Drama of a Snowy Night: A Novel-Investigation into the Fate and Criminal Case of Sukhov-Kobylin

In November 1850, a French woman, with whom Alexander Vasilievich Sukhov-Kobylin (1817–1903) lived for eight years in a secret love affair, is found brutally murdered in the snowdrifts of Khodynka Field near Moscow. A criminal investigation begins, and the evidence points to him — a young and wealthy gentleman, a renowned aristocrat, a gambler, and a womanizer, future author of “The Marriage of Krechinsky,” “The Case,” and “The Death of Tarelkin,” whose work developed under the direct and hidden influence of the accusation of a serious crime. Did the Russian classic commit the crime? Was he involved in it? How could he write a great comedy while in prison under the threat of hard labor? To find this out, writer Vladislav Otrushenko worked for several years with archival documents and the original copy of the case regarding the murder of Louise Simon-Demange, intended for the highest members of the State Council. Vladislav Otrushenko is a writer, author of books such as “Gogolian,” “Appendix to a Photo Album,” “Persona Outside of Truth,” and others. Laureate of the “Yasnaya Polyana” and the Italian literary award Grinzane Cavour.