A summary of Lev Brusilov’s "Blood-Red Biscuits"

"Blood-Red Biscuits" is a detective novel by Lev Brusilov, published in 2024 by Eksmo. The action takes place in the fictional provincial town of Tatayar — a provincial town with a vibrant atmosphere, where local customs and superstitions intertwine with police investigations. The lead investigator is not one, but two characters with contrasting methods: the meticulous forensic investigator Altufyev and the intuitive, perceptive head of the provincial detective police, Baron Foma Fomich von Shpinne.

Pastry shop, cakes and the first victims

At precisely eight o’clock in the morning, messengers rush out of the Italian Sweets pastry shop on Pochtovaya Street with bags of pastries. The establishment was run by Italian citizen Giuseppe Giotto — a man who, in the space of a year and a half, conquered all of Tatayar with his signature biscuits with blood-red icing, made according to a secret recipe from his grandmother, who allegedly served at the court of the Duke of Tuscany. The mayor himself, Mikhail Fyodorovich Skvorchansky, became the biggest fan of these sweets — he received a dozen biscuits daily, earning the nickname "Sherlock."

On June 1st, the errand boy Marco — an eleven-year-old boy picked up by Giotto from the street — brings a package of cakes to Skvorchansky’s house. Varvara Kanurova, the maid, accepts it and discovers thirteen instead of the usual twelve: the ribbon on the package is tied in a knot, not a bow. The cook, Akulina Ivanovna, persuades Varvara to cut the extra cake in half and eat it. The cook eats her half right there and then and collapses dead in the kitchen. At that moment, Varvara is called by her master — and this is precisely what saves her. Skvorchansky, by then, has managed to try the cakes himself and dies, sitting facedown in his plate at the table.

The disappearance of the mayor

When Varvara calls the police, she remains at the front door, not reentering the house. The arriving gendarmes discover the cook’s body in the kitchen, but Skvorchansky’s body is nowhere to be found: not in the dining room or any other rooms. The back door is bolted from the inside. A witness from the convenience store across the street confirms that the maid stood at the door the entire time. The mayor’s body vanishes without a trace, immediately turning the case into a true mystery.

Investigator Yakov Semyonovich Altufyev interrogates Varvara and ultimately arrests her as the prime suspect. The maid is superstitious and convinced that the poisoned Skvorchansky has become a "dead man" — an unquiet soul. Altufyev angrily squashes her superstitions, but ultimately discovers that none of the theories explain the body’s disappearance.

Confectioners are asking for help

Local confectioners and bakers, led by first-guild merchant Ivan Vasilyevich Kislitsyn, unexpectedly intervene in the matter. They had long been battling Giotto for clientele and now demand that the Italian be held accountable, claiming his establishment’s biscuits poisoned the mayor. The delegation comes to von Spinne directly at Dudin’s tavern, where he is dining.

Foma Fomich happily analyzes the prosecution’s logic. He explains to Kislitsyn that Giotto had no motive whatsoever to kill Skvorchansky — he was his patron and main client. However, the confectioners themselves benefit from the mayor’s death: Giotto loses his defense attorney, loses clients, and risks prosecution. The merchant leaves, embarrassed.

Second poisoning and a new twist

A few days later, on a Sunday, a beggar is given alms at the porch of the Church of the Intercession — and he dies. The poison is the same one that killed the cook and, presumably, Skvorchansky. However, it turns out that the poisoned item isn’t Giotto’s biscuit, but a waffle cone from Kislitsyn’s kitchen. This new poisoning finally clears the maid of suspicion and simultaneously points to someone deliberately obfuscating the investigation.

Governor Pyotr Mikhailovich Protopopov, a retired general and a straightforward but reasonable man, personally visits von Spinne and asks him to conduct a parallel investigation without dismissing Altufyev. Foma Fomich agrees, but insists that the detective team work quietly and separately.

A list of twenty-nine names

The chief detective orders the merchant Kislitsyn to gather information about who has purchased waffle cones from his three shops in recent days. Kislitsyn produces a list of twenty-nine items. Twenty-eight of them are known regular customers. The twenty-ninth entry is on the back of the sheet: an unknown boy, aged ten or twelve, bought five cones on Saturday, dressed in the uniform of a delivery boy from the Italian Sweets pastry shop.

The special assignments officer Mercury Frolovich Kochkin immediately recognizes the description of the boy as Marco, Giotto’s favorite messenger, the same one who brought cakes to Skvorchansky on that fateful morning.

Giotto’s Interrogation and von Spinne’s Cunning

Giotto is summoned to the detective department. Foma Fomich shows him a suicide note on dark beige paper — the same kind used for wrapping paper at the bakery. The note is supposedly written in Marco’s name. The baker carefully examines the handwriting and confidently confirms: yes, it is Marco’s. Von Spinne accepts this confirmation and asks Giotto to put it in writing, along with a description of the boy’s appearance.

However, the chief detective already knows the note was written by someone else: it was a test. Having confirmed the other man’s handwriting, Giotto inadvertently reveals himself. Foma Fomich takes the pastry chef’s handwriting and goes to see investigator Altufyev with Kochkin to return the note and discuss the progress of the case.

Investigation in the district town of Sorokoput

Meanwhile, the detectives travel to the provincial town of Sorokoput, where the trail of one of the key witnesses leads. There, they are immediately followed by an agent of the local police chief, Nikita Stanislavovich Pomerantsev. Von Spinne uncovers the surveillance and goes straight to the police chief’s home. The despotic but clever Pomerantsev greets his guests at a laid table, and a frank conversation ensues. The police chief turns out to be more knowledgeable than he appears: his volunteer assistants — hotel owners, janitors, and cemetery caretakers — report on everything that happens in the town.