10. City of Thieves, David Benioff
Lev Beniov (a fictional version of the author’s grandfather) is barely surviving the 1942 siege of Leningrad when he hooks up with a charismatic army deserter named Kolya. The good news is that they become fast friends. The bad news is that if they don’t find a dozen eggs for a wedding cake, an unpleasant secret-police colonel is going to have them executed. Hair-raising (and sometimes hilarious) adventures follow.