A summary of Boris Akunin’s "The Turkish Gambit" Automatic translate

This historical detective novel, created in 1998, transports readers to the Balkans during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878. The narrative seamlessly weaves together real military campaigns and the prototypes of famous commanders with a fictional spy plot. The work was adapted into a major film in 2005. The film of the same name grossed high in Russia and earned audiences’ attention for its spectacular battle scenes.

The novel belongs to the "Adventures of Erast Fandorin" series, occupying the position of the second book in the cycle. It is preceded by "Azazel," and continues with "Leviathan," "The Death of Achilles," and other literary works by this author.

The road to the front and a dangerous acquaintance

Twenty-two-year-old Varvara Suvorova, a modern St. Petersburg woman with progressive views, secretly makes her way to the Balkan theater of war to join her fiancé, Pyotr Yablokov. En route, she stops at a Bulgarian tavern. Her local guide, Mitko, disappears without a trace, stealing her luggage and money. The frightened girl, dressed in a man’s peasant costume, encounters Erast Fandorin. The twenty-one-year-old titular councilor, with graying temples and a slight stutter, has returned from Turkish captivity. The young man wins a donkey at dice, betting Varvara, and they leave the village together.

On the road, the travelers are overtaken by a detachment of bashi-bazouks. The bandits are carrying the severed head of a Russian soldier and the captured officer Yeremey Perepelkin. Fandorin knocks out one of the attackers with a heavy flask, but their escape is thwarted when the horse falls, crushing the rider’s leg. The fugitives are saved by the sudden appearance of General Mikhail Sobolev’s Cossacks and foreign correspondents Seamus McLaughlin and Charles d’Evreux.

Fatal Error and the Spy Network

Upon arrival in Tsarevitsy, Varvara is interrogated by Gendarme Lieutenant Colonel Ivan Kazanzaki. Lavrenty Mizinov, head of the Third Section, enters the room. Fandorin reports to the general about the maneuvers of the Turkish mushir Osman Pasha, who is heading for the city of Plevna. Mizinov orders Kazanzaki to telegraph General Kridener with an order to immediately occupy the city. The chief of the gendarmes warns the titular councilor about a very dangerous adversary — Anvar Efendi, former secretary of the deposed Turkish sultan. Fandorin takes Varvara under his personal responsibility as his secretary.

Varvara meets with Pyotr Yablokov. The cipher clerk is overjoyed to see his bride. Suddenly, a terrible mistake is discovered. General Kridener occupied Nikopol, not Plevna. Osman Pasha entered the deserted Plevna unhindered, posing a grave threat to the Russian troops. Kazanzaki arrests Yablokov, as the coded message he sent specifically named Nikopol. Pyotr faces a court martial. Varvara begs Fandorin to find the real culprit behind the forgery.

The Russian army begins a long siege. The first assault on Plevna suffers a crushing failure. French correspondent Charles d’Evreux infiltrates the Turks and interviews a certain Colonel Ali Bey. Believing false information about the weakness of the Turkish garrison, the Russian command suffers further massive losses during the attack. Romanian Colonel Lucan correctly predicts defeat. Fandorin studies Lucan’s financial records and concludes that his ally has betrayed him. The colonel was selling dispositions to a spy designated J. Varvara and Charles d’Evreux travel to Bucharest to retrieve Lucan. In a restaurant, the drunken Romanian behaves rudely, and d’Evreux challenges him to a duel. During the saber duel, the correspondent kills the colonel. The Frenchman is expelled from Romania.

The third assault and a series of deaths

The day of the third assault arrives. The troops again suffer enormous losses. General Sobolev breaks through the defenses on the southern flank and requests reinforcements. His adjutant, Ippolit Zurov, gallops to headquarters but disappears without a trace. Sobolev’s detachment retreats to its original positions.

In the morning, Zurov is found dead with Kazanzaki’s dagger in his back. The lieutenant colonel himself is found shot nearby. In his pocket is a forged letter implying blackmail and betrayal. Mizinov accuses Kazanzaki of being a Turkish spy. Pyotr Yablokov, blaming himself for the deaths of thousands of soldiers due to a mixed-up dispatch, attempts to hang himself in the guardhouse. Doctors miraculously save the young man. Varvara contracts typhus and spends several months in the hospital.

Returning to the winter camp, Varvara meets McLaughlin. The Irishman confides that Osman Pasha will surrender to General Ganetsky at precisely ten o’clock that evening. Varvara passes this information on to Fandorin. The titular councilor uncovers the deception — the Turks are planning a breakout. Fandorin warns Sobolev, who repels the attack just in time.

Osman Pasha capitulates with his entire army. Emperor Alexander summons Fandorin and Varvara to an audience. Mizinov blames McLaughlin for all the troubles, believing him to be a British agent. Fandorin leaves for London to search for the journalist.

San Stefano interchange

The war is drawing to a close. The Russian army is rapidly advancing. Sobolev reaches San Stefano, a suburb of Constantinople. The general sets up temporary headquarters in a bank building. Varvara and the returning Charles d’Evreux are with him. The Frenchman persuades Sobolev to enter the capital without orders from the commander-in-chief. Suddenly, Mizinov and Fandorin enter the office. The titular councilor addresses d’Evreux with the words, "Salam aleikum, Anvar Effendi."

Fandorin delivers a lengthy diatribe. He traveled to Europe and established McLaughlin’s complete innocence. Charles d’Evreux turned out to be the Turkish spy Anvar Effendi, who had never worked for the Paris editorial office. Disguised as a journalist, Anvar substituted a word in Yablokov’s encrypted message and created a mythical Ali Bey to mislead the Russian headquarters. He killed Zurov to disrupt the transfer of reinforcements to Sobolev, and then shot Kazanzaki as a distraction. The Irishman McLaughlin also fell victim to Anvar. The Turk fed him false information about the surrender to ensure Osman Pasha’s unimpeded breakthrough.

Realizing he’s been exposed, Anvar Effendi shoots the gendarmes, wounds his orderly, Mitya Gridnev, and takes Varvara hostage. The spy locks himself in the bank’s steel vault. Alone with Varvara, he explains his motives. Anvar considers the Russian Empire the greatest threat to world civilization due to its aggressiveness and backwardness. He sacrificed Turkish territory to weaken Russia, creating a unique geopolitical gambit. The spy awaits the arrival of the Turkish guard to provoke a massacre.

A fierce battle erupts outside the storage facility. Sobolev’s soldiers repel an attack by Turkish riflemen. Anvar’s plan fails completely. The Turkish agent frees Varvara and, unwilling to surrender, shoots himself in the head.

The end of the campaign

The diplomats sign the Treaty of San Stefano. Pyotr Yablokov receives a full pardon. Fandorin considers himself a loser, as Anvar has exhausted Russia’s forces. Erast Petrovich receives a new appointment as secretary of the embassy in Japan. Varvara bids farewell to the titular councilor at the train station. At the last moment, she jumps on the departing train to join Pyotr, leaving Fandorin alone on the platform.