Provincial Blaze

Flames revealed what usually hides in the shadows. Trial investigator Ivan Fedorovich Volovtsov plans to spend his vacation in Ryazan with his beloved aunt, but instead he faces trouble. In the fire, the aunt’s friend dies—quiet, elderly Mariya Kokoshina. In the police’s opinion, it was a usual unfortunate accident. However, Volovtsov sees too many inconsistencies in what happened. During the night of the fire, neighbors noticed a stranger sneaking into the house through a back entrance; the body lies suspiciously straight, as if it were laid out; and expensive watches and interest-bearing papers for a large sum disappeared from the room. More and more it looks like a crime, and soon his suspicions are confirmed by another, no less strange incident… A historical detective story about a crime from the beginning of the last century that vividly recreates the spirit of the era—with the clatter of wheels on the cobblestones, the roar of the marketplace, the звон of church bells, and the sharp whistles of policemen.