This was an interesting read. My students who like historical fiction was interested in this title. They loved that it was nonfiction. Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this story and I have put it on my shelf.

This book was requested when I was young and requested more books than I could possibly read. Sadly, I no longer have access to this book and my tastes have changed. Thus I will not be able to give feedback on this title.

Why Did I Listen To The Romanov Sisters by Helen Rappaport?

Growing up I loved the animated movie Anastasia (and later the Broadway adaptation). Learning more about the Romanov family dynasty is something that I’m always looking to do. I actually had been approved for an advance copy of The Romanov Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra on Netgalley when it was first published but for some reason never actually read it. So when I found that the audio version was available on Libby, I was quick to grab it up and delve right in.

What’s The Story Here?

The Romanov Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra delicately describes the lives of the four Grand Duchesses (Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia) of the Romanov dynasty from birth until their unfortunate deaths. Using personal letters, journal entries, and second hand accounts of the family, Helen Rappaport presents the four girls as individuals with their own personalities, thoughts, feelings, and perceptions of the world around them. Their lives are carefully intertwined with that of their parents and brother which influences the way in which they behave and are a perceived by Russian society in the early twentieth century.

How Did I Like The Romanov Sisters?

My heart really went out for the four Grand Duchesses of Russia by the end of The Romanov Sisters. Each girl really was unique but this uniqueness was often overshadowed by an attempt to group them together. It was also overshadowed by the political climate around them and the sicknesses of both their mother and their brother. I enjoyed reading about their youth, their school girl crushes, and their involvement in nursing during the wars. Each of the girls was a devoted member of their family – and sadly all of them were caught in the crossfire of the political revolution of the time.

How’s The Narration?

The audiobook narrator is Xe Sands. It is 12 hours and 26 minutes unabridged and most of the chapters are long in length. It is well narrated and takes you on the journey of Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia and their family and friends with ease. I enjoyed listening to The Romanov Sisters and learning even more about the ultimately tragic Romanov dynasty.

“They had no idea of the ugly side of life”

Depending on what the reader is searching for, you may find a twinkle or brilliant beam of interest and educational distraction with picking up The Romanov Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra. For me it almost ended up as a “no thank you” type of work when the author’s personal opinions broke the string of opening events but I still wished to read this title as the promised subjects deserved my patience (the story of the four sisters have always been the “the” sad real life painted fairy tale that has captivated me since childhood and I’ve always felt some kind of special understanding with introverted personalities). In a way I’m happy I stayed and took the time to read this book but I think I will search out other titles to learn more as I can’t say I didn’t want to apologize to historic individuals as I read the side comments and felt the obvious distaste of the author at certain points in the pages. I was also surprised but also disappointed this work was very drawn out in the beginning chapters, somewhat repetitive with the available information and was more of a scrap book of memories of the Grand Duchesses with much flipping back and forth of dates and events. Modern interpretation of past events can be very tricky to handle and unfortunately The Romanov Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra held too much of others opinions and too little of the words of the sisters or a final impression of their individual personalities for this interested reader.

*I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read The Romanov Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra

Inadvertently my review on my blog and on public forums has not been sent on to you.
The review was published on 11/6/2014 and I am very sorry that this has not reached you.

From the beginning of this story, despite the aristocratic grandeur of its setting and the richness surrounding the family, you knew that somehow things were not going to end well.

We look at the last Royal family of Russia in detail. Backed up by heaps of letters, diaries, pictures and correspondence we have a very private but happy family composed of Nicholas and Alex the parents and their four beautiful daughters. The absence of a male heir was a huge bone of contention till Alexis was born. He was unfortunately sickly, a haemophiliac and was looked after with so much care and concern because the slightest fall or incident was enough to be life threatening. Alexis hovers over the story, an integral part no doubt but it is actually the four girls who gain our love and attention.

Four Princesses - all different all attractive and all serving the common man when the need arose when war broke out. The book does not focus just on their life as Princesses and the social and political appointments they undertook in that sphere. The book also looks at their family life which was so very simple and so far removed from what people actually thought royalty lived like. They had strict routines for study, play, exercise and entertainment. Food was simple and there was none of the over glamorous atmosphere that one expected from such a court.

The story follows the life of the sisters and their parents through the harrowing times of the Revolution and to the very end in Ekaterinberg. That the family expected exile of some kind but did not expect to be murdered so brutally was obvious. Sent to Siberia and then they thought to some country outside it was not to be.

Despite the wealth of historical detail, this was a very easy book for anyone to read. You did not have to be a fan of historical fiction or an aficionado of Russian history to appreciate this book. This was a very readable book and a human interest story with a very much family saga despite it being on a royal scale.

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