Thank you so much to Bloomsbury Publishing and MidasPR for gifting me with a copy of this book and The Tsarina's Daughter in exchange for an honest review! My review for The Tsarina's Daughter will be out towards the end of the month.
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Goodreads Synopsis
St. Petersburg, 1725. Peter the Great lies dying in his magnificent Winter Palace. The weakness and treachery of his only son has driven his father to an appalling act of cruelty and left the empire without an heir. Russia risks falling into chaos. Into the void steps the woman who has been by his side for decades: his second wife, Catherine Alexeyevna, as ambitious, ruthless and passionate as Peter himself.
Born into devastating poverty, Catherine used her extraordinary beauty and shrewd intelligence to ingratiate herself with Peter’s powerful generals, finally seducing the Tsar himself. But even amongst the splendor and opulence of her new life—the lavish feasts, glittering jewels, and candle-lit hours in Peter’s bedchamber—she knows the peril of her position. Peter’s attentions are fickle and his rages powerful; his first wife is condemned to a prison cell, her lover impaled alive in Red Square. And now Catherine faces the ultimate test: can she keep the Tsar’s death a secret as she plays a lethal game to destroy her enemies and take the Crown for herself?
From the sensuous pleasures of a decadent aristocracy, to the incense-filled rites of the Orthodox Church and the terror of Peter’s torture chambers, the intoxicating and dangerous world of Imperial Russia is brought to vivid life. Tsarina is the story of one remarkable woman whose bid for power would transform the Russian Empire.
Review
This book completely blew my mind and I am so glad that I got to read it! I've always been fascinated with the Romanov family so I jumped at the chance to read about the Catherine I and Peter the Great. I didn't know much about them before starting this book but I found myself eagerly reading and researching these figures in history.
Catherine, or Martha as she was originally known as, was such a strong and powerful women who, in her early years, went though absolute hell. It was so interesting to see how she developed as a character and how she fought her way to becoming the first ever Tsarina of Russia. I loved reading about this time in history from her perspective and it's honestly something that I've come to love about Historical fiction. We get to see a side of what could have happened from the view of someone no one would have considered paying attention to until they became important.
Tsarina is heavily researched and I instantly fell in love with Alpsten's writing. It was so detailed and I found it hard to put down. I really do recommend this book to any fans of Historical fiction or the Romanov's!
Please be aware though that this does contain some trigger warnings with scenes of rape, torture, miscarriages and abuse. It also contains a number of sexual scenes.
Rating: 4/5 stars