“Winners and Vanquished” is the first book in the new epic trilogy “Vertical of Life” by Semyon Malkov, author of the popular love novel “Two Fates”. The new trilogy is also written in the family chronicle genre. The book is based on a complex life story, full of vivid episodes, of the scientist Artem Naumov and his family. The time period in which the first volume of this family saga takes place is one of the most interesting and complex in our history: the beginning of World War II and the mid-50s. This is a period when life, by the will of history, was “bare” to such an extent that the most intimate details were brought to people’s judgment. The author is not shy in describing erotic episodes. The novel is read with captivating interest.