The Betrayers

Gripping from the outset, as tightly structured as an intense theatrical experience, this is brilliant writing. Kotler - uncompromising and comprised - is a fascinating, provocative figure -- Tom Rob Smith A work of high moral seriousness dispatched with a gripping elegance ... Bezmozgis's story of fallen saints and redeemed outcasts is, to put it plainly, the work of a great writer -- Joshua Ferris, author of 'To Rise Again at a Decent Hour' Just when we think we've arrived at the heart of the story's moral complexity, Bezmozgis cuts again and lays bare yet another layer ... one of the foremost writers of his generation -- Ben Fountain, author of Billy Lynn's Halftime Walk A compelling tale of reckoning. Bezmozgis is a smart, taut writer ... His sentences make interesting turns; his dialogue bites; and he brings alive pre-revolutionary Crimea, with its glum post-Soviet citizens and purple Yalta onions for sale by the roadside Financial Times A moral thriller ... Bezmozgis is a magician -- Aleksandar Hemon, author of The Lazarus Project Taut, fierce, forensically insightful ... explores the frictions between goodness and kindness, public and private virtue, forgiveness and forgetting. Compulsive and profound -- A D Miller, author of Snowdrops Brilliant, deft depictions of love, of memory, of compassion - and, ultimately, despite its title, of loyalty -- Edith Pearlman, author of Binocular Vision A taut, slim book with a stately tone Prospect An impressive novel ... Bezmozgis explores the dynamics of mercy, guilt and repentence Sunday Times A vivid novel ... raising questions of integrity, compromise, identity and forgiveness Guardian A brave and ambitious novel ... The Betrayers suggests that Bezmozgis may potentially be one of the most important writers of his generation Independent