Book Log 2021 #51: A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

Alexander Rostov is a Russian count, and his aristocratic ways land him in front of a Bolshevik tribunal in the early days of the Soviet Union. He refuses to renounce his past, and seems headed to a firing squad, but a poem he wrote with revolutionary themes is enough to spare him the bullet. He is sentenced to life under house arrest in the Hotel Metropol. 

Moved from his suite to the servant's quarters, Rostov begins to rebuild his life in the confines of the hotel, developing new relationships with employees and guests, one of which leads to an unexpected change in status.

This book is lushly written, but in a way that's fitting a noble main character and the clientele that can still afford a luxury hotel. It also takes great delight in showing how the count and his new friends work within (and around) the new order, both when the stakes are low and when they're at their highest. There's also a novel structure where each chapter doubles the number of days after the start of the story, and then halves them after the midway point. It sounds like something that could be gimmicky, but I really didn't even notice it at the time. 

One of the better books I've read this year, and very recommended.