'Quite simply the best and most powerful book I've read this year' David Peace'A magnificent book . . . beautifully written and passionately argued' Dominic Sandbrook'A remarkable eye-witness account of Russia-s descent into authoritarianism and war' Catherine BeltonA unique, personal insight into Vladimir Putin-s Russia and the devastating impact his rule has had on his own people and those of neighbouring Ukraine. In 2021, BBC journalist Sarah Rainsford set out to write a book about how Russians who dared to think differently to the Putin regime were being labelled as enemies, foreign agents and even traitors. It was to chart Russia's slide from democracy and warn of where the crushing of liberties could lead. She had experienced something of that herself when she was expelled from Moscow as a supposed 'security threat'. Then, in February 2022, Putin began his full-scale invasion of Ukraine, moving faster than her worst fears. This is the sto
