Two first copies of the unreleased novel by bestselling Ukrainian author raises over $2,500 for military

Two advance copies of a previously unannounced novel by bestselling Ukrainian author and service member Illarion Pavliuk were auctioned for a combined total of around $2,540 during a charity concert in Zhytomyr on Nov. 1. The books were sold to support Ukraine’s Armed Forces, with the first copy fetching around $1,280 and the second around $1,260.

The auction took place during a performance by Ukrainian hip-hop group Kurgan & Agregat, as Chytomo art director Oksana Hadzhii reported from the event.

A total of 30 individually numbered copies of the novel, titled “Щось не так з Елайзою” (“Something Is Wrong with Eliza”), were produced specifically for charity auctions at the group’s concerts.

At the time of the auction, the book had not been officially announced or released for sale. An Instagram account previously dedicated to Pavliuk’s earlier novel, “Книга Еміля” (“The Book of Emil”), had been renamed for the new book.

The first copy was purchased by a man named Hryhorii, who told Chytomo he had bought it as a gift. The second was purchased by Anna and Denys.

Hryhorii, who bought the first copy

Anna and Denys, who bought the second copy

The concert was part of Kurgan & Agregat’s “100% for the Armed Forces” charity tour, which began in October and is scheduled to continue through the end of November 2026, with performances across Ukraine.

In September 2026, Pavliuk revealed that he was preparing a new science fiction novel, which he had spent a year writing despite having limited time because of his military service. He said the process was made possible by a year of detailed planning beforehand, during which he developed the story’s structure, plot twists, and character arcs.

Pavliuk is known for his novels “White Ash,” “Dance of the Fool,” “I See You Are Interested in Darkness,” and “The Book of Emil.” Sales of “I See You Are Interested in Darkness” surpassed 200,000 copies in Ukraine in September 2026.

The writer has previously collaborated with Kurgan & Agregat to raise funds for Ukraine’s military. In October 2025, they launched a campaign to purchase DJI Matrice 4T drones, aiming to raise around $22,000. The initiative was linked to the start of preorders for “The Book of Emil,” published by The Old Lion Publishing House in December 2025.

As reported earlier, an excerpt from the then-unpublished “The Book of Emil” sold for around $2,540 at a charity auction during the BestsellerFest literary festival in Lviv in August 2025. The event raised around $16,900 for the National Guard’s 12th Azov Special Forces Brigade.

Photos: Oksana Hadzhii