Moscow, 1956. A society trying to recover from a time when the police were corrupt and the innocent arrested as criminals.

Detective Leo Demidov, former Secret Police Officer, is forced to ask whether the wrongs of the past can ever be forgiven. Trying to solve a series of brutal murders that grip the capital, he must decide if this is savagery or justice.

Quickly it becomes apparent that Leo himself - and his family - are in danger from someone intent on revenge. Desperate to save those he loves, he is offered salvation from an unexpected source - and at a terrible price.

From the streets of Moscow in the throes of political upheaval, to the Siberian gulags and the Hungarian uprising in Budapest, The Secret Speechis a breathtaking novel that confirms Tom Rob Smith as one of the most exciting authors writing today.