Soviet Land
A Tragicomic Thriller Graphic Novel
-
- Pre-Order
-
- Expected Apr 28, 2026
-
- $16.99
-
- Pre-Order
-
- $16.99
Publisher Description
A must-read thriller at turns madcap and melancholy, about a down-on-their-luck duo of swindlers looting their way through the decaying remains of the USSR
“A rich and humane story of ordinary people navigating extraordinary historical upheaval in this tragicomic tale that will have strong appeal for readers of literary or international graphic fiction.” (starred review, Library Journal)
1990s. Russia. The USSR has ceased to exist. Its dimly remembered promises of utopia have dried up, and amongst the rubble, scavengers and looters abound.
Amongst the vast Russian tundra and decaying Soviet buildings, two such scavengers engage in a rather dubious pastime—getting their hands on all sorts of trinkets that might interest wealthy investors.
Slava, once a promising young painter, has abandoned his career and ideals to scrounge around with a pal from his school days, the consummate conman Lavrin. The future is up for grabs, and in this anything-goes, dog-eat-dog new world order, Lavrin assures Slava anything and everything can be bought and sold.
In this tragicomic thriller, author Pierre-Henry Gomont tells a gripping tale of average people caught up in the turmoil of history in the making. His deeply human characters fumble through a disorienting world—one where the promise of tomorrow has evaporated. They aspire to nothing more than to continue: to continue living, loving, and maybe someday even painting again.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Gomont's kinetic and assured English-language debut captures the Wild West atmosphere of northern Russia in the post-Communist 1990s. Slava and Lavrin loot abandoned Soviet estates, scavenging artworks, chandeliers, and other remnants of the old regime to peddle to the newly affluent. Lavrin is a born hustler, but this is only a gig for Slava, a lapsed painter demoralized by the "petty gatekeepers of good taste." After a violent run-in with rival looters, they're rescued by Nina, a sharpshooter squatting with her bear of a father in a deserted mansion. Through her, the pair stumble into a campaign to save the mine where Nina works from a shady investor whose "restructuring" proposals barely paper over his intention to strip the mine for parts. Slava throws himself into the cause—and into charcoal sketches of Nina in the nude—but Lavrin sees the makings of another score. As the pair's paths diverge, Gomont's canvas widens to capture the era's profiteering, worker marginalization, and industrial collapse. Brushy, gestural cartooning maintains a brisk pace, while the text smuggles in an elegiac, almost Zweigian lilt. It's an action-packed tale that explores the limits of loyalty when everything is up for sale.
