The Devil's Wheel is one of the best books I've read this year, a graphic depiction of drug addiction and corruption in Tbilisi, Georgia, during the Gorbachev era. Gigolashvili makes an 800-page book feel short and shows incredible patience in structuring the novel, creating dozens of major and minor characters who feel surprisingly real as they experience withdrawal from drugs and a way of life.

There's more on my blog here. ( )