Rated of 5
by Bonnie B. (Port St. Lucie, FL) Moscow - "that city of neon lust and frenetic sin"
' "Snowdrop" said Steve. "Your friend is a snowdrop". That's what they call them, he told me - that's what they call the bodies that come to light with the thaw. Drunks mostly, and homeless people who give up and lie down in the snow, and the odd vanished murder victim. Snowdrops.'
A. D. Miller has written a compelling noir novel of love, lust, and betrayal in Moscow, where nothing is as it seems. Nick is an attorney currently working in London and this book takes the form of his remembrances of his time in Moscow as he tells them to his English fiancee. It is about how he meets Masha and Katya on the metro and how their lives become intertwined. It is about deals involving oil rigs and selling apartments. The novel is about many things but, ultimately, it is about how far will a man go in deceiving himself that he is doing good when he knows that he is taking part in deceptive and harmful acts.
I could not put the book down. It is a literary page-turner that grabbed me from the get-go. It would be a shame if this does not have a wide readership. It is THAT good.
Rated of 5
by Jen S. (Marple Public Library, Broomall, PA) A Dark Russian Thriller: Snowdrops by A.D. Miller
"Snowdrops" is a dark Russian thriller, with tricky characters I was never sure I could trust. Written in the first person, the narrator, Nick Platt is a British lawyer living in Moscow. His voice seems sincere, relating his Russian experiences to his fiance, but is his story believable, or is he just trying to justify his actions? There's a strong sense of foreboding right from the beginning, and it continues throughout the story, with failed financial dealings, broken families and missing neighbors. While I was able to predict the ending, I enjoyed the time I spent with Nick. "Snowdrops" will appeal to readers who enjoy business-thrillers with a European twist.
Rated of 5
by Stephanie W. (Hudson, OH) Intriguing but anticlimactic
"Snowdrops" started out as an exciting read, with lots of mystery and interesting characters. I couldn't put it down, but then I did. About two thirds of the way through I got tired of the hints about how the main character hadn't done anything particularly bad...yet and just wanted to know what he was going to do. But not badly enough to finish. So by the time I finally did finish the book, I found the ending to be very unsatisfying. It was actually a fine ending, but I just didn't feel it lived up to my expectations.
Rated of 5
by Darlene C. (Simpsonville, SC) Snow Drops by A.D. Miller
The back of the book calls it "an intense psychological drama that echoes the sophisticated entertainments of The Talented Mr. Ripley and Gorky Part". Not! I did not find it either "intense" nor did it have "drama". It did describe the blackmarket for anything that exists in Moscow, a cliche, but from my experience true. If you're looking for an "I can't wait to get back to my book" read, I'm sorry to say that wasn't my experience.
Rated of 5
by Rosemary K. (Saginaw, MI) Chillingly wonderful!
A.D. Miller's Snowdrops is a refreshing book full of intrigue. Set in modern-day Moscow, the story concerns a British lawyer who becomes involved with two enticing young women.
The reader smoothly enters another world: feels the gripping cold, gapes at the horror of certain scenes, and becomes emotionally involved with an older woman's plight.
Occasionally, the narrator makes remarks to a listener (presumably, a lover). I found these comments to be very endearing. I only wish the author had done this a bit more frequently.
The writing in this debut novels flows so well; it was such a pleasure to experience. I eagerly await A.D. Miller's next effort!
Rated of 5
by Lorraine R. (Southampton, New York) SNOWDROPS
A depressing picture of Moscow society after the fall of the Soviet Union. With the exception of two characters, Tatiana and Oleg, everyone was out for their own gain. It was painful to read about people whose goal was to use other for their personal gain. It was so discouraging to read about a society so demoralized and in many ways unchanged in terms of class distinctions since the Tzars. It was impossible to believe that the main character was so naive to not see how false those around him were, in his disastrous business deal and his relationship with the two girls. He was clearly blinded by his loneliness. I was so upset about this novel's depiction of life in Moscow, that I felt I wanted to read other accounts of life in the former Soviet Union today to compare. I can't really recommend this novel to others because it was so depressing.
Stranger than fiction, blending tragedy and farce, How to Create the Perfect Wife is an engrossing tale of the radicalism, and deep contradictions, at the heart of the Enlightenment.
Z, the novel about the life of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald is at points charming and; like another reviewer, I kept thinking of the movie, "Midnight...
read more
Although heavy on the scientific details, which slowed down the story for me (OK, I admit, I was one of those liberal arts majors who skipped out on...
read more
Loved this book. Magical, quirky, enchanting I could go on. All books do not have to be literary fiction, sometimes it is just so comforting to read...
read more
U.S. ebook sales up in 2012, but rate of growth is slowing(May 16 2013) In 2012, trade book sales (i.e. non academic book sales) rose 6.9%, to $15.049 billion, and e-book sales continued to grow, although the rate of growth...
Full Story
of 5
by Bonnie B. (Port St. Lucie, FL) 
of 5
by Jen S. (Marple Public Library, Broomall, PA) 
of 5
by Stephanie W. (Hudson, OH) 
