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The Oligarch: A Thriller

por G.W. Eccles

Series: Alex Leksin (1)

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Añadido recientemente porTracyJ914, lambertnagle, gweccles
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“Upright in the back seat, the FSB officer waited for the Range Rover to glide to a halt outside the battlemented walls of Novodevichy Convent.” This is the opening of writer G.W. Eccles’ exciting political thriller, The Oligarch.

Author G.W. Eccles spent ten years living and working in Russia and Central Asia before he wrote his highly original and fast-paced political thriller, The Oligarch. But lest you think you’re in for a business history of post-perestroika Russian, then think again. Eccles is a highly engaging storyteller and this is a skilled and assured debut. It’s so skilfully written that you can’t tell that this is a first novel.

You can’t write about Siberia or the political conflicts within Russia without first-hand knowledge. They are, after all, hardly the kinds of places that anyone calling himself a writer would be welcome. Journalists who poke their noses in the wrong places in these parts have a habit of turning up dead.

The Oligarch begins with the election of a Russian President for a third term amid widespread accusations of vote rigging, and deals with the consequences of the President’s determination to claw back from the oligarchs what he regards as the family silver they obtained for a song as a result of the ‘loans for shares’ episode.

Just to give you a bit of background – in the mid 1990s a sick and ailing Yeltsin was struggling to control the new Russia and the government was rapidly running out of cash as government revenues stalled. A group of enormously rich businessmen who had profited from the fallout of the Soviet Union agreed to lend the State money in return for taking shares in major Russian companies (particularly in the natural resources sector) as security. The theory was that the State would borrow money for a year, then repay it and the security would be returned, but everyone knew that Yeltsin would never be able to repay the money in that timescale. As a result the oligarchs gained ownership of enormous companies for a tiny amount of money.

In The Oligarch: A Thriller, there are three main characters, all of who have convincing back stories and come across as three dimensional. Leksin, the hero, who is brought in by the President to investigate what is happening at Tyndersk prior to its appropriation by the State. He’s tough, but then he has to be. He has both physically and mental strength and is unflinching in his determination not to give up.

Anton Blok, the oligarch, who gained control of Tyndersk though the loans for shares scheme, has his own private agenda (about which we learn about as the book progresses) and will stop at nothing to thwart the President’s plans. He’s essentially a thug in a suit: rude, insensitive, greedy, ruthless and dangerous as he has political aspirations.

Finally, Anya, Blok’s daughter. She’s a particularly interesting character because, when we first meet her, she comes across as a rich, spoilt waster, obsessed yet bored with the Moscow social world. However, as she gets to grips with what her father’s doing and the danger in which it’s putting Leksin (with whom she falls in love), she has for once a purpose in life and she shows steely determination in pursuing it.

It’s a shame that mainstream publishers and agents passed up the opportunity to publish The Oligarch. But I’m certain that this will not be the last we’ve heard of writer G.W. Eccles and I look forward to reading the next instalment for Alex Leksin. ( )
  lambertnagle | Feb 12, 2013 |
Having read rave reviews on this site, I felt compelled to purchase 'The Oligarch - A Thriller'. Best book I have read for a while, and I would heartily recommend to adults, children and all in between.

In Alex Leksin GW Eccles has created a protagonist for the ages. A believable lead with a troubled past, he is very much Russia's answer to James Bond. The plot is a roller coaster that leaves the reader on the edge of their seats and unsure our hero's fate until the spectacular finale with a twist ending that will leave you shaken.

Eccles should also be praised for the insight that he provides into modern day Russia, and the intricacies and corruption of central command. It it clear that the author has done his research, and to create such a thrilling book within such a rich and immersive environment is truly a tour de force of literature, and one that marks him out as one to watch for the future.

All in all, a ripping yarn that is hard to put down. I have told all and sundry about this discovery since reading it, and it can only be a matter of time before Eccles is a household name.
añadido por gweccles | editarAmazon, Will Arnold (Aug 27, 2012)
 
I worked in Russia for nearly thirteen years, starting not long after the Soviet Union disintegrated, and everything in this novel rings true to my experience - the excessive wealth of the 'businessmen' (as they were termed when I first arrived), the subtle - and not so subtle - interfering ways of the FSB, the ruthless way in which politicians and businessmen alike dealt with their opponents, the similarities between the situation in Ingushetia (as depicted here) and in Chechnya, and the burning cold, isolation and pollution of Siberian towns in Winter. Even the details are amazingly accurate: how people dress, the squalor of the living quarters, the nightmare of Siberian airports, everything. The author has certainly done his homework thoroughly, and in doing so has produced a truly first-class thriller. I was riveted.
añadido por gweccles | editarPowell Books USA, Leo Manse (Aug 20, 2012)
 
I am generally not a great fan of the thriller genre, but a friend of mine recommended that I buy The Oligarch, and I was surprised to find myself totally hooked almost as soon as I started reading. Not only does the story unfold at lightening speed right from its very dramatic and unexpected beginning, but - rare for a thriller in my experience - the characterisations are totally believable and the writing is of a very high standard. Just one small gripe: why has it only been published as an e-book? I can't help feeling that many people will miss out on this excellent story without a hard copy edition being available.

añadido por gweccles | editarBarnes & Noble, Maude Beattie (Aug 20, 2012)
 
I was recommended this book, in somewhat bizarre circumstances, by a lovely professor of eastern European literature from the University of Gdansk in Poland. After meeting her in a small pub in Suffolk and sharing a mutual love of fine English scrumpy ciders (which are not necessary for the enjoyment of this book but I wouldn't put you off the combination...) we got talking about my Russian heritage. She told me one of her students had raved about this book and she was surprised upon reading it how true to life and insightful the book was to the Russian culture/tensions without taking anything away from it being "a darn good page-turner" (her one snippet of colloquial English she had acquired I believe!). She recommended I read it so I took the plunge and gave it a click!

I have never been one to chase an established author leading to me being laughed off the school bus for reading `Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone' many moons ago before the series was famous. One cannot put a price on that feeling of discovery and victory at being the first to pick up on a future craze. Whilst unfortunately I do not own Harry Potter, no-one can take away the feeling I now possess that I do and made each bit of orange peel and crisp packet thrown at me on that bus worth the citrusy humiliation. Whilst the wonders of a kindle have saved the above scenario from being re-enacted (as you can't see what people are reading), the moral still stands and once again I was not disappointed, this time with G. Eccles, and I hope this is just the tip of the iceberg of what he has written!

Eccles takes on a controversial subject with the balls required to do it justice and pulls no punches with the plot and its revelations. A vein of love woven through the meaty flesh of the action brings the characters off the page and makes this book one to watch for the discoverers!
añadido por gweccles | editarAmazon, Roamn Jakov (Aug 20, 2012)
 
Captures vividly that unique blend of menace and chaos which continues to characterise post-soviet Russia. A thriller in every sense of the word.
añadido por gweccles | editarAmazon, Peter Lion (Aug 8, 2012)
 

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