Dravé věci naší doby – Strugackij Arkadij (2023)

Welcome to our time – the 2020s of this century, as envisioned by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. It is not the world of Noon, not yet, but a bright future is already glimmering just beyond the horizon. A world that, after decades of wars and economic upheavals, is finally gaining stability, and with growing self-confidence, even lifts its head to the stars. ***** Ivan Zhilin, a former cosmonaut and now an agent of the Security Council, arrives at a prosperous seaside resort to investigate a series of suspicious deaths. From the very beginning, he realizes that it will not be easy: the town hides countless temptations and amusements, which the locals call "the circles of paradise." During his few days' stay, Zhilin ultimately learns more than he would have wished – about himself, about people, and about humanity as a whole. ***** The novel The Predatory Things of Our Time is a chilling and disturbing vision of a future where everyone has everything, yet each person still – or perhaps precisely because of that – lacks something important. ***** The only previous Czech edition of the novel (from 1985 under the title Predators of My Century) was adversely affected by contemporary censorship. One of the most discussed works is now finally reaching readers in a new translation based on the uncensored...