Newmag and Yeraz Projects present Beastly Crimes: The Wolf’s Lair (trailer)

In a distant forest where not a single day passes quietly, every sunrise brings a new mystery, a new suspicion, a new intrigue. This is where seasoned investigator and his clever assistant live and work. Tired of minor mischief and petty cases, they dream of a real investigation. And one day, deep in the dark forest, a shocking crime finally occurs.

All the characters in The Wolf’s Lair are animals, but they love, hate, deceive, trust, despair, betray, and save one another just like humans. The novel follows all the classic rules of detective fiction: the line between friend and enemy blurs, innocence is questioned, and the identity of the culprit remains a mystery until the very end.

What sets the book apart is its sharp humor and subtle irony. The animal adventures are so vivid that readers momentarily forget they are following beasts, not people.

Anna Starobinets is widely known in contemporary literature, particularly for her dark speculative fiction for adults, earning her the title “Queen of Russian Horror.” However, in her children’s books, she adopts a completely different tone, playful, witty, and imaginative. The Beast Detective series is one of her most popular children’s projects.

Her work has received numerous international accolades. In 2018, she was named “Best Writer in Europe” by the European Science Fiction Society, and in 2021, the Beastly Crimes series won the Eduard Uspensky “Great Fairy Tale” Prize. Her books have been translated into many European languages and published worldwide, including in the United States and Japan.

The Armenian edition is translated from Russian by Anush Muradyan.

The official presentation will take place on May 3, from 2:00 to 6:00 PM, at Yeraz Park, as part of the Yeraz Book Fest.

Co-organizer: Yeraz Projects.