You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
I mean...wow. There was mystery, history, intrigue, and romance. Loved it!
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was a mess. I was interested in the story at first and that's why I didn't stop reading even when I started to feel like it wasn't actually going to go anywhere. I held out hope for too long. It doesn't really explain anything. It also doesn't even feel very Russian. I saw another review that said this could have been set any time any where and that seems accurate. I am also getting so tired of books with a modern timeline and a historical timeline and a big family secret combining them, usually with the mystery being something that could be resolved instantly if people would just talk to each other. And in this case the secret is mostly never explained? So many details are just left hanging. I am so mad I wasted my time finishing this.
The Last Russian Doll by Kristen Loesch
I know this story will stay with me. I seem to be reading a lot of historical fiction over the last year that deals with Russia's history and the life (and death) of its people. So much of what happens in this story keeps happening, not just in Russia but in other countries.
The story spans from around 1915 to the 1990s and those years are linked by three women. Before 1991 Rosie can close the book on her past and the past of her mother, she goes to Russia to trace her family's tragic past. She has her own horrific memories and she has stories that her mother would tell her, stories framed as fairy tales that Rosie comes to realize aren't just fairy tales. They are the kind of fairy tales you would hope were never real, yet, Rosie finds that through those stories she is hearing the past of her family.
Rosie's story begins with Tonya, at the start of the Russian revolution and this epic tale is brutal. I actually enjoyed both timelines, Tonya's timeline and Rosie's timeline, as Rosie unwraps the mysteries of her past. In some ways, the story feels much longer than it really is because it covers so much. We go back and forth between one time to the other and I was content to do so.
Both stories were equally interesting to me, which doesn't always happen. In this case, I think I could feel how Rosie's past connected to her present, I could feel the connection of three generations of women. Nothing about this story feels good, it's too brutal, raw, and unforgiving but I think it's so very interesting. It won't be for everyone, it's a tough story to read, but it is adding fuel to an interest in history that has been getting stronger in me over the last years of reading.
Publication: March 14th 2023
Thank you to Elisha at Berkley and NetGalley for this ARC.
I know this story will stay with me. I seem to be reading a lot of historical fiction over the last year that deals with Russia's history and the life (and death) of its people. So much of what happens in this story keeps happening, not just in Russia but in other countries.
The story spans from around 1915 to the 1990s and those years are linked by three women. Before 1991 Rosie can close the book on her past and the past of her mother, she goes to Russia to trace her family's tragic past. She has her own horrific memories and she has stories that her mother would tell her, stories framed as fairy tales that Rosie comes to realize aren't just fairy tales. They are the kind of fairy tales you would hope were never real, yet, Rosie finds that through those stories she is hearing the past of her family.
Rosie's story begins with Tonya, at the start of the Russian revolution and this epic tale is brutal. I actually enjoyed both timelines, Tonya's timeline and Rosie's timeline, as Rosie unwraps the mysteries of her past. In some ways, the story feels much longer than it really is because it covers so much. We go back and forth between one time to the other and I was content to do so.
Both stories were equally interesting to me, which doesn't always happen. In this case, I think I could feel how Rosie's past connected to her present, I could feel the connection of three generations of women. Nothing about this story feels good, it's too brutal, raw, and unforgiving but I think it's so very interesting. It won't be for everyone, it's a tough story to read, but it is adding fuel to an interest in history that has been getting stronger in me over the last years of reading.
Publication: March 14th 2023
Thank you to Elisha at Berkley and NetGalley for this ARC.
My gods the Russians. So depressing. So historically screwed.
So interesting to read about. I cannot stop
This was lovely, sad and creepy and wonderous.
It certainly helped me to picture Lev as Joel Kinnaman ;)
So interesting to read about. I cannot stop
This was lovely, sad and creepy and wonderous.
It certainly helped me to picture Lev as Joel Kinnaman ;)