Penal Battalions Lead the Breakthrough

Autumn of 1943. After the Battle of Kursk, the depleted penal battalion is sent to the rear for replenishment and reorganization. Most of this replacement is seasoned criminals: thieves, bandits, even murderers. The clash between them and the surviving men from the front is inevitable...

And ahead of the penal soldiers are new battles: after a brief pause, the battalion is transferred to the 1st Belorussian Front, which is expected to go on the offensive any day now. As usual, they will be sent to the hottest section. As always, they will break through first. They have to “atone for their guilt with blood.” Few of them will survive this fight...

The novel is based on real events in which the author, Yuri Sergeyevich Pogrebov, himself took part—fighting in a penal battalion.