Таки начала читать "The Strongman: Vladimir Putin and the struggle for Russia". Первый же абзац можно пихать в описание Горьких.

When you shake hands with Vladimir Putin you scarcely notice whether it is a firm or a weak handshake. It is his eyes that consume you. He lowers his head, tilting his eyes upwards towards you, and fixes you for several seconds, as though memorising every detail, or maybe matching your face to a picture he had memorised earlier... It is a glowering, piercing, highly unsettling look.