"A Gentleman in Moscow" and its storied Moscow hotel The art nouveau Metropol Hotel in Moscow, which just celebrated its 110th anniversary, has welcomed countless famed guests in its day, but one of its most famous is fictional. Amor Towles' novel "A Gentleman in Moscow," the story of a Russian aristocrat condemned in 1922 to spend the rest of his life inside the hotel, has been on The New York Times bestseller list for months, sold more than a million copies, and been translated into 30 languages. Elizabeth Palmer joined Towles on a visit to the famed hotel, which has borne witness to seismic political events over the decades, and which is now welcoming fans of the novel seeking a glimpse of the hotel's fabled past.