I loved The Romanov Empress.
Historical novels are one of my favorite genres and I have always been fascinated by the Romanov family -- Nicholas and Alexandra, Anastasia, all that. This novel, which is based on historical fact tells the story of a young, fairly impoverished Danish princess (new to the throne as her father was not expected to become King) suddenly becomes betrothed to the heir to the Russian Empire. How Empress Maria Feodorovna (as she is renamed) embraces her new world and the many political minefields is includes (pun intended) is a well written and interesting story.
The descriptions of the incredible opulence in which the many relatives and friends of the Tsar lived -- to the horrors of the Russian Revolution, all described in great detail, makes you feel like a bystander to history.
My only problem with the book was that particularly towards the end, I could not keep track of who was who -- there were so many cousins and friends named and so much going on it was a little confusing.
I also appreciated the author providing the actual stories of what became of the many family members & friends who survived the Revolution and even those who did not. The Romanov Empress is a work of fiction but definitely remains true to the general history of the times, even addressing Queen Victoria's penchant for marrying her children off to royals of other countries where it would do the British Empire the most good with almost no regard whatsoever for their wishes.
If you like historical fiction you will enjoy The Romanov Empress.

I've always been fascinated by all things Romanov. I don't know what it is about them...maybe the opulence that the world hasn't seen since, or the tragedy of the deaths of the last Tsar and his family...whatever it is, I can't get enough. This book is told through the eyes of the last Tsar's mother, Dowager Empress Maria, or Minnie as she was known to the family. We learn about her childhood in Denmark, all the way through to her exile after the Russian Revolution. Minnie was a formidable woman, and the author did a great job demonstrating this. She also reminded me, once again, how much I can't stand Alexandra, the last Tsarina, and I cheered every time Minnie spoke her mind about her. The book was maybe a tad too long, but overall it was an amazing and different look into the world if Imperial Russia.

5 stars

This is Minnie’s story as told by her. It is the mid-1860’s in Denmark. Minnie is the second daughter of newly elevated Danish royalty. Her father became King and her mother, she later sees, is the power behind the throne.

Following her sister Alix’s marriage to Prince Albert “Bertie”, Queen Victoria’s son, Minnie was betrothed to Nixa. Nixa was the heir apparent to the Russian throne. Dubious, but willing to meet him, Minnie falls in love. Following a fall from his horse, Nixa came down with spinal meningitis and passed away. Minnie was heartbroken. On his deathbed, Nixa told Minnie to marry his brother Sasha. Sasha is now the heir to the throne. Upon her marriage to Sasha who is more brutish and not near as refined as Nixa was, her name is changed to Maria Fedoroyna and she must convert to the Russian Orthodox faith.

Minnie’s father-in-law, Tsar Alexander II is very kind to her. He is being threatened and pursued by the nihilists. Alexander questions Minnie’s happiness. She equivocates. Sasha is in no way ready to take the throne. He carouses and drinks too much. He is unaware of current events. Alexander asks Minnie to subtly educate him in the ways of becoming the Tsar.

Minnie gave birth to her first child. It was a son Sasha named Nicholas in honor of his grandfather. Tsar Alexander said it was a fortuitous name. Nicholas was a slight child, unlike his siblings who were “real” Romanovs.

When the Nihilists set a bomb at a site where the royal family was to dine, several people were killed. But the royal family survived because while they were waiting in the next building over, Sasha was late to the affair. Tsar Alexander wanted them all arrested and he would not be lenient as he was with an earlier attempt on his life. He set up the Okhrana, a new and powerful side of the secret police.

Sometime later, the anarchists are successful. They murder Tsar Alexander II with a bomb. Sasha becomes Tsar Alexander III immediately. Minnie is now the Tsarina and she has serious doubts about the family’s future. Nicholas is their heir apparent.

When sixteen-year old Nicholas falls for a twelve-year old impoverished German girl from Hesse that he has nicknamed “Alicky,” Minnie resents her and takes an immediate dislike to her. She has a distrust of all things German that goes way back.

When Nicolas is twenty-three, he is still determined to marry Alicky whose proper name is Alexandra in defiance of his parents. Sasha passes away due to kidney failure following another assassination attempt on the royal train. He was trapped for a while under some shrapnel and was badly injured. On his deathbed, he finally gives Nicholas permission to marry Alicky, or Sunny as he has come to call her.

Minnie has a very difficult relationship with her daughter-in-law. Sunny is unhappy for she believes now that she is empress, she should be given first place in all affairs. But that is not the Russian way. The Empress Dowager is still given the primary position in society. Sunny won’t go to public affairs and keeps mainly to her own devices. She doesn’t like living in the city and retreats often with Nicholas to the country estate of Tsarskoe Selo and is barely civil to Minnie. She only very reluctantly converted to the Russian Orthodox faith.

Minnie decides to withdraw from the apparent competition, for Nicholas takes Sunny’s side in every argument. This is a decision she will regret. She sets about getting her other children married and wants to see them happy. She travels to Denmark to visit her parents, and following the death of her aged mother, to visit her ailing father. She loses her son George to consumption.

Sunny has formed a relationship with a medium. Soon, the news about her consulting mystics gets about town. It is a huge scandal – in direct opposition to the Church. The political is heating up again, but all anyone wants to talk about is the Tsarina’s obsession with mystics and the occult.

Nicholas is ignoring the affairs of state. Minnie receives ministers in her chambers who are all complaining about Nicholas’ handling of the business of the empire. It is clear to Minnie that Alexandra is unsuitable and is distracting Nicholas far too much from his duties.

A war with Japan and Nicholas’ inept direction of the troops and unpreparedness made his reputation take a dive. The assassination of one of his war ministers only exacerbated the problem. Credit for the murder was taken by a new group calling themselves the Social Democrats. These people were inspired by the socialist leaning of Karl Marx. Alarmingly, this group was gaining adherents and growing by leaps and bounds.

During all this strife, Alexandra finally gave both to a boy they named Alexi. They were overjoyed. When Alexi’s umbilical cord would not stop bleeding, the doctor pronounced that Alexi was a hemophiliac. The disease ran in Queen Victoria’s family, and Alexandra was the Queen’s granddaughter.

The word around the capital was talk of a revolution. The people were angry about the war with Japan and the heavy losses suffered by the Russian troops. The distrust and antipathy against Nicholas was reaching a rabid level. A peaceful march to the palace devolves into a riot. Many, many are killed under Nicholas’ orders. Minnie and the rest of the royal family despair, for this time Nicholas has gone too far.

Moscow erupted in civil unrest. Factory works went on strike. Martial law was declared. When Nicholas finally acceded to form a constitution, the rioting was temporarily quelled. However, one agitator was not giving in. His name was Vladimir Lenin. He named his party the Bolsheviks. He demanded power by the proletariat and the abolition of the imperial rule. Nicholas ordered Minnie to go to Denmark and not return until he said so.

Upon her return to Russia nearly a year later, the Social Democrats are even more powerful and are calling for the Tsar’s abdication.

Alexandra has a new “friend.” His name is Grigori Rasputin. He is known as a lecher, orgies and public drunkenness. Hardly the kind of association for a Tsarina. He claims to be a mystic and prays over people to heal them. Minnie heads to Tsarskoe Selo to find out for herself. He has begun to recommend to Alexandra certain politicos that should be appointed to the Duma. She, of course recommends them. They will vote whichever way Rasputin has told them.

When a letter of Alexandra’s to Rasputin is published in a newspaper, more civil unrest breaks out. The prime minister is murdered. Minnie implores Nicholas to dismiss Rasputin before Alexandra’s reputation suffers any more.

With Russia at war once more, this time with Germany, the situation in Russia has gone from bad to worse. The plot to murder Rasputin succeeds. The bitter winter freezes to death the soldiers in the hospital wards. Nothing is working right. They cannot get fuel to heat the hospital or their homes. People are starving and begging for food. The war is going badly. At Alexandra’s behest, Nicholas decides to take over the military himself despite the fact that he knows nothing about war. He will take no counsel. By March of 1917, the end had begun.

Minnie and a few members of her family must flee across Russia to avoid capture by the Bolsheviks. When put under house arrest, it came as no surprise. When word arrives of the deaths of Nicholas and his family, Minnie refuses to believe it. She cannot believe it. The horror is too great. She is convinced to leave Russia on a British ship – but only if they’ll take other refugees with them. She travels to England and then back to Denmark where she lives out her days.

Minnie was never a shy or retiring woman. She was outspoken, sometimes to her detriment. But she lived well despite all that she suffered. She was at the time the wealthiest woman in the world. From her very humble beginnings, this was quite the change. But, later in life she carefully forgot that part of her life when she berated her daughter-in-law Alexandra for living so plainly. None of us are immune to the vagaries of reconstructing our memories.

This book describes Tsarist Russian very well. Its landscape and its people are vividly portrayed in beautiful language. The unrest of the common people and those who fan the flames are discussed in detail. The glitter and pomp of the court; the dances and suppers which are in deep contrast to the poverty of the ordinary peasants are all described very well. It talks about the upheavals and dissent that occurred in Russian in the early 20th Century. It describes the beginnings of the revolution and its inevitable conclusion.

It is very well written and is laid out in a linear fashion. It is easy to read for both historians and Russian aficionados. I don’t know how historically accurate it is, for while I have read much about Russia, Minnie herself is a fairly new character for me. But, the book was truly enjoyable. I liked reading about this strong and determined woman. This is my first book by C.W. Gortner and I can guarantee that I will be looking at his other books. It was both an interesting and exciting read.

I want to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine/Ballantine for forwarding to me a copy of this most entertaining and informative book for me to read and enjoy.

I loved this book! I am a big fan of CW Gortner, and very interested in Russian history. His focus on the last Tsar's mother was an interesting one and provided much rich background to the more well-known story of Nicholas and his family being executed. I felt like I was transported back in time. Rich with detail and very well-researched, this book was wonderful!

This novel was wonderful. Not only was the life of Dagmar of Denmark an unknown tale for me, but the story was exceptionally well-written. I couldn’t put it down and can’t wait for the next Gortner historical fiction novel.

This book is not for the faint of heart. But then, the history of the Romanovs is not for the faint of heart. The story is written in first person, which typically I do not care for. In this instance it was very well done. The first person narration causes the reader to be blind to some things that Minnie herself does not realize until the moment of realization hits. If it were not written in first person, we would've missed out on this interesting aspect of the story.

The story itself is excellent. Full of political intrigue and historical drama, it gives the reader an insight into the temperature of Russian culture at the time of the revolution which may have been overlooked in previous historical study.

Minnie herself is such an interesting character. I found myself sympathizing with her as she foresaw the coming storm and tried so desperately to prevent it. Her frustrations with her limited means to prevent the calamity was heartbreaking. Reading the story while knowing the sadness she would endure at the end was also quite interesting. My heart broke for her.

C.W. Gortner has turned a long, tragic political history into a page turning story. Fans of Phillipa Gregory will doubtless enjoy this lengthy historical. It was quite heavy, but worth it.

The Romanov Empress, by noted historical fiction author C.W. Gortner, is a well=written, well-researched look in the Romanov dynasty. While most books focus on Nicholas and Alexandra, this book examines the family through the eyes of Tsarina Maria Feodorovna. You will enjoy learning more about her transition from a Danish princess to the Empress of Russia and how her relationships with her family influenced Russian and European history. The Romanov Empress will keep you engrossed through the end of the book and beyond. Be sure to read the Afterward and Acknowledgments....they are packed with even more interesting insights into the Tsarina and her family.

So much has been written about the Russian Revolution and the doomed Romanov family, Nicholas, Alexandra, and their children. This story looks at Maria, the Danish princess who would become Nicholas’s mother. From her privileged upbringing to her marriage to a Romanov and her rise to empress, to the dark days of the Russian Revolution and the rise of communism, this is a unique perspective of a period in history that continues to fascinate us today

I was transfixed by this book from the very first page - I couldn't put it down and stayed up all night reading it. It is a well written and thoroughly researched story of a strong, intelligent woman who had a front seat during an historic time. From Princess Dagmar to Empress Marie she lived a life of luxury and power, but when the revolution came her world was turned upside down. A must read for fans of historical fiction!