Behind the War

The most gripping novels about Stalin’s special forces — SMERSH.

October 1943. Captain of SMERSH Victor Krylov receives an order to travel to Smolensk, liberated from the fascists: he must find and neutralize the enemy agents remaining in the city. Even on the train, Krylov notices a strange fellow passenger who introduces himself as engineer Sokolov. The passenger is clearly nervous, avoids inspections and conversations, and then gets off before his station. Once there, Krylov forms an operations group and outlines a plan of work for the coming days. And suddenly he encounters that same Sokolov in Smolensk again — but now it’s a different person: a new haircut, expensive clothes, confident manners… The operative decides to set up surveillance. The suspicions become even more serious when it turns out that “engineer Sokolov” is nowhere in the city registered or listed…

“Death to the spies!” (SMERSH) — that was the name of a special unit of the NKVD directly subordinate to I. Stalin. Created during the war years, it united veteran front-line fighters—reliable, honest, and fearless officers of the Red Army. Everyone feared SMERSH: both German intelligence agents preparing sabotage at the front and Nazi accomplices working deep in the Soviet rear. The enemy understood that if Stalin’s special forces got on their trail, it was almost impossible to escape swift and inevitable retribution.

The novels in the “SMERSH — Stalin’s special forces” series are, each time, fast-paced, exciting action, new historical details, and dynamic action written in a simple and understandable style.

A. Tamonikov’s total print run of the books — more than 10 million copies!

“A. Tamonikov’s novels are about real men for whom the notions of valor, honor, and duty are not empty words.” – V. Kolychev