Konstantin

Tom Bullough''s Konstantin is a mesmerising novel about how the imagination can inspire the individual to greatness.

1867, Ryazan, a Russian city in winter. Ten-year-old Konstantin, deafened by scarlet fever, dreams of flight - escaping to Moscow, fleeing to the silent stars. And his daring visions, pregnant with humanity''s future, will take him further than anyone could believe.

Moving from wolf-infested forests to the brothels of Moscow, from village life to the wondrous Age of Steam, from appalling tragedy to the discovery of a great love, Konstantin tells the beguiling story of a man who imagined the unimaginable: turning the dream of space travel into a reality.

As vivid and evocative as Hilary Mantel''s Wolf Hall and David Mitchell''s The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, Konstantin is a story of man, nature, and the limitless power of the imagination.

Praise for Konstantin:

''Convincing, lyrical. Bullough has set Konstantin squarely before us as a living, thinking, ingenious human being'' John Banville

''Konstantin is that rare creature, the practical dreamer, a hero at the dawn of modernity. Beautifully written . . . a real achievement'' Andrew Miller, author of Pure

''Enchanting, wonderfully eloquent. A very alluring read'' Time Out

Tom Bullough was born in 1975 and is the author of two previous novels. He lives in Breconshire, in mid-Wales, with his wife and young son.