30, 2008
A mystery for people who like classic Russian lit, or who just like the novelty of having an Orthodox nun and bishop solve crimes. Sister Pelagia is a great character - people don't give her a second glance in her habit, but she's got sharp wits and a good sense of self-preservation, wielding off would-be attackers with her knitting needles. But she's no Miss Marple in a habit - she's also young and impulsive. The plot starts slowly, with plenty of time spent setting the scene of the country province, the local government and society, issues of corruption and church politics. I got distracted by trying to keep all the characters straight - the Russian naming system makes it twice as hard, to me. The plot thickens about halfway through, and the end features more action and a dramatic courtroom accusation. Things are just wrapping up when a monk makes a dramatic entrance - not to further thicken the plot of this story, but to provide a hook for the next volume in the series. Which I just might have to read.
August 26, 2017
An intriguing and interesting read. When Bishop Mitrofanii sends Sister Pelagia to solve the mystery of the murdered bulldog, little does he realise the perils she will encounter in her quest.
A convulated and complicated tale of 19th century Russia, which I found quite challenging, but stuck with it and was glad I did. Some amazing twists and turns, some brilliant characterisations, and several story lines, a miraculous recovery by the aunt who variously was at death's door and some quite blood curdling murders.
Throughout it all Sister Pelagia is a hero, when threatened with death defying deeds she never flinches, a true heroine indeed, a surprising character, as a nun, who also teaches girls and is physically,mentally and emotionally strong.
I can recommend this novel, and will be looking for further work by Boris Akunin, hopefully involving Sister Pelagia.
A convulated and complicated tale of 19th century Russia, which I found quite challenging, but stuck with it and was glad I did. Some amazing twists and turns, some brilliant characterisations, and several story lines, a miraculous recovery by the aunt who variously was at death's door and some quite blood curdling murders.
Throughout it all Sister Pelagia is a hero, when threatened with death defying deeds she never flinches, a true heroine indeed, a surprising character, as a nun, who also teaches girls and is physically,mentally and emotionally strong.
I can recommend this novel, and will be looking for further work by Boris Akunin, hopefully involving Sister Pelagia.
February 5, 2017
Черное и белое. Шах и мат, преступники!
September 14, 2007
I read several of Akunin's mysteries starring Erast Fandorin and loved them, so I was eager to see what he would do with such a vastly different main character. I liked Sister Pelagia even better. I can't wait for more to be translated.
June 25, 2013
Mystery part was fine, but I got bogged down in all the Russian names and their diminutives. The start of the next mystery at the end of the book did not encourage me to read the next one.
March 10, 2016
Mano apžvalga: http://knygoholike.blogspot.com/2015/...
October 23, 2017
Siamo in Russia, sulle rive del Volga, in un anno non meglio precisato a cavallo tra l’ultimo decennio dell’Ottocento e l’inizio del Novecento. La goffa Pelagija, giovane suora dotata di un acuto spirito di osservazione, riceve dal vescovo Mitrofanij il compito di indagare sulla morte dei preziosi bulldog bianchi di un’anziana zia. Il mistero viene presto ad intrecciarsi con dei brutali omicidi e la comparsa di un subdolo e pericoloso personaggio inviato dalla capitale per prendere misure rigide contro i vecchi credenti.
Ero partita con molte buone intenzioni, sapendo che tra le mani non avevo un libro che mi avrebbe fatta impazzire ma neanche uno di bruttezza allucinante. Mi aspettavo un romanzo leggero, adatto per passare il tempo tra una lettura impegnata e un’altra, invece ho ottenuto solo una gran delusione. Akunin cerca di ispirarsi ai romanzi ottocenteschi, affidando la narrazione a un narratore onnisciente interno alla comunità di Zavolžsk, ma soprattutto infarcendo il libro di digressioni la cui utilità è per lo più dubbia e non fanno che essere d'intralcio alla storia e alla concentrazione. Passi il raccontare la backstory di alcuni personaggi per fornire al lettore indizi, informazioni e sospetti, ma paginette di geografia e discussioni profonde tra vescovo e governatore che non hanno nulla a che vedere con la storia centrale risultano pesanti e superflue. Ci ho anche visto un tentativo di citazione a Dostoevskij, con l’ambiguo Budencov che riesce ad entrare nelle grazie delle persone di spicco della cittadina come il Pëtr Stepanovič Verchovenskij de I Demoni, ma il complesso era talmente sgangherato che non sono riuscita ad apprezzare e, anzi, il sospetto che il riferimento potesse esistere anche al di fuori della mia testa mi ha alquanto infastidita.
Ancora più irritante, però, è stato scoprire che Pelagija non è affatto protagonista del romanzo che porta il suo nome e che la scena è quasi interamente dominata dagli altri personaggi principali e anche dai secondari. Le precedenti esperienze con Akunin mi hanno insegnato a non aspettarmi mai nulla dai suoi personaggi femminili, che non sono esattamente il suo forte, e di Pelagija, infatti, sappiamo e vediamo talmente poco (o non abbastanza) che non riesco a capacitarmi che sia lei la protagonista della trilogia. Magari negli altri romanzi le cose migliorano, ma questo primo libro non ha fatto di certo voglia di andare su Amazon a cercare gli ultimi due. Probabilmente non aiuta neanche l’essere in media res, con Pelagija che ha già collaborato con Mitrofanij per risolvere altri misteri accennati en passant nel libro. Questi riferimenti ai miei occhi hanno reso Pelagija ancora più estranea, una comparsa in una storia in cui avrebbe dovuto brillare. Un peccato, perché Pelagija aveva le carte in regola per essere un buon personaggio e il libro poteva essere un giallo piacevole, senza infamia e senza lode, invece si è rivelato, nel complesso, irritante per via delle varie interruzioni e di personaggi dimenticabili che non riescono ad emergere.
Ero partita con molte buone intenzioni, sapendo che tra le mani non avevo un libro che mi avrebbe fatta impazzire ma neanche uno di bruttezza allucinante. Mi aspettavo un romanzo leggero, adatto per passare il tempo tra una lettura impegnata e un’altra, invece ho ottenuto solo una gran delusione. Akunin cerca di ispirarsi ai romanzi ottocenteschi, affidando la narrazione a un narratore onnisciente interno alla comunità di Zavolžsk, ma soprattutto infarcendo il libro di digressioni la cui utilità è per lo più dubbia e non fanno che essere d'intralcio alla storia e alla concentrazione. Passi il raccontare la backstory di alcuni personaggi per fornire al lettore indizi, informazioni e sospetti, ma paginette di geografia e discussioni profonde tra vescovo e governatore che non hanno nulla a che vedere con la storia centrale risultano pesanti e superflue. Ci ho anche visto un tentativo di citazione a Dostoevskij, con l’ambiguo Budencov che riesce ad entrare nelle grazie delle persone di spicco della cittadina come il Pëtr Stepanovič Verchovenskij de I Demoni, ma il complesso era talmente sgangherato che non sono riuscita ad apprezzare e, anzi, il sospetto che il riferimento potesse esistere anche al di fuori della mia testa mi ha alquanto infastidita.
Ancora più irritante, però, è stato scoprire che Pelagija non è affatto protagonista del romanzo che porta il suo nome e che la scena è quasi interamente dominata dagli altri personaggi principali e anche dai secondari. Le precedenti esperienze con Akunin mi hanno insegnato a non aspettarmi mai nulla dai suoi personaggi femminili, che non sono esattamente il suo forte, e di Pelagija, infatti, sappiamo e vediamo talmente poco (o non abbastanza) che non riesco a capacitarmi che sia lei la protagonista della trilogia. Magari negli altri romanzi le cose migliorano, ma questo primo libro non ha fatto di certo voglia di andare su Amazon a cercare gli ultimi due. Probabilmente non aiuta neanche l’essere in media res, con Pelagija che ha già collaborato con Mitrofanij per risolvere altri misteri accennati en passant nel libro. Questi riferimenti ai miei occhi hanno reso Pelagija ancora più estranea, una comparsa in una storia in cui avrebbe dovuto brillare. Un peccato, perché Pelagija aveva le carte in regola per essere un buon personaggio e il libro poteva essere un giallo piacevole, senza infamia e senza lode, invece si è rivelato, nel complesso, irritante per via delle varie interruzioni e di personaggi dimenticabili che non riescono ad emergere.
June 10, 2019
I liked this one when the title character herself was directly present in the story; however, I found myself skimming through sections where she wasn't. The Russian naming conventions confused me at times, similar to, say, having a character called Jim Farrington, but referred to as "Sparky" as well (seemingly at random).
Looking forward to the sequel
Looking forward to the sequel
December 22, 2021
An interesting mystery set in 19th century Russia. The protagonist, Sister Pelagria, is a nun who operates at the behest of the local bishop. She is smart and observant. The bishop is an important and reformist leader in a rural community far from St. Petersburg. The author, Akunin, can write a harrowing scene. He pokes fun at characters and almost makes the set up of the story entertaining.
August 5, 2022
Нравится мне всё же стиль Акунина, его погружение в реальность книги. Я всегда окунаюсь с головой!
Сказ о детективных расследованиях невесты Христовой, монашки Пелагии - нечто отличное от историй с Эрастом Петровичем. В этом цикле много набожности, осторожных действий юной монахини. Сюжет - очень многогранный! Сначала расследуешь одно, а потом сюжет разворачивает так, что уже дело идёт о совершенно другом. Язык книги - невероятно богатый и многоликий. Описания многочисленных персонажей - особая изюминка!
Сказ о детективных расследованиях невесты Христовой, монашки Пелагии - нечто отличное от историй с Эрастом Петровичем. В этом цикле много набожности, осторожных действий юной монахини. Сюжет - очень многогранный! Сначала расследуешь одно, а потом сюжет разворачивает так, что уже дело идёт о совершенно другом. Язык книги - невероятно богатый и многоликий. Описания многочисленных персонажей - особая изюминка!
July 12, 2024
Was very refreshing after all political books and news I was reading recently
July 17, 2021
Yea! Another series from Boris Akunin. Three books? I think. Different from the Fandorin ones but the sister is very clever the bishop uses her wisely and the description of Russian society delightful. If you love mysteries you must read Akunin. On to the next one!
February 7, 2021
If a child of P.G.Wodehouse and Agatha Christie was Russian in 19th century and wrote detective novels, this is what it would sound (read) like :)
Still, a little too much verbosity and Slavic melancholy for me. As a bonus: good, evil, life, death and old age explained by Mitrophanii (if only I was religious...)
More bonus: other philosophical questions discussed.
Still, a little too much verbosity and Slavic melancholy for me. As a bonus: good, evil, life, death and old age explained by Mitrophanii (if only I was religious...)
More bonus: other philosophical questions discussed.
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