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Snowdrops Hardcover – International Edition, February 22, 2011

3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 1,663 ratings

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Shortlisted for the 2011 Man Booker Prize

Shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger 2011

Nick Platt is an English lawyer living in Moscow during thewild Russian oil boom. Riding the subway on a balmySeptember day, he rescues two willowy sisters, Masha andKatya, from a would-be purse snatcher. Nick soon begins tofeel something for Masha that he is pleased to believe is love.As the snow starts to fall, the sisters introduce him to TatianaVladimirovna, their aged aunt and the owner of a valuableapartment. Before summer arrives, Nick will travel down to thesweaty Black Sea and up to the Arctic, and he’ll make disturbingdiscoveries about his job, his lover and, most of all, himself.

Snowdrops is a fast-paced drama that unfolds during abeautiful but lethally cold Russian winter. Ostensibly a storyof naive foreigners and cynical natives, the novel becomessomething richer and darker: a tale of erotic obsession, self-deceptionand moral freefall. It is set in a land of hedonism anddesperation, corruption and kindness, magical hideaways anddebauched nightclubs; a place where secrets, and corpses, cometo light when the snows thaw.

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About the Author

Born in London in 1974, A.D. MILLER studied literature at Cambridge and Princeton. He writes for The Economist; from 2004 to 2007 he was the magazine’s Moscow correspondent, travelling widely across Russia and the former Soviet Union. He is the author of the acclaimed family history The Earl of Petticoat Lane. Snowdrops is his first novel.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins Publishers (February 22, 2011)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 288 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1554687837
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1554687831
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.13 x 0.99 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 1,663 ratings

Customer reviews

3.7 out of 5 stars
1,663 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers praise the writing quality as well-crafted and descriptive. They find the book an enjoyable read that keeps them hooked. The visuals depict contemporary Moscow in a vivid way. Opinions differ on the plot development, with some finding it compelling and well-crafted, while others consider it weak or predictable. There are mixed views on the character development, with some finding them realistic and based on real people, while others feel they're stiff or idiotic. There are also mixed reviews on the pacing, with some finding it sympathetic and slow at times, while others feel it lacks excitement.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

34 customers mention "Writing quality"31 positive3 negative

Customers enjoy the writing quality of the book. They find the prose well-crafted and descriptive, with accurate details about Russia and its people. The plot is described as quirky and thought-provoking at times. Readers appreciate the author's knowledge of the city and its people.

"...early 1990s, and found this novel to be insightful and entertaining in describing the city, its vibes and its people...." Read more

"A brilliant book, great writing. The plot is slow to develop, but I enjoyed the style as the story was told...." Read more

"...It is also clear that the author is well schooled, or at least studied, in the fields of property transfer Russian style and the big league money..." Read more

"...And the sisters were involved. Simply and sparsely written, the scam is slowly revealed, just as the body is slowly thawing and surfacing..." Read more

30 customers mention "Readability"25 positive5 negative

Customers enjoy the book's readability. They find it engaging and well-written, with descriptive language about Russia. While some feel the story lacks excitement, others consider it a compelling page-turner.

"A brilliant book, great writing. The plot is slow to develop, but I enjoyed the style as the story was told...." Read more

"...However It flows and keeps you reading. 2.75* GIBO" Read more

"...the fascination in reading this book lies in the curiosity that one demonstrates, in trying to find out the extent of nick's self deception." Read more

"...And it's for this reason that while "Snowdrops" is a fine, compelling read there's a Brett Easton ELlis-ian numbness on the part of the narrator..." Read more

7 customers mention "Visual quality"7 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the vivid depiction of contemporary Moscow. They find the story fascinating and interesting, with a great picture of small-scale corruption.

"...the visual imagery created in describing the moscow of the 1990's is beautiful...." Read more

"...Also an interesting depiction of the slow corruption of the soul of some one who barely notices his slide into total betrayal of any morals...." Read more

"...Effortless, beautiful, funny and unputdownable." Read more

"Fascinating story. Great picture of the small scale corruption endemic in present day Russia. It was hard to put down." Read more

30 customers mention "Plot development"12 positive18 negative

Customers have different views on the plot. Some find it fascinating and well-crafted, with a believable main premise. Others feel the storyline is weak, with predictable twists and turns. The scenery and life in Russia are compelling, but the ending seems predictable.

"A brilliant book, great writing. The plot is slow to develop, but I enjoyed the style as the story was told...." Read more

"...Miller builds up the thriller tension nicely, albeit with excessive use of remarks like "Things could -- I'm sure, I hope -- have been different, if..." Read more

"...in this tale as the initial foreshadowing suggests but it is not a murder mystery...." Read more

"Snow Drops is set in Moscow and is the chilling tale of the corruption that has evolved in modern Russia and that is accepted as a way of life...." Read more

10 customers mention "Character development"5 positive5 negative

Customers have different views on the character development. Some find the characters realistic and based on real people, while others feel the main character is an idiot and the characters are stiff.

"...The characters are easy to accept because we all have projections and stereotypes and our crew here seem like extras from Moscow Unplugged...." Read more

"...The main character is an idiot. I like strong protagonists. This character is not only weak, but he's also an idiot...." Read more

"...The author demonstrates this beautifully through his character; an expat lawyer who practices in Moscow...." Read more

"...The main character was annoying the way he was made out to be intelligent and independent but so easily and with few questions was taken under the..." Read more

10 customers mention "Pacing"3 positive7 negative

Customers have different views on the pacing. Some find it sympathetic and enjoyable, capturing the moral gray areas of the time. Others feel it lacks excitement and is depressing.

"...It is neither psychological nor thrilling...." Read more

"This was a slower start for me and my friend and as we read we were having difficulty in accurately defining the protagonist in this book...." Read more

"...Snowdrops is a hard glittering and sad novel of loneliness, desire, despair and hope...." Read more

"...I found well written, but slow and the plot was not very strong...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2012
    I lived in Moscow for a time in the early 1990s, and found this novel to be insightful and entertaining in describing the city, its vibes and its people. The author clearly knows his way around. And the two scams that are central to the plot were not at all uncommon in those days -- hard as that may be to believe. Physical and psychological brutality were a sadly common currency. Certainly not all Russians, nor many, were so brutal -- but enough were to make the characters and their motivations believable.

    While compelling to read, the novel has one overwhelming flaw: Its protagonist is a Russian-speaking British lawyer who, at the time of the story, has a couple of years of experience living and working and doing business in Moscow. Having lived through it all myself, I can attest that there is no way that even a greenhorn fresh off the boat would have remained involved with either of these scams as they unfolded -- any Brit or American with an IQ above 80 would quickly have sensed big trouble coming. Nobody who lived and worked there could possibly have been that stupid.

    We're left to understand that he "did it for love," even though he fully suspects that the object of his amorous fantasy is lying and simply using him. If you can accept all that, you'll enjoy the book; if you can't, you won't.
    8 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2011
    A brilliant book, great writing. The plot is slow to develop, but I enjoyed the style as the story was told. As being from Russia, I cannot recall a better account of today's Russia, its corrupt life, politicians, criminals at large, lawlessness. The culmination of the book (for me) was when the main character's co-worker declares that business crimes in Russia are no different than the ones done in the West. It is absolutely not true. Unlike in any civilized country, in Russia, you can have a murder, imprisonment, nationalization of a company with no repercussions. Only in Russia, the nation's presidents become billionaires.
    The writing is unbelievable. It is the first time I could read an English novel about Russia and understand how a certain phrase would be said in Russian. Five stars!
    6 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2012
    The setting for this story is 21st century Moscow and surrounds. Our hero, if such he is, Nick Plat arrived in Moscow by way of London to sop up some of the incredible amounts of oil investment money flowing into Russia from all corners of the world. As an attorney he was sent there by the firm to act as middle man between those investing and those to whom these enormous baskets of moolah were intended.

    The novel is told by Plat after the fact to his prospective wife as confession in search of, theoretically, absolution or perhaps more mundanely as a cathartic. He starts his story in the Moscow subway where he meets an extremely attractive set of sisters when he apparently rescues them from a would be assailant.

    The author in this debut novel seems to want us to have this picture of latter day Moscow as the horrification that it is. But just in case we don't know he has decided to hit us over the head with it. Having been in Russia there seems to be no question that a certain age group wants its Communism back and others have adopted almost Mafia like strategies to cope or to, at a minimum, game the system. We are treated to descriptions of the dreariness and seemingly unbearable endless Winter. But even Winter ends there and when the snow finally melts it offers up some not so surprising gifts in the form of bodies. The term Snowdrops refers to human remains found months after they went missing only to reappear like green shoots in Spring.

    Death plays a part in this tale as the initial foreshadowing suggests but it is not a murder mystery. In fact for the reader there seems to be less of a mystery than for the protagonist. We have all known someone brilliant yet unsophisticated. Someone who is easily taken in by the beautiful and confident. Nick Plat flatters himself with a delusion which seems apparent to the reader. The juice of this novel is that we are watching this train wreck and it seems only our subject doesn't see it. You are waiting for the recognition, the reawakening, and yes the revenge.

    The characters are easy to accept because we all have projections and stereotypes and our crew here seem like extras from Moscow Unplugged. We are treated to the seamy underbelly of the Moscow Nightclubs where only the super rich, super beautiful and hangers on are allowed. From there to the board rooms where transfers of incredible amounts of money are bandied about while participants slug back shots of never ending vodka.

    In the end we never meet the fiancée but we must wonder if she will find him unforgivably naive under all the circumstances. Your first impression of this work might be that it is a little predictable but we must remember that the author is using the predictability as a convention and therefore it works. It is also clear that the author is well schooled, or at least studied, in the fields of property transfer Russian style and the big league money servicing and oil contracts for Russia's developing resource development industry. If you are looking for a feel good read this probably isn't the one. However It flows and keeps you reading. 2.75* GIBO
    5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • udayan majumdar
    4.0 out of 5 stars Great plotline and the quality of book is excellent.
    Reviewed in India on November 1, 2021
    The book may show low price but is high on content and one of the most engaging thriller.
    The book came with an excellent condition and pages are excellent.
    Anybody who really looking for a taut thriller of Russian underworld and how it operate can find this book very interesting.
    By the way, this book is a booker prize shortlisted, therefore it has literary value too.
  • Sarah
    5.0 out of 5 stars Mosca negli anni 90
    Reviewed in Italy on March 26, 2019
    Una bella storia, scritto bene e rievoca perfettamente Mosca negli anni 90.
  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant!!!!!
    Reviewed in Australia on October 7, 2016
    One day reading but so much to absorb!!!!! Really appreciate it and think it will be good reading for everyone
  • Nadine
    5.0 out of 5 stars Super livre
    Reviewed in France on December 21, 2015
    Super histoire et si vous connaissez un peu la culture Russe ou sovietique, c'est tres realiste. L'auteur etait journaliste en Russie pendant quelques annees et cela reflette dans l'histoire.
  • Kundin
    4.0 out of 5 stars atmosphärisch dicht, ein wenig vorhersagbar
    Reviewed in Germany on October 9, 2012
    Ich habe das Buch bestellt, nachdem ich das Long-List-Archiv des Booker-Preises studiert hatte und mir die Geschichte als solche interessant schien.

    "Snowdrops" beschreibt atmosphärisch dicht das (Expat)Leben in Moskau vor ungefähr zehn Jahren. Ein Firmenanwalt verfällt einer Moskauer Schönheit in der Metro und wird von ihr und ihrer Gang in dunkle Machenschaften hineingezogen. Soweit, so gut zu lesen. Allerdings schmälert sich das Vergnügen ein wenig für alle, die jemals selbst länger als eine Woche in Russland waren. Vieles ist sehr vorhersagbar, vielleicht auch, weil der Autor sich an dem festhalten musste, was er selbst erlebt hat. Und das kann als ein westliches Leben lebender Expat immer nur die Außenansicht sein. Wobei man dem Journalisten A.D. Miller zugute halten kann, dass er sich um Klischeefreiheit bemüht hat.

    Irgendwann jedenfalls fragt man sich, wie der Held, der schon ein paar Jahre in Moskau gelebt hat zum beschriebenen Zeitpunkt, so blöd sein kann und wieso er nicht die richtigen Fragen stellt, sondern schön alles passieren lässt, was am Ende fatal ist, nicht nur für ihn selbst. Zumal die Anziehung zu der Metro-Schönheit unterm Strich - zumindest für den langen Erzählzeitraum - doch ein wenig an den Haaren herbeigezogen wirkt.

    Sei's drum, es ist eine sehr gut geschriebene Geschichte, die einen mitreißt, selbst wenn man schon nach wenigen Seiten weiß, worauf die Metrotruppe aus ist und dem Held beim dusslig in aller Welt Unglück Laufen zuschauen muss. Es gibt wenig spannend geschriebene und gleichzeitig intelligente Gegenwartsromane mit einigermaßen Wirklichkeitsbezug, deshalb trotz genannter Einschränkungen Kaufempfehlung.