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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
About a servant boy (in the House of Special Purpose) with the Romanov family during their last days. Very interesting. I love learning about Nikolai and Alexei and everyone, so if you enjoy that as well, I'd definitely recommend it. I also liked the inclusion of Russian words (Da, Nyet, Spacibo, etc). Great ending. Not always fantastic writing, but a very enjoyable read!
Find more book reviews at A Quick Red Fox.
Find more book reviews at A Quick Red Fox.
*2.75
The first part read as a history book (granted, it was very well researched) with a fictional storyline put in, and perhaps it would have been more interesting had I not known anything about the Romanovs, but I had to read several books on them for my high school end paper thingy, so nothing was, history wise, new. The impact of the fictional storyline only became apparent at the very end, which is also where I actually started to enjoy the novel, and stopped skimming. However, the story on the whole fell quite flat for me, especially the characters. The Romanovs were like stereotypes and didn't have real personalities one could relate to. This probably also added to my idea of the novel as a non-fiction history book (and again, I already knew a lot about them, and it was like I was literally reading one of those books I read in high school).
The first part read as a history book (granted, it was very well researched) with a fictional storyline put in, and perhaps it would have been more interesting had I not known anything about the Romanovs, but I had to read several books on them for my high school end paper thingy, so nothing was, history wise, new. The impact of the fictional storyline only became apparent at the very end, which is also where I actually started to enjoy the novel, and stopped skimming. However, the story on the whole fell quite flat for me, especially the characters. The Romanovs were like stereotypes and didn't have real personalities one could relate to. This probably also added to my idea of the novel as a non-fiction history book (and again, I already knew a lot about them, and it was like I was literally reading one of those books I read in high school).
While I enjoyed the premise of the story and the book overall, I found the first person narrative rather tiresome at times. The writing felt forced at points, in large part due to the first person perspective. I also found the constant mentioning of the "end" for the Romanovs tiresome since we clearly all realize what will happen to the family. Such a thing did not require constant repeating.
I did enjoy the twist at the end and the historical detail included. The notes that were included, which were all real, were informative and interesting. However, again I felt sometimes the author forced them into the story rather than it flowing freely.
Overall, an interesting read about the Romanovs' last days.
I did enjoy the twist at the end and the historical detail included. The notes that were included, which were all real, were informative and interesting. However, again I felt sometimes the author forced them into the story rather than it flowing freely.
Overall, an interesting read about the Romanovs' last days.
I can't even remember what this book was about. I just remember the gray haze of boredom.
After Misha’s wife dies, he feels it’s his time soon and records his memories about what happened in 1918 and leaves the tape to his granddaughter Kate.
Misha, or Leonka as he was called, went into captivity with the Romanov family and worked as their kitchen boy. He becomes involved in the family’s escape plans and comes to care for the family. The same day that the Romanovs are executed, Leonka is removed from the family but manages to escape. He runs back to the house and sees what happened to Romanovs.
After Misha’s death Kate becomes convinced that there is something wrong with Misha’s story.
I have to say I was bit disappointed with this but it wasn’t bad either. It was kinda slow going, which isn’t surprising since they were arrested after all. But I couldn’t connect with the characters at all. They didn’t have enough time and most of the book we hear Leonka’s thoughts about the family.
There we used lot of Russian words and sentenced and even if English translation was after it, it was really confusing and annoying. I mean since they’re Russian one would think they speak Russian, right?
And I didn’t like that last secret in the end at all. I didn’t see the need for it and why a person who we haven’t heard about? I’m trying not to vent it out here for spoilers but I was so annoyed.
It was quite enjoyable but I guess I had higher expectations for it.
Misha, or Leonka as he was called, went into captivity with the Romanov family and worked as their kitchen boy. He becomes involved in the family’s escape plans and comes to care for the family. The same day that the Romanovs are executed, Leonka is removed from the family but manages to escape. He runs back to the house and sees what happened to Romanovs.
After Misha’s death Kate becomes convinced that there is something wrong with Misha’s story.
I have to say I was bit disappointed with this but it wasn’t bad either. It was kinda slow going, which isn’t surprising since they were arrested after all. But I couldn’t connect with the characters at all. They didn’t have enough time and most of the book we hear Leonka’s thoughts about the family.
There we used lot of Russian words and sentenced and even if English translation was after it, it was really confusing and annoying. I mean since they’re Russian one would think they speak Russian, right?
And I didn’t like that last secret in the end at all. I didn’t see the need for it and why a person who we haven’t heard about? I’m trying not to vent it out here for spoilers but I was so annoyed.
It was quite enjoyable but I guess I had higher expectations for it.
I really enjoyed this...I haven't read much historical fiction about the Romanovs before, but I think I have to look for more now. It did get confusing towards the end, trying to figure out what had actually happened, but I think the book did a really good job of capturing the confusion of that time, and of making the Tsar and his family real, and in making me feel for them. While I kind of wish that the author had not jumped on the "did any of the Romanovs survive?" bandwagon, I was pleased that the story did not center on Anastasia, which is massively overdone. I would love to see someone write a longer novel about the entire reign of Nicholas II. I particularly enjoyed the incredible Russian flavor, for instance, I had not known the correct Russian spellings of the names before. I think the author did a great job staying true to the personalities of the Tsar and his family, and I would love to read more about them now. Really my only complaint, and that was beyond the author's control, is that the last third of the book is now known to be pure speculation, given that the last two bodies have been found. But since the book was written before they were found, that really is not much of a complaint, and didn't interfere at all with my enjoyment of the book.
It was incredibly slow at first, and given that I'm going on a 2 week holiday to Canada later this month, I wanted, if possible, to finish this book before then. I therefore decided to get the boring bits over with and then read one chapter each night of the (hopefully) good ones. Well, suddenly I couldn't put the book down and I just had to finish it so I did... 5 hours later I was done. I have no idea how accurate the book is with regards to the family's life in that little house, but seeing as two corpses were never found, it's always interesting to see what a writer does with that kind of set up and I was not disappointed! I thought I had it sussed, but the final twist was very good and actually quite believable. So even though the book is a bit slow, the ending more than makes up for it!
I'm really starting to find a love for books based on the Russian aristocracy. This ending...wow. Really well written.