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The Romanov Empress

A Novel of Tsarina Maria Feodorovna

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The Romanov Empress

Written by: C. W. Gortner
Narrated by: Katharine Lee McEwan
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About this listen

 For readers of Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir comes a dramatic novel of the beloved Empress Maria, the Danish princess who became the mother of the last Russian tsar.

“This epic tale is captivating and beautifully told.”—Lisa Wingate, New York Times bestselling author of Before We Were Yours

Barely nineteen, Minnie knows that her station in life as a Danish princess is to leave her family and enter into a royal marriage—as her older sister Alix has done, moving to England to wed Queen Victoria’s eldest son. The winds of fortune bring Minnie to Russia, where she marries the Romanov heir, Alexander, and once he ascends the throne, becomes empress. When resistance to his reign strikes at the heart of her family and the tsar sets out to crush all who oppose him, Minnie—now called Maria—must tread a perilous path of compromise in a country she has come to love.

Her husband’s death leaves their son Nicholas as the inexperienced ruler of a deeply divided and crumbling empire. Determined to guide him to reforms that will bring Russia into the modern age, Maria faces implacable opposition from Nicholas’s strong-willed wife, Alexandra, whose fervor has led her into a disturbing relationship with a mystic named Rasputin. As the unstoppable wave of revolution rises anew to engulf Russia, Maria will face her most dangerous challenge and her greatest heartache.

From the opulent palaces of St. Petersburg and the intrigue-laced salons of the aristocracy to the World War I battlefields and the bloodied countryside occupied by the Bolsheviks, C. W. Gortner sweeps us into the anarchic fall of an empire and the complex, bold heart of the woman who tried to save it.

Praise for The Romanov Empress

“Timely . . . [Gortner’s] ability to weave what reads as a simple tale from such complex historical and familial storylines is impressive. . . . Maria’s life as a royal reads like a historical soap opera.”—USA Today

“Gortner, an experienced hand at recreating the unique aura of a particular time and place, will deftly sweep historical-fictions fans into this glamorous, turbulent, and ultimately tragic chapter in history.”—Booklist (starred review)

“Mesmerizing . . . This insightful first-person account of the downfall of the Romanov rule . . . is the powerful story of a mother trying to save her family and an aristocrat fighting to maintain rule in a country of rebellion.”—Publishers Weekly

“A twist on the tragic story you’ve heard many times before.”—Bustle Biographical Fiction Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Royalty Marriage Biography Russia Imperialism Heartfelt Denmark Soviet Union
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If you like Russian history, you will like this book. Written very well... engaging and very historically accurate. I found myself googling different locations and castles in the story... pictures of the characters in real life. It was a very compelling book to read and hard to put down.

A very interesting story.

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This was a very well-written account of the history during the life of the Tsarina. If you are a historical fiction buff then you will definitely enjoy the book. However, even if you aren't, it is a well-crafted tale!

history unfolded

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An excellent historical novel! Gortner writes with luxurious detail! This is a real page-turner -- I could not stop listening!

Captivating!

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