The death of the perfect sentence

The novel captures the final months of Estonia under Soviet rule, offering a multifaceted and vivid picture of the days leading up to Estonian independence. It explores a time of fear, uncertainty, but also hope and courage, as the forces of independence clash with the USSR's last attempts to preserve the old order. The novel features a group of young dissidents who devise a plan to smuggle copies of secret KGB files out of the country. They are aided by a Russian teacher and a young art student who becomes involved in the dissident activities almost by accident. Among the characters are KGB agents from both Russian and Estonian ranks, as well as older Estonians content with the status quo.

We slowly uncover who is on which side and their reasons for being there. Many fates intertwine, and chance encounters become fateful meetings. And when the Estonian Maarja meets a young Russian, a romantic dimension is added to the novel's political and espionage plot.

The author's eye for detail provides a convincing insight into the daily lives of Estonians, while also serving as a springboard for universal questions about interpersonal relationships and (dis)trust in those "interesting times" when history is being written and the old world is being replaced by a new one.