3.5 rounded up to 4

Apparently this is the second novel about the eighteenth century Romanovs, the first being about Catherine the Great. This one concerns Elizabeth Petrovna aka Yelisaveta or Elizaveta, the second oldest daughter of Peter the Great and Catherine--one of twelve kids, of whom only the girls survived.

This is an impressive picture of how power distorts, (very very timely, considering the current tsar's antics, sigh). It also took me months to read.

This novel takes us through 500 pages of sometimes extremely graphic court intrigue and its grim fallout, as Elizabeth gets through childhood and finally attains her throne. It was very clear that the author had done mountains of research. The result, for me, was like thousands of colorful tesserae that never quite fit together into a picture. Part of that was due to the fact that so many years had to be covered. We never actually get to see her reign, but follow the courtly ups and downs of those close to the throne--one day covered in jewels, the next threatened with being immured in a convent, or tortured to death.

If you're all right with the GAME OF THRONES style royal saga (tons of piecemeal scenes of sex and violence, especially violence) give it a shot. The imagery is impressive, resonating with period detail.

There are loyalties and also betrayal in the court and one has to be extremely careful who to trust. I loved this story of Elizabeth which was rich in historical detail. Well written.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

In her sequel to “Tsarina” Ellen Alpsten continues to explore the Romanov dynasty by focusing on the daughter of Catherine I and Peter the Great, Elizabeth. Alpsten sets her stage to include the winter forests of Russia and an unknown presence who gives her a glimpse of her destiny by foretelling what is to come. In a move that is somewhat related to Macbeth do we see the effect of the prophecy expressed by this being and the circumstances that made her reality occur. Was it due to it being foretold or simply fate ? Elizabeth is a character whom we see grow from a self indulgent princess to a woman of her people. The choices that she must make to become a part of history culminate throughout the novel and sets up an ending that will make its reader look forward to the conclusion of Alpsten’s Romanov trilogy. Overall I enjoyed this novel for its pace, attention to detail, and insight into historical events. I’d like to thank netgalley and the publisher for an advanced reader’s copy. Out of five stars I give this novel a strong four out of five. I recommend it for fans of historical fiction and Philippa Gregory novels.

Ellen Alpsten has done it again with this epic 18th century Russian historical fiction work following the life of Catherine I's daughter Elizabeth and her tumultuous life at court. Full of intrigue, betrayals, romance and adventure this is the perfect book for fans of Russian history or authors like Phillippa Gregory and Bryn Turnbull's The last grand duchess. Much thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my advance review copy. I learned so much about a period of Russian history that has often been overlooked. Thoroughly enjoyed this book although the length was intimidating!

Excellent book that tells of palace intrigue and the rise and loss of power within the Russian nobility. Sadly, Tsar Ivan VI was removed from power through a coup by Elizabeth Petrovna Romanova when he was only a baby. He spent the remainder of his life in a prison. Author Ellen Alpsten does a wonderful job telling her story.

Recommend.

Review written after downloading a galley from NetGalley.

After reading After the Romanovs by Helen Rappaport I was eager to go back in time to the 1700s and the early days of the Romanovs. In her follow-up to Tsarina, Ellen Alpsten returns with the story of Elizabeth Petrovna Romanova, the daughter of Peter the Great and Catherine I. In her teens she entered the Golosov Ravine, where your every question could be answered for a price. A Leshy, a figure from folklore, predicted that Elizabeth would be a mother, but would never have children. It was a prediction that would come true years later when she became the mother of all Russia.

Alpsten displays all of the opulence of Peterhof and the courts of the Romanovs as well as the poverty of Russia’s citizens. Elizabeth was a progressive ruler, but also faced betrayal and intrigue as she rose to power. This is a lengthy tale but is so well written that it passes quickly. Historical fiction fans and those with an interest in Russian history will find The Tsarina’s Daughter a fascinating story. I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing this book for my review.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press/St. Martin's Griffin for an advanced copy of The Tsarina's Daughters.

The Tsarina's Daughter, is the dramatic story of Elizabeth, daughter of Catherine I and Peter the Great, who ruled Russia from 1741 to 1762. This is book two in the historical fiction trilogy about the Romanovs. I read and enjoyed Tsarina last year so I looking forward to reading about these amazing women and Elizabeth of Russia.

I really like Ellen Alpsten's writing style and how she get so much in historically while still weaving a great story.

I'm looking forward to reading her next book!

I did not like this at all. I was incredibly bored and confused by the timeline and pacing. I learned more from just looking up all the historical figures online and was much more interested then. Russian Tsar history is incredibly bloody and horrifying with so many people betraying and killing each other (as is most monarch history) but this author decided it needed some extra awfulness and added a bunch of depressing stuff which only made the book longer but didn’t add anything to the stilted characters and uninteresting dialogue.

Vibrant, informative, and highly entertaining!

The Tsarina’s Daughter is an insightful, enthralling tale set in eighteenth-century Russia that tells the story of Elizabeth Petrovna Romanov, the second-eldest daughter of Tsar Peter the Great and Catherine I, whose life seemed to have been fated by the dark prophecy predicted by a woodland spirit when she was a child and who after bearing tragedy after tragedy, loss after loss, and survived in a world in which friends easily turned to foes, and calculated manoeuvres and political advancement were always higher on the agenda than love, became the Empress of Russia in 1741, at the age of thirty-one, and ruled until strokes led to her death in 1762.

The prose is eloquent and expressive. The characters are willful, ruthless, and cunning. And the plot is an alluring tale of life, loss, scandal, sacrifice, desires, passion, heartbreak, opulence, corruption, treachery, rivalry, and tumultuous relationships.

Overall, The Tsarina’s Daughter is another fascinating, absorbing, immersive saga by Alpsten that does a spectacular job of once again highlighting her incredible knowledge and impeccable research into the infamous House of Romanov and the remarkable life of this last direct Romanov to ever reign in Russia.

I have read the first story in this trilogy, and it was great. This one is just as good. If you enjoyed historical stories then I think you will enjoy this one. I can’t wait to read the next one in this trilogy because I know it has to be just as good.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

I loved this book. It was so well written and I loved learning more about this time period in Russia.

Tsarevna Elizabeth is the daughter of Peter the Great and his wife Catherine. She lives a luxurious life with dreams of marrying the French King. However, after receiving a prophecy from a woodland creature, everything in her life goes wrong. Her relatives die one by one and the future she imagined for herself disappears. Elizabeth must use the lessons she’s learned from these hardships to become a strong and determined woman.

This was an epic story about love, scandal, and determination. It felt like this story took place over many decades because so much happened, but it was just a few years. This was the kind of story that had me looking up the true history to find out what actually happened and what was fiction because it was hard to believe it was true. This history made a great story.

I was glad that this story wasn’t as graphic as the first one about Catherine, Elizabeth’s mother, called Tsarina. This one focused more on the scandal and drama between people and their relationships, rather than the brutality they experienced.

The Tsarina’s Daughter is a thrilling historical story.

Thank you St. Martin’s Griffin for providing a copy of this book.

The Tsarina’s Daughter is the sequel to Tsarina. The novel shifts its focus from Catherine and tells the story of her daughter, Elizabeth. Princess Elizabeth has always wanted to become Queen of France. When Louis XV rejects her because of her mother’s low birth, Princess Elizabeth struggles to forge her own destiny. As she watches the reigns of five rulers, Princess Elizabeth never dared to dream that she would find herself on the Russian throne. Even though Princess Elizabeth did not achieve her childhood dream of becoming Queen Consort to Louis XV of France, she eventually snatched a more glittering prize by becoming Empress Regnant of Russia.

I found Elizabeth to be a more likable and sympathetic character than her mother, Catherine I. Elizabeth loves her family and is very loyal to them. She also loves and cares for Russia and its people. While she does want the throne of Russia, she does not want to lead a coup and oust her family members. She is reluctant to take the throne for herself. She only wants to live a peaceful life and desires to become queen by designation. It is not until her life's in danger that she has to make the decision to usurp the throne or not. Therefore, Elizabeth is an admirable character. While I did not agree with some of her choices, I understood her actions. She was very brave, resourceful, and strong because she overcame many challenges.

Overall, this novel is about survival, choices, and love. I found that this novel was better written than Tsarina. The characters were also more developed than Tsarina. I understood all of the characters' motivations, and they seemed very realistic. I found it interesting that while Louis XV rejected her as his wife, he still supported and helped her to the Russian throne. The setting was very lavish because it highlighted the glitz and glamor of the Russian Imperial Court. Its opulent first pages managed to captivate me from the beginning and enthralled me until I read the last page. There was enough drama, betrayal, passion, and danger that managed to keep me glued to the page. However, there were some scenes I felt were drawn out and other scenes I thought were repetitive. Still, this was a vast improvement of Tsarina, and I enjoyed reading about Empress Elizabeth’s early years! While the novel is long, I do wish that it showed Elizabeth’s reign as empress! The Tsarina’s Daughter is a delightful treat for those that love reading about the royals! I recommend this for fans of Queen of Someday, Empress of the Night, and Imperial Highness!

Ellen Alpsten has written another immersive story about a strong woman in Russia's history. "The Tsarina's Daughter" takes readers on a journey of Elizabeth's life, the daughter of Peter. the Great and Catherine I of Russia. Readers are taken through Elizabeth's story as she navigates family, love, and loyalty. This historical fiction weaves events in Russia's history of the 1700s along with the setting of Russia's countrysides and palaces. I found this story easy to read and to follow as I navigated a new to me era in time. I found the descriptions to be so detailed that I could picture the scenes as if I was there. Thank you Ellen Alpsten, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an advanced copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an egalley in exchange for an honest review.

The second book in a historical fiction trilogy about the early Romanovs, The Tsarina's Daughter is told from the perspective of Elizabeth, daughter of Catherine I and Peter the Great. As a young woman, Elizabeth and her sister live a very luxurious life with promises of good marriages. But when her father passes, Elizabeth realizes that the life of the Russian court is a tightrope where she may fall from grace at any moment.

Every blessing can be a curse, and too many people wanted what I had: I was the Tsar's Daughter

Richly written characters and the constant feeling of tension kept me fixated on this novel for many hours. It doesn't matter which Romanov personage I learn about as a reader, I feel that each of them was an incredibly fascinating person. I truly felt that I was there watching the events unfold and Ellen Alpsten clearly illustrates the precarious positions that each held.

Honestly, I have not read the first book in the series but I would certainly enjoy reading it and I am also excited about the third book too.

Publication Date 15/03/21
Goodreads review published 17/03/21

Elizabeth Petrovna aka as Yelisaveta or Elizaveta, was the second oldest daughter of Peter the Great and Catherine, who had twelve children where only the girls would survive. Elizabeth was The daughter born to Peter and his second wife Catherine, who happened to have been a former maid. Catherine would go onto to be the head of Russia while Elizabeth would follow after seizing the throne.

Elizabeth was reputed to be a beautiful lady, one who had a natural wit and was able to handle well the intricacies of royal life. This book which I listened to was a follow up to the book Tsarina by Ellen Alspen, and narrated by Anna Krippa, who did a wonderful job with the Russian names of which there were many.

However, this was a story of a young girl, surrounded by beauty, insulated by the court in which she lived, and the only education she received was that given to her by her mother, Catherine. She grew up thinking of eventually marrying Louis XV the ruler of France but seemingly because of her mother's background, Elizabeth was cast aside. Life changes for Elizabeth when her father dies. To show how treacherous conditions were at court, her father had her half-brother executed, in an attempt to ward of a possible grab for the throne by his son. Considered not that educated, Elizabeth and her sisters did have a French governess who encouraged her in her learnings of French, math, art, and sports. She became fluent in Italian, German, and French Elizabeth like her father loved riding, sledding, and hunting.

When grown into womanhood, Eliabeth was betrothed to Charles Augustus, but tragedy was to befall the tsarina as both Charles and her mother died within a short period of time. At this time, Elizabeth was seventeen years old. For Elizabeth there were few prospects for marriage so she instead took a young sergeant as her lover. When t wa found out, this young man was sent to Siberia and thus ended that relationship. She had other lovers among the men of lower birth in the court, but eventually developed a relationship with Count Alexi Razumosky which it was rumored to have turned into a marital one secretly.

As the years went on and one after the other assumed the throne, Elizabeth seized the throne, relegated the church to a minor position and assumed an astute and well-loved leadership. She was a forward thinker and gifted politically, throwing out the overpowering Germans and establishing education for all (except the serfs), and was the person behind the scenes establishing the first Russian University. She ruled well, even abolishing the death penalty because of her hatred of bloodshed.

She never had a child so she selected her nephew, Peter as heir to the throne. From his birth, the infant, Peter belonged in essence to the state. Elizabeth's court was dazzling, elegant, and lavish. Her clothes were encrusted with gems, adorned with jewelry. She loved a celebration and it was said she had at least two balls a week, while the guests imbibed cases of French champagne and wines and always added pineapple to the menu.

When Elizabeth's health started to decline, she refused the medicine prescribed. She died in 1751 and was adorned in a silver dress that simmered.
Truly she was a ruler who had class, beauty, and ruled for her people.

This story, although long was inspiring. I was glad I listened to it, as the pronunciation of the names made the story come alive. The narration was excellent providing me with a fine consistent flow of events and a growing admiration for Elizabeth. Thank you to Ellen Aspen, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for a copy of this well-done historical fiction story which publishes tomorrow, March 15, 2022.

The Tsarina’s Daughter, by Ellen Alpsten, is terrific follow-up to her wonderful, previously published novel, The Tsarina, the story of Catherine 1 of Russia. In this sequel, there is some overlap in the story, but the focus is now on Elizabeth and her sister Anna, teenagers in the court of father, Peter the Great and mother Catherine. They are accustomed to respect and lavish living as princesses, but are in a precarious position regarding their future, as they are technically illegitimate, since their parents never married. When Peter dies suddenly, the family, the palace and the country are turned upside down. Old rivalries and enmities rise, palace intrigue abounds, and the young Tsarevnas are pawns in the chess games of loyalty and succession.
This is rich, well-researched, historical fiction, and I learned a lot about the customs, mores and politics of 18th century Russia. While the reigns of Peter the Great and Catherine were marked by their efforts at modernization of their country, there was still the huge chasm between the wealth and excess of the ruling class, and the dire poverty and starvation of most of the rest of the population. The conflict between the modernists and the believers in “Old Russia” drove much of the political maneuvering in this story.
The author’s descriptive prose is outstanding, and really brings the scenes to life, down to the last gem and last embrace of a lover. There were an astounding number of characters, but thankfully the complete “Cast of Characters” was provided before the prologue and was easily referred to when needed. While there were some strong, well-written players in this tale, Elizabeth/Lizenka is the focal point and grabs the reader from the beginning. Her first person narrative is captivating, as she evolves from a spirited but spoiled teen to a mature, wise adult woman. Her descriptions of the intrigue and violence in her world are balanced by her musings about love, loss and fate: “Cursed be she who forces fate’s hand.” This is her story, and she tells it passionately!
This is a stunning novel by a newer voice in historical fiction, and I recommend this to readers who like to be immersed in a time and place beautifully described and imagined by this talented writer. There is to be a third entry in this series, and I look forward to it, eagerly!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my unbiased review.

This story follows Tsarevna Elizabeth who is the daughter of Peter the Great and Catherine. Her life is great until her father dies, her brother is executed and her mother has taken the Russian throne.

I love a historical fiction novel that is based on real people. It is a great way for me to learn more and do my own research. It’s been awhile since I have read one.

The Tsarina's Daughter is a historical fiction based on the real life figure of Elizabeth Petrovna, Empress of Russia who ruled from 1741-1762. This novel tries to explain the events on how she came into power.
This novel is the second book in the trilogy but I read it as a standalone and enjoyed it a lot. The events in this book starts from 1723 and ends with when Elizabeth comes into power.
Historical fictions like this book have a lot of characters and to keep a track of all of them is a challenge but this novel is not that hard to follow in the story. The character glossary in the beginning is a good reference point. I sure was searching lot of the characters on Wikipedia to get more indepth reference as well. I really enjoyed this book and can't help myself to draw parallels with the real things happening in that part of the world right now.
Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this novel. All the opinions are my own.

🎉𝓗𝓪𝓹𝓹𝔂 𝓟𝓾𝓫 𝓓𝓪𝔂!!🎉
📚𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 📚
4.4/5 ☀️

I was swept into this exhilarating story of Elizabeth, daughter of Peter The Great and Catherine I, who ruled Russia from 1742-1762.

Lizenka’s story is exciting, petrifying, tragic and passionate. She’s become one of my favorite heroines of history, growing from a pampered, naive princess to a cunning, strong woman able to stage a coup to rule as a Tsarina who refused to execute anyone, although she saw the worst of Russian rulers’ behavior before her.

Alpsten does an beautiful job of bringing to life the dangerous, decadent, depraved Russian court and the greed and cruelty of its leaders. I loved the story, the action and the passion. While there’s a long list of characters to keep straight, the author does a good job of clarifying who is who and giving insight into each of their own stories.

If you’re a fan of 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕 on Hulu (and if you’re not, you haven’t watched it yet!) pick up this new release. Huzzah!!

Many thanks to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel.

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