Independence Square

Thanks to Random House UK and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Having read A.D.Miller's majestic, Booker Prize nominated, 'Snowdrops', I was eager to get my hands on 'Independent Square'. Well, Miller has done it again. This is quite the cerebral political thriller that manages to combine the best of Robert Harris' visionary political world-building with the pathos of a Phillip Kerr novel. Set amongst the turbulence of the Orange Revolution in the Ukraine, Miller has compiled a novel that is as much about the human, individual story, as it is about the broad brushstrokes of large-scale historical events. For the uninitiated, the story of the Orange Revolution, like many since the breakup of the former states of the USSR, is a typical one of political corruption and systemic failure, where democratic ideals are a fig-leaf for the continuation of totalitarianism by any other name. Perhaps the names at the heart of these stories matter less than the perpetual cycle of revolution and counter-revolution that has dogged the former Soviet States since the cataclysmic breakup of the Union. Indeed, reading 'Independence Square' almost makes you long for the halcyon days of the polarised ideologies of East Vs West, Capitalism Vs Communism. In this novel, Miller places us at the heart of these political convulsions, witnessed through the eyes of senior British diplomat, Simon Davey. In the present-day, Davey has lost everything. Bewildered and bitter at his disgrace, Davey hangs is hat on the figure of Olesya, a protestor during the tumultuous times of the Orange Revolution, to help him make sense of his past. Yet, this is not a simple tale of political cause and political effect, because nothing is as it seems in the shimmering, mirage-like, independent, 'democratic' Ukraine. The moral of the tale, if there is one, is far from definitive. A very human story of thwarted dreams and the hopes of an idealist, Davey's fate, like many inhabitants of the former Soviet States, is a futile search for meaning and rationalisation amongst a political landscape that is deliberately opaque. It is a landscape full of human shapeshifters; where oligarchs, dictators, kleptocrats, politicians, gangsters and criminals are one and the same. There is often, simply, no meaning to events that are borne out of opportunity and finitely, contingent loyalties. So, if you like your stories tied up in neat little bows then this is not the novel for you. If you are looking for an intelligently written, incisive political thriller that captures the zeitgeist of the post-Communist world, then you won't find a better example than 'Independence Square'.

AD Miller writes a smart literary political novel that looks at the events that occurred in Kiev and the Ukraine, and the Orange Revolution. It is densely written and it helps if you are familiar with the recent history, the characters involved, such as Victor Yushenko, Viktor Yanukovych and Yulia Tymoshenko, a stolen election and the protests at Independence Square, a theatre stage set of roses vs guns, with the potential for horrifying bloodshed. Simon Davey is a senior diplomat at the British embassy, deputy head of the mission, with the reputation of being a good man in a crisis. Driven by hope and political idealism, he meets a young protester, Olesya Zarchenko, a contact of his colleague, Jacqui Drayton. He plays the key background moves of introducing Olesya to a powerful billionaire, showing some sympathy for the changes advocated by the revolutionaries, looking towards Europe rather than Moscow and ostensibly preventing a national tragedy.

12 years later, Simon's life has gone down the pan, disgraced, betrayed by Olesya, the focus of media allegations, some lies, aspects true in principle if not in the details. His wife, Cynthia has divorced him, and his daughter, Nancy, does not want to know him. The diplomatic service discarded him with farcical hearings, his circumstances have reduced enormously as he drives a taxi part time, consumed by the grievances, betrayal and grudges of the past. So when against all the odds, he glimpses Olesya in London, he follows her, wanting to understand how his life became derailed. This opens the door to have his eyes opened, he and Olesya were pawns of more powerful players, kleptocrats masquerading as revolutionaries, switching allegiances when it suited them in monetary terms to do so. In a narrative that goes back and forth in time, whilst it is transparent who did betray him, it does not seem so obvious to Simon, but he does become aware that his insistence in blaming others for what happened to him is far from accurate, he has to a large extent been the architect of his own misfortune.

Miller engages in complex and nuanced storytelling of extraordinary recent Ukrainian history, of ordinary people caught up in making history, the compromises made, the corruption, and of revolutionaries who claimed power only to become bandits. Miller depicts and captures the nature of recent global political shifts where everything is for sale, with its deplorable lack of integrity, and the rise of fake news. The degraded political establishments have become little more than conduits for subverting democracy and serving the needs of billionaires and kleptocrats. This may not appeal to every reader, but for those looking for an insightful, intelligent and sophisticated novel that speaks of our times and recent political history, then look no further. Highly recommended. Many thanks to Random House Vintage for an ARC.

"Everything is for sale"

Set against the recent history of Ukraine, this is a timely and contemporary novel that looks at the relationships between political power and personal integrity. Concerned especially with the manipulation of supposedly democratic elections, a topic which couldn't be more headline-worthy. But this makes the politics personal and in that sense made me think of both Graham Green and 1984, albeit in different ways. Miller isn't a particularly stylish writer, his prose is workmanlike, but there's a strong narrative drive alongside the political intelligence.

The novel opens in the Ukraine in 2004, newly independent from the Soviet Union there is a movement for democracy. Simon is a British diplomat, who is moving towards becoming an ambassador. He becomes involved in liaising with some of the demonstrators and in particular becomes close to a young woman, Olesya. The narrative alternates between the events of 2004 and 2017 when Simon is living a very different life, alone in London eking out an existence driving cabs.

The story of how the events in 2004 led to this is slowly revealed, Miller succeeds in ratcheting up the tension. I was frustrated when we moved from the past to the present and vice versa as I was so caught up in the events.

This is a strong book. I was keen to read it because I enjoyed Snowdrops very much and this is in the same vein, a slightly naive young British man destroyed because he doesn’t understand the psyche of those living in former Soviet territories and how it can lead to an absolute ruthlessness and disregard for the values we in the West hold dear. Ultimately I found it quite depressing, whilst being a very good read.

Independence Square is a low key diplomatic thriller - rather than a full on spy thriller, it lets out it secrets slowly and methodically, exposing characters and their motivation as the book develops - insights from the lead character in 2017 London adding context and texture to the view of events in Ukraine during the 2005 Orange Revolution.
The backdrop of the revolution is well sketched, the diplomatic office relationships believably flawed and the on the ground politics have a sense of verisimilitude- to an outsider anyway! The shifts between time periods act to complement each other and develop the narrative effectively in both timelines. It’s been a while since i read Snowdrops, but the sense of post Cold War Eastern Europe is my abiding memory, and Independence Square is similar in feeling, if not in subject