I unfortunately had a hard time keeping focus with this book, so I ended up sitting it aside. I think I was expecting something much more in line with the animated Anastasia, with less of a historical focus. But I do plan to try it again sometime!

I received an advanced copy from the publisher via Netgalley for an honest review.

This novel tells the story of the Romanov family after they are usurped from the throne and taken as prisoners until their unfortunate death. There have always been so many 'what if' stories about what occurred with Anastasia and questioning if the young hemophiliac, Alexie, survived or not as there was never FIRM evidence of his death.

I do love historical fiction novels that give us a different viewpoint and a possible outcome to what happened in history and this novel was enjoyable, to a point. This definitely did NOT feel like a historical FANTASY as it is labeled, the magic was not really developed enough and seemed rather jarring for a lot of the novel. I feel like this would have been a much more enjoyable novel if she had just focused on historical fiction and left the magic out. I did LOVE Fawkes and the author seamlessly flowed magic and the romance in that story and not so well in this one. The side love story of Nastya's sister was very fluid and made sense, whereas Nastya's felt very forced until the end of the novel and even then it is a bit questionable, is this love or guilt?

I will absolutely pick up another novel by Nadine Brandes as I loved Fawkes and I feel like this one just barely missed the mark and felt more forced.

Romanov by Nadine Brandes is a YA historical fantasy retelling of Anastasia. It's an interesting take on the Romanov' family and Anastasia. Would recommend.

I really enjoyed this, the writing style was super easy to slip into. The setting was captivating although I would have loved to have read more in the greater setting of Russia I understand from the plot why that was lacking and is no fault of the book rather a compliment to the writing. It was such a fun and fast read with some heavy and heartbreaking moments that lend weight and reader investment. I would have read more books in this world

I tried really hard to get into this, and made a number of attempts to read this book but unfortunately it was just too slow to start and didn't grab me.

I really like the concept and it's a creative idea, but I think the characters need more depth to them from the get go to catch my interest long enough to persist.

Romanov was an interesting alternate history. I got sucked into the story and couldn’t put it down. I am one of those people who needs a good romance to truly love a story, and this book didn’t disappoint though the romance was by no means the sole focus. Thanks for a great read.

I’ve always been captivated by the story of Grand Duchess Anastasia and the mystery that surrounded her death. Nadine Brandes managed to stay true to the history and still tell an exciting story using a bit of fantasy. I really enjoyed this story from a new to me author and will definitely be looking into some of her other works. Fawkes has already caught my eye and is calling my name!

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I DNFed this at 30% bc i couldn't get into it unfortunately. I still don't know what it is that didn't do it for me but I just couldn't get into it..

I feel like i've never been fascinated by the original story to begin with so reading this, it didnt do anything for me at all and I culdn't bring myself to read it. I would actively avoid the book an when I realised that I was wasting my time on purpose i decided to let it go.

This is certainly a 'me' problem and has nothing to do with the book itself.

Seriously, one of the best books I read in 2019. (Yes, I'm that late with this review, sorry." I already need to read this again. I liked the way it was written, the style of the author made me want to read this in one sitting. It was such a fast read! I love how the author tried to include a lot of actual facts, but included so much fantasy too. The main character Anastasia was very likeable, and I fell in love with Zash too.. Who wouldn't?
As a small child I was already a little bit obsessed with the story of the romanovs, and I watched the animated movie way too much. (I should really watch that again) My best friend is Ukrainian and she made me interested in Russian History and Literature again.
You should read this book.

I’m not usually a fan of historical fiction but I do quite enjoy Nadine’s. version of ‘history’. She’s an expert writer. Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for granting my request .

I grew up completely obsessed with the Anastasia movie! I've also been fascinated by the theories surrounding her possible survival! As a sucker for a retelling and a lover of history, this book was all the way up my alley! I really loved the more historical aspects and the message of family and forgiveness. Part of me wishes this was a dual POV book because I would have loved to have been in Zash's head for a lot of things instead of being told what he was thinking/feeling. I definitely want to pick up Fawkes now

Am I the only one who felt like <u> Romanov </u> was mediocre at best? I mean I wanted to love it - an historical fantasy reimagining of Anastasia and her Romanov family during the rise of the Bolsheviks? Yes, please. BUT nothing about this novel was particularly inspiring or well done.

First off, the writing wasn't that spectacular. Brandes. Please stop telling me how perfect and wonderful the Romanov's were and how they were so sweet they didn't deserve their fate. No one deserves to be murdered in cold blood, but these were real people who in real life would have had real character flaws...I am sure that they would not have been a host of Mary-Sue clones. Regardless, My grade 11 English teacher taught us that you need to SHOW the reader, not tell the reader. Please take that advice.

Aside from that, the story itself was soOoOoOoOo slow. It felt like nothing happened forever. I get that it was focused on the Romanov's lives in captivity, but still. Even the magic felt like it was just slapped on with no purpose. Like putting two separate jigsaws together. Yikes. The romance really felt the same, but ah well...this was another one from Netgalley that took me forever to get around to reading, but it wasn't that great. I would 100% rather recommend <u> Fawkes </u> if you want to try a Brandes book. It was the reason I wanted to read this one.

A fresh look at the legend — Anastasia is a spunky heroine. Really nice blend of history and fantasy.

I received an advance copy in exchange for my honest opinion & review

I always had a secret love for the stories of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna. She was the only survivor of the royal family during World War I but it was later “proven” that she was executed with the rest of her family. The reason I also requested this book was because of the cover, it’s just so beautiful.

“A grenade would be safer in the palm of my hand than the Matryoshka doll.”

The author did a great job of bringing the history of the family into this book but she should have explained more the history of the Revolution since many aren’t familiar with the royal family in a prologue. I love how Nadine intertwines magic into her story while not making it the focal point but rather focusing on romance and hardship.

I love the character development of “Nastya”, from a mischief child to a forgiving woman. She was so loyal to her family that she would put her own opinion aside and think positively. I’ve never cried so hard for the treason that she receives. BUT Zash was the most “character development” I’ve read in a long time and I would love to see a POV of his story.

“I opened my mouth to protest. How I loved protesting.”

Even though the storyline was from the POV of Nastya, you could feel the humanity of every character. The Bolsheviks are trying to survive by just doing their jobs, Zash’s personality and his reasons, the family’s hope and dreams, and even the villain’s understanding at the end.

I would say one thing that I disliked was the concept of the magic… I was just unsettled. I’m not sure if it needed more plot development or simply more explaining throughout the book. Why was the doll magic so easy to use… I would have loved to know how all the magic worked.

“Because I have a story I was meant to live. And not even you can unwrite it.”

Overall this book gets a full-mark review. I’ve read this book in two days and couldn’t put it down unless I had to. I believe this novel should stay a standalone but have a POV of Zash’s life story from his childhood, the Bolsheviks upbringing, the guarding of the royal family, and what happened afterward (sorry no spoilers).

I really love Anastasia retellings, and this one was really enjoyable! This book is definitely not light and fluffy. If you're at all familiar with the history of the Romanov family, you know how sad this story is. But I do feel like the author gives us a good balance between the dark, sad stuff and the lighter stuff. But do keep the tissues handy!

I don't know very much about the Romanovs, I mean I know a bit more than I've read this book, but I didn't know a lot going in. I've listened to a podcast about Rasputin and his tie to the royal family couple years about around the 100th anniversary of all this happening. I've, also, seen things about people claiming to be Anastasia, so I know bits about the myths, but I didn't know how horrific the story of the last Romanovs really was until I started to read this book.   

In reading a Wikipedia article and the author's notes after finishing this book, I feel like I know just enough to have an opinion about historical accuracy, which is important to me in historical fiction. The first half of this book especially, though it could be slow in places holds up when it comes to detailing what it was like for the Romanovs to live in exile. There were, of course, fantastical elements, but the base of the story was strong and I appreciated that. 

I knew where this story was going, but I didn't see it getting to where it went the way Brandes put it together, so that was fun for me. I enjoyed the magic. It made sense in story. Sometimes stories that add a magical element the supernatural stuff feels shoved in, but with this story, I think it adds a layer of why the Romanovs were seen as "dangerous" by the people holding them captive. 

I'm usually against romantic subplots that have nothing to do with the story, but I think Anastasia and Zash, as well as Maria and Ivan, added something to the first part of the story that needed a little bit extra. There's not a lot happening in the first half of the book except the anticipation that everyone in this book was going to be executed in a matter of days. It gave me, as the reader, something to root for before everything picked up in the second half. After the big event in the middle of the book, it picked up a lot for me. I really loved the second half of the book. There was a lot happening in a very short period of time and I love narratives like that. There was a big shift in pacing which is understandable since there is only so much you can do when the base of your story is seven people locked in five rooms. 

Overall, I enjoyed this book. I think I would have liked it a lot more if I knew the story of the Romanovs before I picked it up. So I definitely think if Anastasia is your history thing and you like to read stories with magical realism, you'll like this book.

"Because I have a story I was meant to live. And not even you can unwrite it."

When I first saw this book I was so excited for it to come out because of that stunning cover and the fact that it is a Romanov's retelling. I have to admit I hardly knew the basics of what happened to the family so I was hoping to get more information through this book (which now I know wasn't the best idea). And when I got approved for an ARC, I couldn't have been happier.

"We are Romanovs. The bond of our hearts spans miles, memory and time."

This book is told from Anastasia's ("Nastya") point of view and in my opinion she was a quite great character, mainly because of her pranks and "misbehavior" which were amazing because they made me realise that she could get away with anything due to how quickly she could come up with a plan. Moreover, I really liked the dinamic between the family members and how everyone took care of each other when neccesary.

On the other hand, the main aspect of this books that prevents me from giving it 5 stars is the fact that the other characters felt very plain, they had a main characteristic and from that came all their attitudes and decisions, they did not have layers nor depth. We got to witness some backstories but they didn't feel real to me, it was as if I was just reading something that happened instead of actually feeling like I was there in that moment, which is what I look for when I read a book.

There were also other minor issues that took away from my enjoyment. First, there were smaller plot twists that didn't feel like they were because I was able to predict them, so I never actually got surprised by anything. Then, the autor also uses some Russian words to describe things or as nicknames that I couldn't understand since I don't speak the language, at first I looked them up but then it just got tedious so I just guessed what they meant by the context or acted as if they weren't there.

And lastly, the end was predictable, there was not a single moment were I feared something bad would happen to any of the characters. But it wasn't only that, it also felt unsatisfying because it ends on an open ending, unless it has a continuation but for the moment this book is a standalone and I'm not used to standalones ending like this lol.

"No one could outshout a revolution."

To end on a more happy note, what I did love throughout the book were the quotes and Nadine's writing style. The introduction to the book is incredible, so powerful that gets stuck in your mind for a while, at least that happened to me. I highlighted so many quotes that give the vibes of "just get up and do it", the three I wrote in this review are only my favorites.

Also, at the end we are told which things in the story were actually real and which ones were fiction or a stretched version of reality. I was positively surprised to see that because I wasn't expecting the author to let us into her creative journey the way she did and I really appreciate that.

Fantastic retelling of Anastasia. I absolutely loved this book. The writing was incredible and the characters amazing. I highly recommend this book.

I enjoyed the magical aspects of the novel, but overall the story moved slowly and the world building was lacking. As a result, the fear and tension between the Royal Family and the Bolsheviks never felt real enough to keep the plot moving forward. It felt as if the whole book was hanging on the known historical tension of the times which not all readers will be familiar with.

I was really disappointed with this one. When I first heard about an Anastasia retelling, I was really excited, because I absolutely love Anastasia. But it just wasn't that great. It was really slow for the most part, so slow that I felt like nothing really happened for 90% of the book. I was so bored that I seriously considered DNF'ing at several points, but still I pushed through. And it got better towards the end, but it was too little, too late.

I also had a very hard time connecting to the characters. I wasn't a huge fan of Anastasia, and to be honest I would've much preferred reading about her brother instead.