The Romanovs are not a subject I'm particularly interested in, but I do like the time period, which is why I decided to read The Last Romanov.
It's told through the eyes of a woman named Darya, both as a young woman in Imperial Russia and as a 104 year-old woman in 1991 Russia. Since 1918, Darya has spent her life believing that Alexei Romanov did not die that fateful day along with his family, and dedicates her life to finding him and putting him on the throne.
Now, it's obvious to all of us now that every member of the Romanov family was killed that day, so obviously this storyline wasn't realistic, but yet, I was intrigued by it. I was intrigued of how Darya was so dedicated to this purpose of finding the boy (now man) who she had helped take care of.
There's a bit of magic thrown into the story, which isn't mentioned in the summary. However, I didn't mind it because I like a little fantasy in my historical fiction, just as long as it isn't overwhelming. The Last Romanov had just the right amount, I thought, and added to the story rather than distracting from it.
There was a romance, between Darya and a Jewish painter who, despite the long romance, we never get a good grip on who he is- his personality and such.. The romance was heartbreaking, as was most of the book, really. Everything was doomed from the start.
A decent and interesting take on the Romanov tragedy.
1 comments:
Nice review! I'll have to check this one out. I do like reading about the Romanovs but it seems all the books I've read about them with the exception of The Kitchen Boy by Robert Alexander weren't that great. I like a little magic in my historicals too :)
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