An atmospheric mystery set in St Petersburg in the winter of 1867 sees detective Porfiry Petrovich taking his first murder case since Dostoevsky`s "Crime and Punishment". When two frozen bodies are found in a park, he begins to suspect that the truth may be more complex than others wish him to believe, as his investigations lead him to a shocking discovery which reveals the city`s darkest secrets. "A Gentle Axe" is utterly absorbing and tense from its dramatic opening through to its shocking climax.