Middle Age

When tragedy strikes in an ideal family life and the husband disappears, a loving wife turns to a private detective. During the investigation, numerous secrets of their exemplary marriage come to light. Yana Verzun, a well-known writer and journalist—author of works such as “Addicted” and “Music in an Empty House,” as well as the organizer of the Petersburg project “People Read Short Stories”—wrote this story.

The main characters, Olga and Andrey, are an ideal middle-aged couple: educated and financially secure, caring for their children and elderly parents. But the unexpected disappearance of the husband leads the wife to a private detective, and along the way new characters appear: the mother, the best friend, the neighbor, the sister, the bartender, the ex. How many people ended up involved in their family life? And what really happened?

In her novel, Yana Verzun explores different types of family relationships and shows that they can be both different and similar at the same time. If you didn’t recognize yourself among the characters, maybe you just didn’t look closely enough.