City of Thieves

City of Thieves by David Benioff

My husband and I drove up to San Francisco over Labor Day weekend, so an audio book suitable for both our tastes was in order.  We really scored with this one read by Ron Perlman.  Set during the Nazi siege of Leningrad (or Peter as it is stubbornly, if surreptitiously, referred to by her inhabitants) in the winter of 1942,  two lads, strangers, land in a notorious Russian prison on charges of a dubious nature with execution a certainty.  Miraculously, they are spared (or are they??) by a powerful colonel who sends them on a mission to secure a dozen eggs for his daughter's wedding cake 5 days hence. An unlikely friendship develops between the insecure, smart, earnest 17-year -ld Jew, Lev, and the colourful, handsome Russian soldier/lothario, Kolya,  whose endearing bravura adds charm and humour to this otherwise harrowing tale. Together they scour the desperate city and ultimately head behind German lines in search of this rare commodity, meeting an extraordinary cast of characters along the way, determined to survive the cold, hunger, invading Wehrmacht as well as the Russian authorities.  An extraordinary story, beautifully written and highly recommended!!