SIMON RECOMMENDS:
"Archangel"
by Robert Harris

Anyone who has read books by Robert Harris (I really had to think twice there; I’ve been confusing him with Thomas Harris who wrote the Hannibal Lecter novels for years now) will be familiar with his particular style of speculative fiction based on real people in history e.g. - what if the Nazis had won WW2 (that's not a tag wrestling competition by the way) in the case of "Fatherland". In" Archangel" Russian studies expert Christopher Kelso is the protagonist on tour in Russia who stumbles upon a political conspiracy of such devastating proportions that his and almost everyone he has contact with is in danger of their lives; not to mention the potential world fallout. True to form the depth and range of Harris's research provides us with a gritty credible picture of Josef Stalin and his reign of terror. As for his elegant prose, he keeps us glued until the last with revelation after shocking revelation.

SIMON REVIEWS:
"Icon"
by Frederick Forsyth

Much less far fetched than "Archangel" some might say, is this political thriller set in a Moscow paralysed by the new the Russian economy. It is said that Forsyth spent many weeks in the crumbling capital researching his story and characters such as a neo-fascist would be leader and the head of the Chechen Maffya. He really does convey the sense of hopeless lawlessness that essentially is the backdrop to his story. "Icon" is a somewhat distressing novel as it tells of the real plight that the country is in and the potential for chaos that exists therein. And something about it leaves me cold; maybe it's the over dramatic and slightly camp climax or maybe it is that despite it's good intentions, what I am left with is the ever so slight but noticeably bitter taste of despair.