Tony and Susan Paperback – 5 April 2018

Got bored reading this one. The premise on which the book summary is based hardly was there for few pages. Rest is just a drag.

Livro com qualidade razoável, capa linda e história incrível, especialmente para quem gosta do filme.

Well written, interesting novel set on Estonia. Very thought provoking.

Nice book and print.

This rather bleak novel was originally a stage-play; it became a best-seller in Finland when it was published in 2008.It deals with two women who – in a rather contrived plot – are related, one elderly, the other a woman in her 20s who has escaped from Russian sex-traffickers; the structure of the novel therefore presents two stories, each told in flashbacks leading to present-day episodes and conclusion; a set of secret files are presented as a final section.Set on the one hand against the wartime invasion of Estonia by first the Germans, then the Soviets and their occupation, it explores sexual violence against women, collusion, the oppression of living under the Stalinist regime and the extremes of jealousy and an unrequited love; and on the other hand the exploitation of women by the Russian Mafia in the modern world of the 1990s.It's rather more topical given Russia's recent invasion of Ukraine – a reminder of how abominably Russia has behaved in the past towards smaller countries on their Western borders.It's no barrel of laughs; I already knew of the novel through the 2012 film version, so I half remembered it's themes and overall plot.It has been an important work in Finland – set as an opera by composer Jüri Reinvere – so “cult classic” describes it fairly well.

Personally i found the last third unsatisfying, but I enjoyed the first two thirds, and it is well written.