"Azazel" - a novel about the first investigation of detective Erast Fandorin

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

In the work of Boris Akunin (Grigory Chkhartishvili) "Azazel" the reader gets acquainted with the still very young detective Erast Fandorin. As conceived by the author of the protagonist, many mysterious investigations and dangerous adventures will await in subsequent novels. Fandorin acts there as an accomplished and well-known master of detective work, but for now he is very young and for the first time encounters the dangerous world of crime investigation.

Favorite to the reader and viewer character

The first complicated case of Erast Fandorin is told in the historical detective story "Azazel". The book, a summary of which will be given below, immediately fell in love with millions of readers. They were looking forward to the continuation of the amazing story of the detective Fandorin. The incredibly complex crimes described in the novels dedicated to detective Erast Fandorin and the special methods of their investigation made the reader completely immerse himself in the world created by the author. In 2002, Azazel, a novel about the first investigation of a young detective, was filmed, and the character Erast Fandorin gained even more fans. Therefore, by the time it hit the big screen in 2005"Turkish Gambit" and "State Counselor" viewers already knew that they were waiting for a meeting with their favorite hero and his incredible adventures.

Meet Erast Fandorin

"Azazel" is a novel, the events of which take the reader to Moscow in 1876, where the first meeting with the main character of the series dedicated to the adventures of the detective Erast Fandorin takes place. Left an orphan, young Fandorin is forced, despite his excellent education and noble birth, to earn a living on his own. The young man works as a clerk in the Moscow detective department. Contrary to the expectations of incredible adventures and confusing cases related to the police service, the young man has to deal with domestic crimes, and then print reports in calligraphic handwriting for Mr. Chief of Police for days on end.

Waiting for the real deal

His mentor, investigator Xavier Feofilaktovich Grushin, takes care of the young man like a father, laughing in his heart at his desire to become a famous detective. And how in Moscow to undertake the cases that Fandorin dreams of investigating? Whether it's Petersburg, there are bigger crimes, better detectives, and investigations are conducted using advanced technologies. Perhaps Erast Petrovich's dream of becoming an outstanding detective would never come true, but "Azazel" is a novel not only about the very first, but also, perhaps, about the most decisive case in lifedetective Erast Fandorin. Fate threw the hero an investigation into a simple, at first glance, suicide of a drunken and eccentric young man. The study of the circumstances of the case led to a series of terrible secrets and dangerous adventures.

Becoming a Hero

In the process of investigating a case, the threads of which lead to a global conspiracy, Erast Fandorin meets with the venerable Moscow detective Briling. This extravagant, interesting and educated person, appointed by the St. Petersburg authorities to head the investigation of a complicated crime, influenced Fandorin's development as a detective. Erast admires his boss's manners and methods and tries to follow him in everything.

In order to understand how the hero changes and learns from his mistakes, turning from an inexperienced police officer into a famous detective, of course, you should read Azazel. The novel you are currently reading in a summary is incredibly interesting.

In subsequent works, the reader meets Fandorin in a completely different way. After all, the Russian detective, whose popularity critics will compare with the famous Sherlock Holmes, will not become so immediately. At first, he will have to survive the events that occurred during the disclosure of the conspiracy codenamed "Azazel". The novel describes them not only as dangerous and exciting adventures of a young hero, but also as a series of tragic circumstances that forever changed his life. The price of success will become too high for Fandorin, and at the end of the novel the reader will see him for the first time inimage, which will become the calling card of this detective in the future.

"Azazel" (book): reviews

Readers note the writing style of Boris Akunin, which is unusual for today. His works leave the impression that one is reading a classic of the nineteenth century. The details of what is happening, used to describe, turns of speech - everything speaks in favor of a beautiful delusion. The exciting plot of "Azazel" is noted, the novel has enthusiastic reviews, although many are upset by the tragic turn of events at the end of the work. But could the character of Erast Petrovich Fandorin have been able to get that mysterious and magnetic attraction without such a result, for which the reader loves him so much?

Screening of "Azazel" (directed by Alexander Adabashyan)

As mentioned above, in 2002 the novel was filmed. Contrary to skeptical critics, the filmmakers and the leading actors managed to convey the atmosphere of the time, the character of the characters and the mystery of the events described in the work. The role of the novice detective Fandorin was played by the young actor Ilya Noskov. And although the caustic press noted that he was lost against the background of Sergei Bezrukov, who brilliantly performed the charismatic Briling, those who read the novel will notice that the main character himself at first did not possess some of the character traits that later became characteristic of him. After all, it was Brilling who had a significant influence on Fandorin, therefore, we can say that Ilya Noskov fully corresponded to the image of the young ErastPetrovich.

The film also starred such outstanding domestic actors as Marina Neyolova, Oleg Basilashvili, Marina Aleksandrova.