Paris Nights Escape from Moscow

About the book

About Paris Nights Escape from Moscow

Astonishingly timely and based on the true story of the “underground millionaires” of communist Russia. Paris Nights - Escape from Moscow is revelatory “truth telling” and as pertinent today as it was in the Stalinist era - an unputdownable international thriller! 26 August 1941 - The German bombing had stopped for the night, and Leningrad was quiet. Vitali and Natassia were in Catherine the Great’s boudoir in the Hermitage, the Russian imperial palace. Catherine and her lovers, Peter the great, Potemkin and others had slept here more than a hundred years ago. Natassia was holding a candle. “Vitali, come see this painting. It’s Paris at night.” Paris glistened, its boulevards pulsed with energy, the Eiffel Tower stood in the distance and two lovers held each other and kissed under a red umbrella. “Vitali, can we go to Paris when the war is over?” she asked. “Yes, we’ll go to Paris together, I promise,” he told her. Vitali had never met anyone like Natassia Andreyeva. She was smart and beautiful, and he was in love. She smiled and said, “Vitali, let’s sleep here tonight, let’s sleep in Catherine the Great’s bed. It’s our patriotic duty.” 9 May 1945 – As World War II ends, Vitali Solznetzn, a decorated war hero, returns to Moscow, where he finds Jews, Muslims and non-Russian minorities all barred from meaningful work. In desperation, Solznetzn buys into “Paris Nights”, an illegal underground business secretly operating within a State-owned factory. In Communist Russia, all factories and businesses are owned by the State, and Solznetzn’s ventures are “high economic crimes” punishable by prison in Siberia or death before a firing squad. Over the years, Solznetzn becomes an “underground millionaire”, and he must take extraordinary steps to hide his wealth - Russian rubles, gold coins, diamonds and rare Tsarist era postage stamps - knowing he can never openly spend his fortune. Hounded by the KGB, and trapped between two deadly factions of the Communist Party, Solznetzn treads a fine line, knowing he cannot afford to make a mistake. His life depends on it. Paris Nights - Escape from Moscow breaks the limits of international thrillers. It is the true story of the “underground millionaires of communist Russia, and Vitali Solznetzn and Natassia Andreyeva’s love story will stay with you long after you have finished reading the book. This is historical fiction at its best, revelatory and “truth telling”, and it will be an indispensable addition to your book shelf.

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