Ariel Lawhon has done a great job with this historical novel based in part on the known facts surrounding the imprisonment and deaths of Tzar Romanov and his immediate family and the years of the patiently seeking of Anastasia through gossip and rumour. The backgrounds, the press, travel and even the food and clothing are indicative of these times, the world as it was between the world wars. The extensive research behind this novel is obvious with each page turned. Ms. Lawhon paints her world with both it's beauty and it's flaws. This is a book very hard to put aside.

I am very pleased to find this author and will add her to my growing 'must read' list. And I promise to try to remember to never read her Author's Note before the novel. Thank you Netgalley!

I received a free electronic copy of this novel from Netgalley, Ariel Lawhon, and Doubleday Books in exchange for an honest review. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me.

I am assuming here that we all know who Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov was. Her father, the last Czar of Russia, along with her entire family were executed by the Bolsheviks in 1918.
A couple of years later a young woman is pulled unconscious from a canal in Berlin. She is covered in scars and won’t tell who she is but what is sure is that she looks remarkably like the deceased Grand Duchess. Eventually, she reveals that she is Anastasia Romanov.
And now the intrigue begins. The thought that someone in the family survived the slaughter seems unbelievable. The grave is opened. The body count is not correct. Could this be the Grand Duchess? If so, aunts, uncles and cousins spread out through Europe’s royal families are not happy and do their best to discredit this person they are calling Anna Anderson. They are sure that she is just hoping to inherit her family’s wealth. If Anna/Anastasia inherits, then they, of course, would not. The fortune is enough to fight for. And for fifty years and spanning half the world, the family tries to discredit her.
Going back and forth through two narratives, the last days of the Romanov family during their imprisonment and Anna/Anastasia’s time since then tells the whole story of what was and could have been Anna/Anastasia’s story. Historically, we know what happened to the Romanovs but proving whether Anastasia indeed did survive puts a dramatic, mysterious twist on this story. I kept going until the very last word in this book because I kept wondering if there was something I didn’t remember about the mystery of this Anna/Anastasia and couldn’t wait to see how the author settled the story. You have to do the same. I won’t tell.

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I started this book not knowing what to expect. I'd never heard of it before, but the cover blurb sounded interesting. I started reading it on a flight for a business trip, and let's just say I wish the flight was longer.

I admit, I didn't know much about the Romanov family. But this story? It sucked me in. I kind of felt like I got to know the characters, I felt felt for them and what they were going through. The backwards timeline for Anna's story was a bit confusing at first, but after a few of her chapters, I began to get why the author wrote it that way.

And the end? I was definitely kept guessing up until the final chapter.

Definitely would recommend this to others.

I picked up <em>I Was Anastasia </em>as I have always been fascinated by Anastasia and whether she was alive since I was a little girl. I watched many biographies on Anna Anderson, who claimed to be the Grand Duchess, and followed the news about the Romanov family over the years. So I was thrilled to read a novel that dealt with both Anna and Anastasia’s stories. <em>I Was Anastasia </em>is beautifully written and well researched. However, I found the story telling method hard to follow. The novel narrated Anna Anderson’s story in reverse (from old age to young adulthood), and Anastasia’s story in chronological order (from young age to her death). I also felt that the story was the bleakest Romanov book I had ever read and struggled to continue reading it because it was all just so sad—but really that just shows how talented the author is. That being said, I enjoyed the author’s portrayal of Anna, who was very sympathetic <spoiler>in spite of being a fraud</spoiler>, and Anastasia’s capability and resolve in the face of great tragedy.


This book was clearly thoroughly researched. As a person who has followed the Romanovs over the years, even I learned more about the family than I knew before. I think this novel would serve as a great first step for someone who wishes to learn about the Romanovs or Anastasia. Sadly, most of what I learned in the novel was heart wrenching. I was dismayed to <spoiler>discover the murder of the family’s innocent elephant and their dogs, and to find that their own guards sexually assaulted and continually harassed the girls</spoiler>. What a truly dark moment for history and one that the author portrayed delicately and emotionally.

I have never read a story narrated like <em>I Was Anastasia </em>and at first, I was very confused by it. It was especially jarring with Anna’s backwards narrative, as characters, places, and conundrums were discussed and I had no idea who the people were and what was going on until the next chapter that focused on Anna again (the chapters alternate back and forth between Anna and Anastasia).  I found it more than a little frustrating meeting a new character and being expected to know them without any introduction or background, but luckily Anna’s sass and witty remarks were a constant throughout the book, which I loved. However, without the author’s headings at the beginning of each chapter, marking the narrator, the date, and the setting, I would have been completely lost.

Even though I knew how the story ended from history and the news, I just did not feel that there was any ray of sunshine or hope in the narrative. It was depressing to me that one woman spent her entire life trying to prove to be <spoiler>someone she was not and the other never got a chance to live. And with the reverse narratives ending with a catastrophe for young Anna and death for Anastasia, it didn’t exactly end on a cheerful note</spoiler>. Sure, the author fictitiously let <spoiler>Anastasia’s dog live, but then I read in the Author’s Note that he did not actually survive. I appreciated the attempt at a positive aspect, but I was just even sadder when I learned that he died after all.</spoiler>


I would recommend this book for people who love historical fiction, were beginners to the Romanovs, and for those who like a sad read. Unfortunately, I was never a huge fan of sad novels, so this book was just not for me. However, with the beauty of the writing, the way the author handled such a sad topic, managed to make all of the royal characters believable, and the amount of research the author obviously put into the novel, I elevated my rating to three stars.

I Was Anastasia
By: Ariel Lawhon
Publisher: Doubleday
📖📖📖/5
// I received this ARC for free from NetGalley in return for an honest review //
Check it out on March 27, 2018!

I Was Anastasia follows Anastasia Romanov's last years as tsarevna of Russia and Anna Anderson, the woman who claims to be the murdered Anastasia Romanov herself. The story is told in duel fashion with one storyline following Anastasia up until her alleged death in 1918 and the other following Anna as she tries to prove to the masses that she is the true heir to the Romanov name. Anastasia's story moves in chronological fashion as Anna's moves backwards in time. Along the way the reader is never sure whether or not Anna truly is Anastasia and it leaves you guessing until the very end.

To be honest, I have no idea how I feel about this book. The duel timelines were not my favorite. It was often hard to follow the story because of how often it jumped back and forth. I also didn't like the story or any of the characters for about 80% of the book as well. There seemed to be little character development which is a pet peeve of mine. Without sounding too harsh, I kept asking myself when it would end and if I could stop reading it. Luckily, I stuck it out until the end to finally figure out if she was Anastasia or not. Sorry, no spoilers here! (Though honestly you could look up the true story online) The Anastasia story line, to me, was much more interesting than hearing about Anna and her troubles. It was interesting to read a bit of what her finalyyears could have been like. I found that I couldn't put the book down in the last 10% of the book. Had Lawhon kept the suspense that she packed into the last 10% throughout more of the story it would have been stronger in my opinion.

I did enjoy the writing style overall and Lawhon's description of the events in 1918-1919 were vivid and I found myself imagining what it must have felt like to be the family in their final moments. For these reasons I recommend this book to historical fiction lovers or those curious to read a story involving the last Russian royal family.

#iwasanastasia #netgalley #books #historicalfiction #doubleday

As a teenager in the 1970s, I was fascinated with the Anastasia/Anna Anderson story. I was very hopeful that Anna was Grand Duchess Anastasia of Russia, despite the suggestions that she wasn’t. Having previously read and enjoyed Ariel Lawhon’s Flight of Dreams, I was excited to receive the ARC of I Was Anastasia.

I have mixed feelings about I Was Anastasia. I applaud the author for her thorough research with both Anastasia’s and Anna’s lives. The information was presented in a way that wasn’t boring to someone who was well-acquainted with the story, yet was more than adequate for a reader new to the story. I was interested enough at times to do further research on people, locations, or events mentioned in the book. To me, this is a sign of well-written historical fiction!

I struggled, however, with the structure of the book. Anastasia’s story is told chronologically, while Anna’s story runs in reverse—from late in her life backwards to the time of the Romanovs’ execution. The chapters alternate between Anastasia’s and Anna’s stories. It was frustrating for me when Anna would have an important conversation with someone, then two chapters later, Anna would meet that person for the first time. After a few chapters I did get my mind wrapped around this, but I did not enjoy it. This device did add to the suspense toward the end of the book as 1918 approached in both stories.

I will recommend I Was Anastasia to my historical fiction-loving patrons with the caveat about the structure of the book. I imagine it’s either a love-it-or-hate-it sort of thing. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

First line: If I tell you what happened that night in Ekaterinburg I will have to unwind my memory—all the twisted coils—and lay it in your palm.

Summary: In this dual narrative where the story jumps between Anna Anderson to Anastasia Romanov we see the time leading up to and after the murder of the Romanov family. Anna Anderson is one of the most famous women claiming to be the Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov. We hear her story in reverse, starting in the 1970. We see her struggle to be recognized as the heir to a Russian dynasty. Anastasia’s story starts in 1917 right after the start of the Revolution. We see the decline of their lives as they are imprisoned and banished to Siberia.

Highlights: I love the teasing that goes on making you wonder if Anna is Anastasia. But the end was my favorite. I kept wondering how she would deal with the actual history and it was done perfectly! I have read many stories and nonfiction about the mystery of Anna/Anastasia. I even wrote a paper on the story during my freshman history class.

Lowlights: Reading Anna’s story backwards got to be a little confusing at times. I really had to pay attention to dates in order to keep facts straight. While reading the historical notes I learned that the author even read the biographies of Anna from the end of the story in order to keep her timeline for writing the same. Genius!

FYI: A great historical fiction about a mystery that has fascinated the world for nearly a 100 years.

I Was Anastasia slowly and meticulously reveals the controversial life of Anna Anderson and by default, the life of Anastasia Romanov. While the world and experts have passed their judgment upon Anderson and her claim to be Anastasia, it is now the reader's turn as Lawhon begins near the end of Anderson's life and travels back and forth through time.

Even though I know what the DNA tests have revealed, I was still hoping and waiting with hurried breaths and speedy page turning for Anastasia to have a different end.
Lawhon's writing is riveting, but I cannot lie, I wanted it to go by even quicker. I needed to know. I just wanted to consume the entire novel in one gigantic bite, but it's mostly because I'm so hungry for anything Russian/Romanov.

If you, like millions of others, are fascinated with the life of Anastasia Romanov, then you NEED this mysterious and beguiling race through time.


Originally on www.mybookishbones.com

I Was Anastasia

A Novel

by Ariel Lawhon

Doubleday Books

Doubleday

General Fiction (Adult) , Historical Fiction

Pub Date 27 Mar 2018

I am reviewing a copy of I Was Anastasia through Doubleday and Netgalley:

What happened to the Romanov family in that basement when Vladimir from the Bolshevik Secret Police ordered them into that basement in Siberia on July.17.1918 to face a firing squad? Did the entire imperial family die at the hands of a firing squad? As the executioners claimed or could one have lived?

On February.17.1920 in a canal in Germany a young woman is pulled out saved from drowning out of a Canal inn Berlin. The woman they pull out shivering and senseless bares an uncanny resemblance to Anastasia Romanov. An examination reveals horrific scars all over her body and when she finally does speak she claims to be The Russian Grand Duchess Anastasia?

Could Anastasia escaped the firing squad?

Many believe she is only after the Romanov fortune but for the woman who claims to be Anastasia the reality could put her in the face of danger, her very life threatened once more.

Could the woman some call Anna Anderson really be Anastasia Romanov?

Anna is often placed in mental hospitals while others claim she is insane.

I give I Was Anastasia five out of five stars!

Happy Reading

The Bolshevik secret police have always insisted Anastasia was executed via firing squad along with the rest of her family. Others have always insisted she in some way survived. The whole premise of this story hinges on whether Anna Anderson is, indeed, The Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov.
I picked up this book because awhile ago I read Ariel Lawhon’s The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress – and loved it. After that I began following her SheReads blog and learned of this upcoming book. I stalked NetGalley until it was available to request.
I’ll admit that I don’t know much about Anastasia, the Romanovs, or Russia for that matter. In fact, the extent of my knowledge is pretty much that there was a revolution, the Romanovs were executed, but some believe that Anastasia survived. I’m not sure if that lack of knowledge helped or hurt my reading of this book. I was disappointed to not really enjoy it.
The book is told in dual narrative format. Something I generally like in books – especially in historical fiction. In this book, one of the narratives is told backwards in time while the other was going forward. While a daring writing technique, it didn’t really work for me. I was halfway through the book before the backwards narrative even started to be interesting or make sense to me. At the end, I do understand why Lawhon chose to do it that way instead of straight chronological. But that understanding didn’t make the reading any more interesting or enjoyable.
There were also time/age discrepancies in the backward narrative. I’m never a fan of discrepancies.
I enjoyed the Anastasia tale far more than the Anna Anderson plot line. Again, that could go back to Anastasia being told chronologically forward. I think also because the Anastasia narrative covered a shorter time span and had fewer characters to try to place. With the Anna story going backwards, all these people are thrown at you without any context until you get to a future (past) chapter.
I didn’t really like the book. I probably would still buy it for a friend or relative if they are really into the Romanovs and their lives. And it has sparked my interest in learning more through other books. But this just wasn’t my cup of tea.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

The Russain Royal family has been an interest of mine ever since the animated movie "Anastasia" came out in the 90s. My family has some Russain ancestry, so it is always fun to learn more about what shaped your family. I have been wanting to read this for a while, to learn more about the Anastasia/Anna Anderson story.

One thing that makes this book unique is the fact that you move simultaneously forward and backward in time, leading to the moment when the royal family is executed. This is a very interesting way to learn what happens, as you are reading what leads up to it at the same time you are reading the result. A downside to this is that it can be hard to like a character that is moving "backward" through time.

<spoilers> After reading the whole story, I wished that Anna really was Anastasia. I know that this followed closer to real life, but the fiction lover in me wishes that the author took liberty there.</spoilers>

*I received this book free for review from NetGalley.

This book is hard to read. I think it showcases mental health well, but at the same time leaves you very unsatisfied. I'm angry at the way the world treated Anna, but it's hard to be empathetic? After all, Anna is unkind, rude, and very unlikable.
It's also hard to keep reading, because you know Anna is wrong. She's not the Grand Duchess Anastasia, DNA testing proved that. So to keep reading her insistence that she is Anastasia is frustrating.

I think this book would have been a bit more enjoyable if it weren't written in the first person. Anna's perspective is so jaded and unhappy, that reading this is unsettling.
I didn't enjoy this book, though I thought it was informative surrounding the history of Anna Larson and the Grand Duchess Anastasia. I've always been interested in Anastasia Romanov and this book added some nuances to the lore surrounding her death.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

A jumpy, hard to follow read with a fabulous ending.
I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon tells the fascinating story of Anastasia Romanov, and tries to answer the question of whether or not the real-life person of Anna Anderson was really, truly Anastasia.
Told in a back and forth way, we see Anastasia as her father’s regime falls, and as she and her family are held captive. We also have a complicated time line with Anna Anderson, the woman who states that she is Anastasia, and her story works backwards towards the moment of truth, in that basement in Ekaterinburg, where the Romanov family was executed in 1918.
I liked the dual timeline stories, as Anastasia’s works forward and Anna’s works backwards, and I honestly am not sure how else Ariel Lawhon could’ve told this story and kept it suspenseful. I found Anna’s timeline, the one working backwards, difficult to follow. Lawhon would have a scene and then a few pages later have a scene that was several months prior to the scene we just read, and this went on for all of Anna’s chapters. It was tough for me to get through some of these sections, as I couldn’t quite follow all of the action and kept getting confused as to who was who. But now that I’m finished with the book, I see how important writing the book in this backwards way was, and I am not sure that there is a better way to tell this story.
The big question is, is Anna really Anastasia, or just an imposter? This question kept me hooked to the story, and as it unravels, we learn more and more about the characters and history. I found my opinions changing throughout the book, at times liking Anna, and other times not liking her at all. I loved the sections that focused on Anastasia, and her life in captivity. There are some violent scenes here, ones that made me gasp with their cruelty.
I think this would be a good book for book clubs, as readers will have different opinions about Anna, and there’s a lot to discuss here, from the way the book is written, to the characters and history.
It took me until almost the end of the book before it really started clicking and working for me, and when I finished I Was Anastasia I realized that it was a book that I definitely would like to re-read at some point. I definitely recommend this book for those who enjoy back-and-forth in time narratives, and those who enjoy reading about Russian history.

Bottom Line: Hard to get through some of the jumping time lines, but the ending was spectacular.

Many thanks to #ariellawhon , #doubledaybooks , and #NetGalley for my ecopy of I Was Anastasia. I requested this book because I had previously read The Wife, The Maid, and The Mistress by the same author and enjoyed it immensely. I enjoyed I Was Anastasia almost as much.

I knew very little of the details of the Romanov family and their fall from power. I had heard a bit about the rumors about Anastasia’s possible escape and survival, but my knowledge was very limited. Lawson succeeded once again in making a historically factual account into riveting reading by filling in the blanks with believable fiction. I finished the book in one day, then immediately went to the internet to start reading more about this piece of history.

Probably the MOST unique aspect of this novel is it’s structure. The story of Anastasia during her family’s capture and imprisonment is told chronologically. The chapters about Anna Anderson’s quest to prove she is Anastasia Romanov are told in reverse chronology,even within the chapters themselves. An example would be that one chapter would start with an anecdote from 1925, then jump to an anecdote from 1922 to complete the chapter. Though I found this structure a but disjointed and frustrating, I understand why the author chose to write the story that way after reading her note at the end of the book. The author’s note absolved the book of any negative feelings I had over the structure.

Since this novel was based in fact, I was torn between wanting Lawson to remain true to the outcome history has proven while also wanting her to come up with a creative way to surprise me. She succeeded on both accounts. I think the few things she changed were good, reasonable alterations of the facts, yet the things to which she stayed factually accurate were written in such a way that there was intrigue and mystery enough to keep the reader guessing.

I would recommend this book to those who love historical fiction, with a disclaimer about “trigger” subjects that some readers may wish to stay away from: some brief descriptions of rape and animal abuse.

I have always been interested in the story of Anastasia Romanov and her family. Over the years there have been many rumors that Anastasia survived. Is Anna really Anastasia? I really enjoyed this book. I did have a bit of trouble reading it though as Anna's part of the story reads from the present backwards. I received an advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Doubleday Books. All opinions are my own.

The ending of this book was amazing! It takes a few chapters for get used to the nonlinear time line but
so worth it! #netgalley

For those unfamiliar with the controversy that surrounded the basis of this novel this book will be very interesting. It is a bizarre and fascinating story. I found this fictional version entertaining, but it was difficult to follow. I had to really focus and stay alert. My memory had to be spectacular. I bookmarked and highlighted quite a bit so I could go back and reference.

This story is told in reverse. There are conversations that happen and the reader is left to guess who characters are and how they play out in the story. I have read books similar to this format with no issues, so I honestly am not sure why this was such a struggle for me.

This novel follows two characters. Anastasia's story is told chronologically from start to finish while Anna's story is told in reverse, making it very difficult to understand where in the story I was and how exactly the two connect. Perhaps I was just waiting too hard for the connection to happen that I was distracted from the story?

Overall, the descriptions and characters were decent and the story line is entertaining. If you have read other non-fiction books about the Romanovs and know the outcome of this debate (no spoilers) than this book probably isn't for you. I felt I got more satisfaction reading nonfiction or simply researching online and looking at pictures of the women.

This book is set to be released March 27, 2018 here in the US. If historical fiction based on real history excites you, then add this book to your TBR list! It was a solid 3 star read for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and Doubleday Books for allowing me an egalley to read and give my honest review.

Happy Reading!

Difficult to review without spoilers, so in short I'll say this: ultimately I didn't enjoy this one, and I believe that's because there's too much speculation in the Anastasia sections, and not enough speculation in the Anna sections. I think this book would have been stronger if the focus had been entirely on the Anna sections -- history knows Anastasia's story, and there have been many volumes of it written. The real questions, then, lie with Anna -- but unfortunately, there are few answers here.

This is probably a 3.5/5 star read for me. This book took me FOREVER to read. I think part of it was that it was an ebook (and I'm clearly not good at reading those) and partially because I was having a hard time getting into it. The book goes chronologically during Anastasia's point of view chapters and reverse-chronologically when telling Anna's story. I think was the only real way to tell the story but it did make it a bit confusing for me.

Honestly though, I'm SO glad I stuck with it. I read the last half of the book three times as fast as I read the first half because I got hooked and the ending was PERFECT.