Bretteur: [novel] / Yulia Yakovleva. — Moscow: Alpina Non-Fiction, 2024. — 253 pages. — (Historical Detective series). ISBN 978-5-00139-990-2 “Bretteur” is the first book in Yulia Yakovleva's new detective series set in 1812. The author brings the chosen era closer to the atmosphere of a modern “tough” detective: Saint Petersburg hussar Murin, reluctantly turned detective, solves a crime that looks contemporary yet could happen in any era. Autumn 1812, the war continues; officers occasionally come to Saint Petersburg from the active army—for leave or due to injury. Murin decides to cut his leave short and return to war. But circumstances force him to stay: the sister of his regimental comrade Proshin asks for help—her brother is arrested in a gambling house for the brutal murder of a woman. The woman does not believe her brother capable of such an act and asks Murin to find the truth—no matter how bitter it may be. Murin decides to spend the rest of his leave seeking the truth, which turns out to be more cynical than expected. But the real culprit does not escape justice. UDC 821.161.1-312.4 BBK 84(2=411.2)6-445.7