The Secret Speech (book)
Encyclopedia
The Secret Speech is the second novel by British author Tom Rob Smith
. The book features a repeat appearance of Leo Stepanovich Demidov, the protagonist of Smith's first book, Child 44
. The book is a further exploration of the Soviet Union
Joseph Stalin
created.
The title refers to Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev
's 1956 address admitting Stalin's crimes. The book continues to develop the theme begun in Smith's first work. Leo's nationalism evolves as a microcosm of the country's social revolution. The book serves as a good illustration of the internal conflict the citizens felt under Stalin's reign.
Over the course of the two books, Smith develops his protagonist's understanding of family. In this second offering, the daughters of slain farmers from the first book return. A conflict develops helping to illustrate to the reader the issues introduced during the release of political prisoners after Stalin's death.
USA Today praised it as an "breathlessly paced", "explosive thriller", going "even further than [the] acclaimed Child 44 in capturing the mood of the Cold War-era Soviet Union". Kirkus gave it a starred review, calling it a "superb thriller, full of pitch-perfect atmosphere.” Charlie Higson for the Guardian called it "a great piledriver of a read".
Tom Rob Smith
Tom Rob Smith is an English writer. The son of a Swedish mother and an English father, Smith was born and raised in London.Smith studied at St. John's College, Cambridge, following his graduation in 2001 he received the Harper Wood Studentship for English Poetry and Literature and continued his...
. The book features a repeat appearance of Leo Stepanovich Demidov, the protagonist of Smith's first book, Child 44
Child 44
Child 44 is a thriller novel by British writer Tom Rob Smith, and features disgraced MGB Agent Leo Demidov, who investigates a series of gruesome child murders in Stalin's Soviet Union....
. The book is a further exploration of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
created.
The title refers to Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
's 1956 address admitting Stalin's crimes. The book continues to develop the theme begun in Smith's first work. Leo's nationalism evolves as a microcosm of the country's social revolution. The book serves as a good illustration of the internal conflict the citizens felt under Stalin's reign.
Over the course of the two books, Smith develops his protagonist's understanding of family. In this second offering, the daughters of slain farmers from the first book return. A conflict develops helping to illustrate to the reader the issues introduced during the release of political prisoners after Stalin's death.
USA Today praised it as an "breathlessly paced", "explosive thriller", going "even further than [the] acclaimed Child 44 in capturing the mood of the Cold War-era Soviet Union". Kirkus gave it a starred review, calling it a "superb thriller, full of pitch-perfect atmosphere.” Charlie Higson for the Guardian called it "a great piledriver of a read".
External links
- Review from Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles TimesThe Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
- Review from The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...