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A Hero of Our Time is an often overlooked classic of Russian literature regarded as the first Russian novel of Russian psychological realism. Centered around the adventures of a morally bankrupt army officer named Pechorin, the book takes place in the Caucasus in the early 19th Century. Seemingly bored with life, Pechorin draws pleasure from playing psychological games and attempting to dominate those around him. His tales of derring-do, manipulation and female seduction are enthralling in their unfolding and disturbing in their sheer pointlessness.

In the introduction Lermontov writes that the book was not just a portrait of one man but of all his generation’s vices. Many critics, however, have taken the character of Pechorin to be more of a self-portrait than Lermontov would admit...

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Moscow is often unfairly overlooked by tourists. Time and time again I see itineraries that are heavily weighted in favour of St Petersburg, allowing only a couple of days for Moscow. After all, what is there to see besides Red Square and the Kremlin? The answer is that there's a hell of a lot. In fact, I doubt I'll ever have the chance to see everything I want to in this city. The problem is that Moscow's treasures aren't located in one area that is easily traversed by foot and aren't as well publicised. Here are some examples of what I mean.

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