Andrei Cruz is a landmark among contemporary Russian science fiction writers. He is considered the founder of the zombie horror genre in domestic fantasy. It gained popularity after the release of the cycle of novels “The Age of the Dead”.
Biography
Andrei Yurievich Khamidulin (Cruz - a pseudonym) was born on January 26, 1965 in Tver. His parents are from Ukraine. My father was a military man, so the family often changed their place of residence. Hamidulin’s biography has many bright spots. So, according to other sources, Andrei was born in Ukraine, but a few days later the family moved to Tver. The childhood of the future writer was held in this city on the Volga.
When he was 15 years old, his father was transferred to serve in the Russian capital, and the family moved with him. In Moscow, Andrei spent his youth. After serving in the army, he entered the university.
In the mid-nineties, Khamidulin decided to engage in entrepreneurial activity. In the post-Soviet period, perhaps, only the lazy did not try to find himself in business. In the early 2000s, he led his own company. What sphere of activity she belonged to is precisely unknown. According to some sources, Khamidulin was at the helm of the construction company Education, Science, Production, which was engaged in the design of residential buildings. At the same time he worked for a British company specializing in risk management.
Scandal and emigration to Europe
In 2005, Khamidulin was forced to flee Russia, where he was suspected of fraudulent acts. The scandalous story began in 1998. Then the future writer created a company, on behalf of which he began to build elite multi-storey buildings in the immediate vicinity of the Kremlin. For these purposes, he attracted investor money.
In total, only one house was built, on Malaya Nikitskaya Street. Another, in Granatny Lane, was never completed. Khamidulin himself stated that the construction site was frozen due to several raider attempts. Residential meters near the Kremlin, and at that time were valued in large amounts. According to him, the unknown tried to get an unfinished house at all costs. In 2003, the construction site was frozen, at the same time investors suddenly wanted to get out of business and appealed to the court with a request to recover the money invested from Hamidulin.
The court accused Andrei of fraud. Several criminal cases have been instituted. Litigation lasted more than two years. In 2005, Hamidulin emigrated to Spain. Already from there, by a court decision, he paid investors debts along with all fines and penalties. The criminal cases were closed, and his construction company was declared bankrupt.
Andrey and his family settled in Spanish Marbella. There he again went into business. This time he was associated with weapons: Khamidulin opened several arms stores and a shooting club.
Writer career
Hamidulin began writing science fiction stories in 2006. Even then, he firmly established himself in Spain. The writer posted his first works in the online magazine Samizdat. Then he came up with a pseudonym - Cruz.
Soon, Andrei’s fantasy interested the Armada Publishing House. Later it changed its name to Alpha Book. Since 2008, this publishing house began to print Cruise's books. Success came to science fiction quickly. Readers appreciated its parallel worlds and zombie apocalypse, strong and courageous heroes. Cruz liked to focus on the description of military operations, equipment, ammunition and weapons.
Among his first books:
- "Land of the Superfluous";
- "At the great river";
- "The Age of the Dead."
The series "Land of the Superfluous" he wrote with his wife. Many critics thought that the story was largely autobiographical.
In subsequent books, Cruz continued to describe in detail weapons and equipment, which became his hallmark. Critics noted that he had a strong influence on young science fiction writers, who began to imitate him to some extent.
In one of the interviews, the writer was asked why he began to write fantasy, not reality. Cruz replied that in the modern world there is already nothing to discover, so he invents his own fantastic realities and gives his characters the opportunity to explore them. The writer also noted that when writing books, he first creates the world, describes it in detail, and then comes up with heroes.
last years of life
At the beginning of 2016, the story came up again with the construction of elite housing in Moscow. Spanish police arrested Cruz on the basis of a request from the Russian police. He was again accused of fraud. The writer spent 12 days in prison. The Spaniards did not extradite him to Russia and released him on his own recognizance.
At the end of the same year, doctors made the writer a disappointing diagnosis - liver cancer of the last stage. Cruise's family announced a fundraiser for treatment. Andrey managed to undergo two courses of chemotherapy. At the same time, several more books are published:
- "After";
- “Art Deco. My own game";
- "The escape";
- "Kommersant";
- "World of the Citadel."
February 20, 2018 the science fiction died in Marbella. He was buried at the Vagankovsky cemetery in Moscow.
