It is 1918. In the Caucasus, the British Government is sending millions of pounds in gold coins by train to prop up the Armenian army. A small squad of British soldiers pulls off an audacious heist of a crate of gold, secreting it with every intention of recovering the treasure at the end of the war.
Fast forward a century to Philip Blake – a burned out ex-journalist researching National Archive documents from the Caucasus campaign for a commemorative display of the British evacuation of Baku. Regimental and private diaries reveal the story of the missing gold – something that will draw Blake to the hair-trigger border of Turkey and Armenia and the love of an Armenian woman.
The news of the surreptitious ventures in Armenia reach the ears of Iosif Kasharin, ex-Director of the Armenian National Security Service, whose intention for the gold is no less self-serving.
Against a background of the recent history of Armenia - the Land of Stone - through a century of misfortunes from the Genocide in 1915, then disease, famine, earthquake and political upheaval, the story twists and turns to a tense political climax.
It is 1918. In the Caucasus, the British Government is sending millions of pounds in gold coins by train to prop up the Armenian army. A small squad of British soldiers pulls off an audacious heist of a crate of gold, secreting it with every intention of recovering the treasure at the end of the war.
Fast forward a century to Philip Blake – a burned out ex-journalist researching National Archive documents from the Caucasus campaign for a commemorative display of the British evacuation of Baku. Regimental and private diaries reveal the story of the missing gold – something that will draw Blake to the hair-trigger border of Turkey and Armenia and the love of an Armenian woman.
The news of the surreptitious ventures in Armenia reach the ears of Iosif Kasharin, ex-Director of the Armenian National Security Service, whose intention for the gold is no less self-serving.
Against a background of the recent history of Armenia - the Land of Stone - through a century of misfortunes from the Genocide in 1915, then disease, famine, earthquake and political upheaval, the story twists and turns to a tense political climax.
Armenia, 24 April 1918
The first explosion came out of the night without warning, just as the last of the water spilled over from the stationary locomotive’s tank. There were no shouts, no whistles of incoming shells, no presage of an ambush through a premature rifle shot. Vahe Petrosyan knew the horrifying sound of a hand grenade when he heard one. He had seen first-hand the slaughter that a grenade could achieve in a confined space, first-hand. The initial explosion was followed by a second, then a third. Shrapnel ricocheted off the metal of the locomotive in a series of whistling, zinging clangs. Then came the first shots.
Petrosyan threw down his cigarette and shouted to his fireman, Grigor Avakan, to clear the water hose. The explosions had come from the opposite side of the train to where the driver and fireman had been enjoying a quiet smoke, as the locomotive took on water from the tower at the deserted siding. They were deep in the gorge through which the Debet River had carved its way beside the railway line. The shattering blasts echoed off the adjacent cliff, followed by shouts of the half dozen British soldiers who were the reason for the journey.
The fireman clambered frantically down from the tank atop the loco, water splashing around him as the big hose swung free. Petrosyan hauled himself into the cab of the old Fairlie engine, dimly lit by the kerosene lamp hanging from the roof. It gave only enough illumination to identify the levers and controls, although Petrosyan and Avakan could – and often did – work the engine in total darkness without a moment’s thought.
His hands shaking, Petrosyan leaned on the heavy levers that closed the valves to prevent the steam bypassing the pistons while they were stopped. The loco shuddered and creaked as pressure built up. Beside him, Avakan opened the door to the steam box and the cab lit up with the glow of the flames as he shovelled coal into the box. Outside there were more shots and the sound of bullets zipping close to the engine. The harried English Sergeant Nash appeared beside the cab.
“We have to go, Petro! Back! There are troops ahead – I think they’re Turks!” he yelled.
Petrosyan did not bother to consider whether they were Turks or Azeri bandits, nor did he care how many there were or where they were hiding. In the darkness he just wanted to get his precious engine away from the danger. He did not acknowledge the soldier but watched the dial as pressure built up sufficiently to move the great pistons that would drive the two sets of six wheels back the way they had come.
“Come on, dammit! Get going!” The sergeant screamed at him.
Another explosion sounded close by. Again, there was the rattle of shrapnel against the locomotive and the sounds of rifles from the single carriage that could only be the soldiers returning fire. Petrosyan willed himself not to panic. The horrific stories of atrocities against his people that were heard from the other side of the mountains were fresh in his mind. He could not leave Sofi without a father…
* * *
It is a time of history that few people know about including the atrocities in the Armenian region. As a person years later begins to research it, secrets are revealed and history is brought to the forefront.
I found the plot/story very interesting. It is all about the past and covers two time periods. I don't mind books that can move through time and help me see the events.
This review is mainly going to go into the actual historical events. I was very impressed on how the author dove into the world he wrote on. He notes that he used the name of sites that were used at the time. The research is evident as you read which makes the story even more enjoyable. This got me interested in the actual events and started my own research. That is one result of writing a book any author should be proud of.
The author took great pains to bring the story to the reader. As there was so much history even in the history of the events in the story, there is a lot that has to be told to the reader. That means when one character is meeting another, the history is told to the reader so they understand the background. I usually complain with too much tell and not enough show, but I'm not sure if it have been improved much more. There is so much that has to be told to the reader.
The only other "issue" I had was that some proofreading could have been done once more. I found small words left out of sentences that proofreading would have caught. This happened only here and there which shows that there was some proofreading done. Easy to miss but did halt my reading a bit once I got into the story.
I enjoyed this book. It had me researching more on the time period and events.