THE NOVEL THAT STARTED IT ALL - ARKADY RENKO NOVEL #1'One of those writers that anyone who is serious about their craft views with respect bordering on awe' Val McDermid'Makes tension rise through the page like a shark's fin' Independent***Three bodies found frozen in the snow. And the hunt for the killer begins...It begins with a triple murder in a Moscow amusement center: three corpses found frozen in the snow, faces and fingers missing. Chief homicide investigator Arkady Renko is brilliant, sensitive, honest, and cynical about everything except his profession. To identify the victims and uncover the truth, he must battle the KGB, FBI, and the New York City police as he pursues a rich, ruthless, and well-connected American fur dealer. Meanwhile, Renko is falling in love with a beautiful, headstrong dissident for whom he may risk everything.A wonderfully textured, vivid look behind the Iron Curtain, Gorky Park is a tense, atmospheric, and memorable crime story.Praise for Martin Cruz Smith'The story drips with atmosphere and authenticity - a literary triumph' David Young, bestselling author of Stasi Child 'One of those writers that anyone who is serious about their craft views with respect bordering on awe' Val McDermid'Cleverly and intelligently told, The Girl from Venice is a truly riveting tale of love, mystery and rampant danger. I loved it' Kate Furnivall, author of The Liberation'Smith not only constructs grittily realistic plots, he also has a gift for characterisation of which most thriller writers can only dream' Mail on Sunday'Smith was among the first of a new generation of writers who made thrillers literary' Guardian'Brilliantly worked, marvellously written . . . an imaginative triumph' Sunday Times'Martin Cruz Smith's Renko novels are superb' William Ryan, author of The Constant Soldier