Head of Zeus snaps up ex-foreign correspondent Alan Philps' The Kremlin

Head of Zeus has bought former correspondent Alan Philps’ look at how the Kremlin’s imperial grandeur and terrifying history has kept alive the "spirit of the Russian empire" and has contributed to how it acts on the world stage.

Non-fiction publishing director Iain MacGregor acquired world rights to The Kremlin: Behind the Walls of Moscow’s Citadel from Annabel Merullo at Peters, Fraser and Dunlop. The book will be published in autumn of 2026.

In the book, Philps will argue that the Kremlin is not just an fortress but has "shaped Russia’s destiny", shedding  new light on the rise of the Russian state and the roots of the centuries-old rivalry between Moscow and Kiev which led Putin to go to war against Ukraine in 2022.

Philps said: "Over my years working in Moscow, I used to shudder as I walked towards the forbidding battlements and towers of the Kremlin, the eternal centre of Russian might. Outwardly, the Kremlin looks an incongruous pile of shapes, styles and colours, but inwardly it is like a geological formation of history where the elements that have shaped Russian destiny over 800 years are deposited, layer upon layer. This is the story I intend to tell."

MacGregor added: "Alan’s breadth of experience as an international reporter, allied to a natural talent for weaving a page-turning narrative and bringing characters to life, really make him an author to watch out for. This is going to be a cracking book for anyone who wants to understand how this centre of Soviet power has evolved over time."