The Bolsheviks persevered after the revolution in Russia. There was no ruling class, only comrades. As a result, in the year 1922, Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov was sentenced to house arrest in the Metropol hotel in Moscow. Now known as a former person, Count Rostov must spend the rest of his life at the famed hotel.
From that moment on the book concentrates on the count's life in a tiny room, the connections he makes with the staff of the hotel, chance encounters, and life-changing circumstances. I have to commend Towles on his flawless and descriptive writing that had me hooked from page 1—I could almost smell the meals he ate and the wines he drank. If you ask me I was daydreaming about having a dinner with the Count whilst he tells me which wine goes best with the duck. The count had a penchant for the finer things in life. Towles has created such a pure-hearted and kind character that I just could not dislike no matter what he did. Moreover, I loved the depth in the relationships between the different characters as that warmed my heart.
Though, a little slow at times, this book is to be savoured. A gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles is one of the finest books I read in 2020. I would definitely recommend this one.