Let's catch up. In the first book, our 'hero,' Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, traveled across the Russian countryside with a bizarre business plan: buying the legal titles to serfs (peasants) who had died since the last census. These 'dead souls' were still on the tax rolls, and he planned to use them as collateral for a loan. Volume Two finds Chichikov after his scheme has been exposed. He's lying low, trying to start fresh in a new town with a slightly more legitimate air.

The Story

This volume is more fragmented than the first—Gogol famously burned much of it before he died—but what remains is fascinating. We see Chichikov attempt to ingratiate himself with a new cast of eccentric landowners and officials. He tries his hand at a bit of matchmaking and other dubious ventures, all while the ghost of his past misdeeds lingers. The plot meanders through encounters with a miserly landowner hoarding wealth, a dreamy idealist, and various bureaucrats. It's less a straight-line con and more a portrait of a man constantly adapting, scheming, and surviving in a system that makes no sense.

Why You Should Read It

For me, the magic isn't just in the plot. It's in Gogol's voice. He writes about greed, corruption, and vanity, but he does it with such warmth and weirdness that you can't help but laugh. Chichikov is a fantastic character—utterly without morals, yet you find yourself weirdly rooting for him to get away with it all. Gogol doesn't just mock his characters; he shows how the absurd rules of their world shaped them. The writing in this second part feels darker and more philosophical at times, as if Gogol was searching for a redemption arc that never quite materializes. It's messy, unfinished, and utterly compelling because of it.

Final Verdict

This is a book for readers who don't need a neat, tidy ending. It's perfect for fans of satirical classics like Catch-22 or The Good Soldier Švejk, where the madness of bureaucracy is the real villain. If you enjoyed the first Dead Souls, you'll want to see where Gogol tried to take Chichikov next, even if the road is incomplete. It's also great for anyone who believes the best historical fiction holds a mirror up to our own world. Just be ready for a journey that's more about the strange sights along the way than the final destination.