G.D. Abson Books In Order

Publication Order of Natalya Ivanova Thriller Books

G.D. Abson is an English author of suspense, crime and thriller books. He was born Durham and spent his childhood in Army bases in Singapore and Germany before going back to the United Kingdom. He developed an obsession with Russia after studying Russian revolution and politics in both high school and at the university as the Soviet Union crumbled. He is popularly known for his Natalya Ivanova Thriller series which debuted in 2018 with debut novel Motherland. The series heroine is Natalya Ivanova working as a senior investigator in Vladimir Putin’s Russia. The first book in the series was shortlisted for CWA Debut Dagger was a star pick by the Times/Sunday Times Crime Club.

Motherland

Motherland is the first book in a gripping and fast-paced contemporary crime novel series set in the modern St. Petersburg, Russia. The story features a sharp and intriguing cop, Natalya Ivanova. She has been sidelined, dealing with domestic violence cases until when she’s given an opportunity to investigate the disappearance of a Swedish student. What appears to be abduction soon turns into a dark and a more intricate tale.

Detective Natalya Ivanova spent her childhood in Germany and returned to Russia as an outsider. She is the type of a person who the westerns might view as a bloody-minded detective but in her mother country Russia, she is often viewed as a suspicious idealist. Despite her rank, Natalya is always undermined by her juniors who don’t take her command seriously. To return the favor, she treats them with scorn for being the corrupt male chauvinist pigs they are.

The story kicks off when Zena Dahl, the daughter of a Swedish tycoon vanishes in the busy streets of St. Petersburg after spending a night out with her friend. Detective Natalya is assigned to investigate her disappearance into the case forcing her to switch from her usual domestic violence investigative work. But because of the family’s status in society, there is a pressure to find the whereabouts of the missing girl. In the course of her investigation, she discovers that the disappearance case is not as easy as it seems. Insightful, dark, and violent, Motherland is a fast-paced story with a satisfying climax. It’s a story that will appeal to all the fans The Bridge and The Killing books.

G.D Abson takes the reader on an epic dark journey as they follow the investigation into the whereabouts of the missing girl. Through his description, we get to know Natalya and her world better. She works on the domestic abuse cases in the Criminal Investigations Directorate in St. Petersburg. Her husband Mikhail is higher ranked in the police force. The story is set in the present day Russia, with the Federal Security Service (FSB) working in the background. If you’re unfamiliar with the FSB, it’s the modern version of the KGB. The agents are always there, and they are always watching, a single toe out of the line and they already know, and this adds to the suspicion. No one trusts anyone. This is evidently seen when Natalya suspects that her husband is keeping secrets from her. The FSB even approach her and try to force her to close down the case, But Natalya wants answers, she wants to know what happened to the missing girl regardless of who approaches her to force her to stop the investigation.

The author gives us a fascinating glimpse into the culture of contemporary Russia. The reader gets to see a real sense of life in the country with its complexities and contradictions. Imagine a scenario where you have to bribe an official to acquire university education or to be in the front of a queue for treatment. Bribery and corruption are part of modern Russian life. You can’t be successful in life without having to bribe your way up the ladder. The youth are enlisted to serve in the military, and the issue of domestic violence is taken lightly. The perpetrators of domestic violence are let free, and in terms of forensics, the country seems to be light years behind the rest of the world. They lack the right equipment to preserve crime scenes.

Overall, Motherland is a superb read and doesn’t read like a series debut novel. The story is written with clarity and confidence; it’s dark and thrilling featuring a remarkable heroine who’s ready to challenge her superiors, juniors, and do what’s right. The fans of Tom Rob Smith and David Young and any reader interested in reading an about modern Russia should seek out this series.

Black Wolf

The second in Natalya Ivanova Thriller series is a gem follows up of the series debut novel; Motherland set in Russia. G.D. Abson writes in atmospheric crime scenes that capture the cynical side of Putin’s Russia and the swindlers of the political establishment, a system that holds no barred approach against the activists and journalist that oppose or challenges it. After the previous occurrences in the SCU headed by Colonel Vasiliev, the new head of the unit is Dostoynov, a man determined to get rid of Natalya’s husband, Mikhail. So Mikhail finds himself venturing in countries like Siberia from where Diana Maricheva fled to in 2012 but now her body has been found in a monastery.

In the freezing winter of St. Petersburg, Natalya finds herself on the scene of a woman’s body disposed of in a ditch. The woman is Elizaveta Kalinina a woman in her mid-twenties, an anti-Putin activist who belongs to a group of politically powerful individuals in the country. Sledkom, a corrupt detective is assigned to the case, and soon, Kalinina’s reputation is dirtified. But Natalya won’t let the dead woman’s name be tarnished in vain, and she vows to investigate and unravel the truth. In a murder case that reveals the twisted nature of the political system in the country, danger revolves all around Natalya as she stands to gain the truth and lose everything and those she loves. G.D. Abson writes a compulsive and gripping story that provides the reader with a detailed glimpse of the inner workings of Russia.

3 Responses to “G.D. Abson”

1. Bob Harcourt: 2 years ago

   I met this author’s mother in my local pub as she and her partner were delayed on their journey from Durham to visit him in the southwest. It was revealed that his mother and my wife grew up in the same little northeast village mining community where both shared relatives of the same surname. Small World?

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2. Linda Thorsen: 2 years ago

   I had never heard of this author but picked the up Motherland at my library. It is an excellent thriller! Now, I’ll be buying Black Wolf. Natalya Ivanova is a brilliant sassy Detective.

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3. BHARATHY: 3 years ago

   I read both the books (motherland & black wolf) I loved both of them! It’s the first time I am reading a female protagonist from Russia
   I also loved these books because, it reflects the troubles most women in India face, the troubles which honest empolyees in India face It’s exactly like you have described in these books
   I hope you write more such books

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