Julia Gousseva - Gray Shadows - Russian Historical Thriller

In post-Soviet Russia, greed and corruption are around every corner. With billions of dollars changing hands behind closed doors, the oil industry is the epicenter of new capitalism, new morals, and new money. When greed arrives at the international oil company in a small Siberian town, the life of its beloved director is in danger.
Young, beautiful, and wealthy, Natalya Abramova seems to have it all. Of course, appearances can be deceptive. Natalya is impulsive and prone to bad decisions. That’s why her father hired Nikolai Volkov, one of the best bodyguards in Moscow. His job is to protect Natalya from herself as she travels to a small northern town for her first professional job – a Russian-English interpreter for the director of an oil company.
An easy job, Nikolai thinks. But the town has a deep and dark secret, and Nikolai starts seeing signs of trouble hours after they arrive. A dead body on the ground that the locals explain as a heart attack victim, a newly constructed tall fence, and obvious signs of increased extra security around the newly built work compound are enough to put Nikolai on edge.
As Nikolai gets to know the company and learns of the intricate web of blackmail and threats, he realizes that somebody is going to kill the director. Natalya is in serious danger. They need to leave as soon as possible. But Natalya refuses.
Nikolai’s smarts, investigative skills, and combat experiences are challenged to the max as he puzzles his way through a variety of suspects, trying to identify and stop the killer before more people die.
With a fast pace, unique setting, and intriguing plot twists that echo the headlines of Russian news, Gray Shadows takes you deep into the dark corners of Russian criminal world and presents a scenario that’s as frightening as it is plausible.