"Archangel" - Robert Harris' Third Novel Quiz

Answer: Moscow

Unlike Robert Harris' previous novels, this story is set in the present day. 1998 to be exact, when the book was written, not WW2 or a what-if world after Hitler won WW2. This story is about Stalin, and a secret he took to his grave.

Answer: Lecturer of Soviet History

Kelso is in Moscow as a lecturer for the symposium of western visitors. He used to have a promising career lecturing and writing books about Soviet Russia, particularly Josef Stalin. Then he became too fond of alcohol and had three failed marriages and two sons he never sees.

His career is in such bad shape many wonder why he has been invited to the symposium. (The real reason becomes clear at the end of the story).

Answer: He was present when Stalin died

Josef Stalin was the worst leader in the history of the USSR. His record for brutality, murder, and purges put him on the same level as Hitler. But the allies needed his help to beat Germany in World War 2 so they tried to overlook that. It's now 45 years since the night Stalin died of a stroke but Papu Rapava was there and shares a secret with Kelso. Kelso is listening intently; both men have had a *few* drinks. That night, when it was clear Stalin was about to die, Rapava was ordered by his superior Lavrenty Beria to drive to the Kremlin.

The two men retrieved a notebook of Stalin's and buried it in Beria's backyard. Later they were both arrested and tortured but neither man ever revealed its location. Beria has been dead a long time but Rapava still lives despite 15 years in a Gulag.

Despite his ruined life, Rapava is still a huge admirer of Stalin (not least because Russia is in chaos and many are crying out for a new leader). He tells Kelso where the notebook is buried but then he runs out of the hotel. Kelso can't stop him, because he's too busy being sick due to drinking.

Answer: Mamantov

Vladimir Mamantov has been under the surveillance of the Russian secret police for some time. They know he is ex-KGB and somehow responsible for half a billion rubles disappearing but they can't prove it. Little do they know he also has a strong interest in Kelso's quest to find Stalin's papers. Kelso visits Mamantov's flat for advice, telling him what happened.

After Kelso leaves, getting little help, Mamantov goes out. Normally officers would tail him, but he's disguised as his wife. By the time the poor woman gets free of her bonds and the neighbours hear her cries for help, Mamantov has vanished. Crafty devil!

Answer: His daughter

When Rapava flees Kelso's hotel he leaves behind a book of matches bearing the name "Robotnik", a bar. Kelso has made up his mind: he wants to find Stalin's papers, even if it is just a hoax. So the next day he finds the house where Rapava said Beria used to live.

It's now deserted and Kelso goes to the orchard where Rapava buried Stalin's papers in 1953. But they have since been dug up. Quite recently too, judging by the soil. So naturally Kelso's next step is to find the old man. He goes to the Robotnik and slips the bartender some money to tell him where Rapava is.

The bartender points towards the back of the dance floor...at an attractive woman. It's the wrong Rapava. It's Papu's daughter, who comes here some nights to earn extra money. She eventually agrees to take Kelso to her father's apartment.

She quickly drives away once she drops him off, and poor Kelso comes across the dead body of her father! Old Rapava was apparently tortured and murdered, then his flat was ransacked.

Answer: Reporter

Poor Kelso is frequently bothered by O'Brian. The ubiquitous reporter wants a story, and eventually (after enough nagging) Kelso agrees to join forces. As for poor Kelso, he's had to spend the night in jail after calling the police about the body. He is eventually freed by the secret police who know he had nothing to do with the murder.

However they blame him for the murder anyway since Kelso visited Mamantov and hinted someone had told him where to find Stalin's notebook. Such a hint could have only meant the old man.

They "suggest" Kelso leave Russia today with the rest of the symposium lecturers. He almost does, but at the airport he sees Zinaida Rapava. She mentions her father sent her a note the day before he was murdered. They hadn't spoken for years (which is why she didn't hang around after dropping Kelso off last night) but his note was full of apologies.

Not just for being a bad father but for things from her adulthood. He also hints where he'd hidden Stalin's notebook. It's now clear he was the one who dug it up and didn't tell Mamantov and his goons where to find it - otherwise they wouldn't have turned his flat upside-down after killing him. Kelso almost goes to catch his plane, but decides this is the chance of a lifetime and leaves with Zinaida instead.

Answer: A garage

The English lecturer and the Russian woman drive to a cluster of rental garages. Mamantov is still at large so they keep checking for tails. The garages are miles from the airport so Kelso knows the chances of catching his flight are not terribly high.

But he does not care about that, nor the fact he has ignored the wishes of the police. He is so excited! He could find Stalin's missing papers and become famous. Zinaida says her father used to rent this particular garage when she was a child. He left her a key in his note, plus hints suggesting this place.

When they get inside it's obviously the right place: there are posters of Stalin everywhere! They locate the precious notebook - then suddenly hear an engine and footsteps outside. They panic, but it's only O'Brian.

He takes them back to his news building so they can study the papers together.

Answer: Nothing - it was actually someone else writing

The investigative trio are captivated by what they read. The notebook and other papers are not in Stalin's writing at all. They are in fact a diary of a girl named Anna Staforvna. At the age of 19 in 1951, two years before Stalin died, she and her classmates from Archangel had been dancing in a Moscow street parade. Stalin had spotted her and months later invited her to work for him at his home. Anna writes in her diary about how excited she is! This is a rare honour for such a young Party member and she does not hesitate to accept.

The poor girl was naive, and most of the pages at the end of her diary are ripped out. The three have no difficulty speculating what Stalin wanted her for besides housekeeping. They are also papers about her parents' Party history, her medical history, her genes, and the fact Stalin requested her when specifically she was between periods. Stalin knew he did not have long to live.

History knows he was openly disappointed in his children. He must have decided to have a baby with this girl from Archangel.

Answer: False

Unlike previous Robert Harris novels, the heroine decides to stay behind. She is later picked up by the secret police who want to find Kelso. Not least because Mamantov is still at large and probably after Kelso - as well as Stalin's notebook. Unlike their predecessor the KGB the modern secret police are not vicious.

They do not torture or threaten Zinaida. They just take her to the morgue and show her how badly her father was tortured. She finally breaks down crying and tells them everything.

Answer: Stalin's Son and Heir

After a long cold drive in harsh and bleak conditions, they finally reach the northern town of Archangel. The two men are getting on better; in Moscow they agreed to find out what happened to Anna. They are surprised to find her mother is still alive.

They are even more surprised when the mother reveals Anna actually returned alive from Stalin's - heavily pregnant! Poor Anna died in childbirth but some KGB agents took the baby to a home in the woods further north. Anna's father was killed trying to find his grandson.

The two westerners (O'Brian with his cameras, satellite-links and video gear) drive in that direction. Despite the lack of a road, they finally locate the place. Someone has dug a trap which O'Brian's 4-wheel-drive falls into, stranding the two men.

They find a cemetery containing the bodies of all the KGB agents charged to protect and raise Anna's child. Then they meet the man himself, who has been secretly watching them. Not only is he the spitting image of his father Josef Stalin, he wears an old Party uniform and can quote Stalin's works from memory. Stalin obviously intended his secret son to one day go to Moscow and rule Russia.

Then, after a harrowing encounter with Russian soldiers who have been sent by the Russian President to assassinate Stalin Jr, they escape. But not before O'Brian encourages Kelso to confirm (on film) the validity of Stalin's Juniors' papers, his identity, how they found him, and where he has been all these years, etc. The three men use a speedboat to flee the cold woodlands as winter creeps in. O'Brian is cross about leaving his cameras and equipment behind but as we soon see, they have served their purpose. Reaching Archangel, the two Westerners escape Stalin Junior (who is, after all, just as much a murderer as Stalin senior e.g. junior murdered his KGB foster parents for differences of opinion). However Stalin Jr is able to catch the Moscow train anyway. On board the train they meet Mamantov and some of his henchmen. He is very pleased to see them because (a) O'Brian was working for him all along (b) he had dug up the notebook and met Stalin Jr the previous year, but needed a Western Soviet expert like Kelso to "discover" and endorse him (c) that was accomplished earlier when O'Brian secretly transmitted Kelso's conversation with Stalin Jr all over Russia (d) Papu Rapava was also working for Mamantov all along (but decided to double-cross him by fleeing that night so he could share Kelso's financial reward later - that's why Mamantov killed him) (e) Mamantov arranged for Kelso to come to Moscow in the first place so he could "find" Stalin Jr, and give him the credibility he has today (f) O'Brian's transmission has obviously had the desired affect. Scores and scores of Russians are gathering and cheering when the train approaches Moscow, eager to see Stalin Jr. The secret heir is smiling and waving to the crowds. They evidently expect him to walk into the Kremlin and take control. Kelso now realises this has been a set up all along. Mamantov will use Junior as a puppet to take over the government. Or so he thinks. At Moscow's train station, Papu Rapava's daughter is waiting with a loaded pistol...