A review by mimima
Sashenka by Simon Sebag Montefiore

2.0

I first became aware of Simon Sebag Montefiore through the reviews of his non-fiction book (which I have yet to read), "Young Stalin." When I saw that he had written a fiction book about a woman who lived through the Revolution and Stalin's Terror, I was excited and eagerly ordered a copy.
Montefiore is a fine historian, and that really comes through in this novel. However, he is not a great writer, and that also comes through. The storyline was not compelling, and I was often struggling to keep interest in the characters. However, the history was compelling and I was thinking about that as I read the novel.
It's a strong 2.5 but not quite three stars.