Boris Akunin publishes memoir revealing the pact he and his dying wife made to die together
Author Boris Akunin has published a memoir about his wife and longtime editor Erika Chkhartishvili, who died of cancer in mid-August. The book's final chapters describe a long-planned pact for the couple to die together, a plan that ultimately never happened because Erika lost consciousness before it could be carried out.
Writer Boris Akunin (real name Grigory Chkhartishvili) published a 105-page memoir on September 2 dedicated to his wife, Erika Chkhartishvili, who edited his books and was his spouse for more than 40 years. Erika died in mid-August after a 15-month battle with terminal cancer. The book is available free on the Babook Book Club website, and with the author's permission, Meduza published its two closing chapters.
A shared plan
According to the memoir, the idea of dying together took shape back in 2022, when Akunin himself received what turned out to be a misdiagnosis of terminal lung cancer. The experience prompted him to write his wife a letter proposing that if either of them were ever diagnosed with an incurable illness, the other would choose to go with them rather than face life alone. Erika agreed readily, and from then on the fear of being left alone disappeared from their lives.
When doctors told the couple in August that Erika's treatment options were exhausted and only palliative care remained, they decided to act on the plan — jumping together from their 33rd-floor balcony. Akunin even ordered a special lift platform so the weakened Erika could reach the railing.
The plan unravels
However, the night before the planned moment, Erika fell into a deep sleep after a pain-relief injection and never fully woke again. Doctors explained that her body was shutting down and she had only days left. Akunin came to believe Erika may have agreed to the plan knowing the jump would never happen, wanting to spare him the burden of having taken his own life. Hours before she died, she briefly opened her eyes and whispered that it would be hard for him without her. Erika died the following night after being moved home.
