Everyone remembers the bumbling characters around Stalin's deathbed in Armando Iannucci's film Death of Stalin, but who knows what actually came next? Those bumblers from the Politburo, Stalin's heirs, immediately and efficiently launched into reforms across the board. Meanwhile, the West's vigilant Soviet-watchers almost completely missed the story ...

In this vivid, deeply knowledgeable short book, award-winning historian Sheila Fitzpatrick offers a new look at a crucial moment in history.