“As they weaved amongst the potholes of Moscow Avenue, it dawned on him that St. Petersburg looked incredibly grey and intimidating.”

“Tall tower blocks, yellow eyes blinking through the gloom, were jammed close together on the left and the right, seemingly jostling for space around grubby courtyards.”

“It felt like he’d entered another time.”

“As if to prove the point, a large statue of Lenin suddenly loomed up at a junction, hand outstretched towards another gigantic, ruler- straight avenue.”

“Jonathan watched a drunk totter and finally slump down in the snow, ignored by the dark-coated masses hurrying to get out of the cold, woollen hats pulled down to the tops of their eyes.”

“It looked a tired city at first glance.”

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A bit about the author of ‘Russia, the Man and Jonathan David’ Saul Pope lives in High Wycombe. This is his first work of fiction, though he is a contributor to When Saturday Comes and has had poetry published. As a Russian graduate, the blame for any poor transliteration or errors with the genitive case lies squarely with him.