From the New York Times bestselling author of Rules of Civility.
'Everything a novel should be- charming, witty, poetic and generous. An absolute delight' Mail on Sunday
'A work of great charm, intelligence and insight' Sunday Times
'Winning . . . gorgeous . . . satisfying . . . Towles is a craftsman' New York Times Book Review
'A comic masterpiece' Daily Express
'If we do a better book than this one on the book club this year we will be very very lucky' Matt Williams, Radio 2 Book Club
'Abundant in humour, history and humanity' Sunday Telegraph
'Wistful, whimsical and wry' Sunday Express
On 21 June 1922 Count Alexander Rostov - recipient of the Order of Saint Andrew, member of the Jockey Club, Master of the Hunt - is escorted out of the Kremlin, across Red Square and through the elegant revolving doors of the Hotel Metropol.
But instead of being taken to his usual suite, he is led to an attic room with a window the size of a chessboard. Deemed an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal, the Count has been sentenced to house arrest indefinitely.
While Russia undergoes decades of tumultuous upheaval, the Count, stripped of the trappings that defined his life, is forced to question what makes us who we are. And with the assistance of a glamorous actress, a cantankerous chef and a very serious child, Rostov unexpectedly discovers a new understanding of both pleasure and purpose.
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We meet the Count, and follow him through the many years of he spends living under house arrest in Moscow's Metropol Hotel. Through the day-to-day doings of this charming and eloquent gentleman, of an era already outdated in his own time, we come to learn of his life and all varied characters who people and colour his world. This story captures the essence of what it is to be human. - Danielle (QBD)
Guest, 30/07/2020
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Count Alexander Rostov is sent into exile at The Metropol Hotel near the Kremlin, and this tells of his life there,his friends, and how he coped with being under house arrest for approximately 30 years. Charming, humourous and sometimes sad but an absolute delight. - Linda (QBD)
Guest, 29/01/2020
