Ten things I learned researching Russian Heat for the Dangerous Men, Dangerous Places anthology (available 5 April).
- Vodsk pass: I had to set my story somewhere dangerous, and there’s few places more dangerous in Europe than in the Northern
Caucasus mountains in Russia (think Chechnya). While the Vodsk mountains don’t exist, and there’s no Vodsk Pass, the Northern Caucasus mountains were my inspiration for a suitably dangerous place. Unofficial estimates range from 25,000 to 50,000 dead or missing, mostly civilians, in Chechnya as a result of hostilities there in 1999–2009. - Body armour: There’s no such thing as a bullet-proof vest, apparently. Only bullet-resistant vests. And they mostly are designed to come down over the waist, making it difficult to use a traditional waist holster for a gun.
- Thigh holster: Yes, I too once thought they were just suspender-like man-lingerie for hot men packing heat, but they serve a practical purpose as mentioned above. Apparently, the trick is to get one that doesn’t make your thighs look fat and fits your gun size.
- Russian cars: You can buy pretty much any car you want in Russia or drag one over from overseas, but to give my story a little local flavour I chose the Zhiguli. Apparently, even during Soviet times, Russian factories made Lada Fiats and sold them throughout Europe. Those sold domestically were called Zhiguli. Car fans would probably be horrified, or laugh hysterically, that I refer to a ‘armour plated’ Zhiguli (fiat) charging through the Northern Caucasus mountains on what are (no doubt) some pretty rough roads.
- Portable showers: Looking at the complexity of some of the portable showers I looked at online, you’d need to work for NASA to be able to make them work. My story’s characters Vlad and Slava naturally don’t mind a bit of dirt, but Jane stinks of sheep (from holding them for sampling) and gets a bit excited about the portable shower. Soft, I know.
- Russian diminutives: You can shorten Vladislav to Vlad but not Slava. You should only shorten Viacheslav to Slava. Don’t ask me why.
- Blood sampling livestock: Some vets swab before taking the sample, some after, some do both. I had Jane do it afterwards so she could wrestle with the ewe in an effort to swab her after the land mine explodes.
- Blood samples: A vacutainer is the choice of blood sampling equipment for livestock veterinarians. They’re purpose designed for the job, sterile plastic tubes with a needle in them which can be disposed of and a cap whacked on in its place. You can hold one in your teeth if you have to, though it’s not recommended.
- Blood samples: Not all blood samples require refrigeration for testing purposes. Which was a relief, because I didn’t want my characters to have to drag a fridge around with them.
- Russian regions: Certain administrative regions in Russia are called ‘oblasts’, similar to states and shires in other countries. Oblasts are sub-divided into raions which are not to be confused with Okrug (municipalities).
