"Soul Catcher" is the first English translation of a work by Dimitri Bortnikov, an outstanding Russian-born French writer whose literary career to-date is impressive and whose future is undoubtedly full of promise.

This partly autobiographical work is narrated by Dim, a Russian exile living in France. In prose that is as harsh as it is poetic, the narrator reminisces about his childhood, his family, his dead loved ones, his lost love, and the country in which he grew up, as well as telling about his life in France, the country of his voluntary exile.

Vivid dreamlike images, and the depth of the author’s own thoughts and lucid observations, are conjured up by Bortnikov’s unique rhythmic, syncopated language that is truly his own, intense and mesmerising. The result is a daring, powerful novel like no other, which captivates readers with the power of his writing and stays with them long after reading.

The importance of this work, which is his first full-length novel written in a language that is not his mother tongue, lies in his original voice, which critics often compare to Céline, Calaferte, Jauffret, Beckett, or Joyce.