The Possessed

William Heinemann LTD, London. Translated from the Russian by Constance Garnett, the first to be made direct from the Russian New Impression 1946. 617 pages. With dust jacket. Red clothbound hardback, Crown octavo size. Now known as the Devils in English.

As ideological ferment grips Russia, a small group of revolutionaries, led by Pyotr Verkhovensky and inspired by Nikolai Stavrogin, plan to spread destruction and anarchy throughout the country. Morally bankrupt, they are prepared to use whatever means necessary to achieve their goal, including murder and incitement to suicide. But when they are forced to test the limits of their doctrine and kill one of their own to secure the secrecy of their mission, the ragtag group breaks up in mutual recrimination. The Possessed is at once a compelling political statement and a study of atheism and its calamitous effect on a country that is teetering on the edge of an abyss.

Seen as Dostoevsky's most powerful indictment of man's propensity to violence, this darkly humorous work, shot through with grotesque comedy

Condition: Cracked inside spine, all pages secure and intact. Little to no foxing and tanning. Previous owner inscription. Slight discolouration to hardback and with mild corner bumping to top and bottom of spine.