Loved, Loved loved this book!!!
What an amazing and fascinating read! I've always find the Romanov family interesting and enjoy reading about them, factual or fictional so I was drawn to this book. I loved it and finish it in one sitting, it was a lovely way to spend a bank holiday sat reading this delight in the garden, I found the plot enchanting and loved the descriptive writing, I could pictured every scene and could feel the feelings of the characters.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it stayed with me after I finished the last page. I kept thinking about how great it was. I would highly recommend this book to friends and fellow book readers. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read in exchange of a review and many thanks for introducing me to a this author.

In all honesty, I found this hard going. The writing is a little clumsy. I kept putting it down and forcing myself to go back to it.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

It has been a long time since I've read a book I have wanted to throw out of my window. This was one from both a reading for pleasure and the historical facts. I had several attempts at reading this, but each time was unable to get drawn in and really struggled all the way through. Sorely disappointed as I had been so looking forward to reading about Russia and the Romanovs.

"When they took everything from her, they didn’t count on her fighting to get it back.."

How beautiful is the cover for this book. It was what drew me to the book. Although having added it to my reading list on goodreads they have a different picture which is more of a classic modern YA cover. A while back I read a YA book called the Romanovs and absolutly loved it. It intregues me how the family lived and died. So, when I then saw that the description that started with "Born into the House of Romanov" I knew I was going to want to read this.

If im honest the book is a little slow because of the detail and world building making it something you have to be interested in and wanting to read rather than an 'easy read'. That said I guess thats how alot of historical fiction books are written to make sure you are transported to that place and time.

I really did get into the story while I was reading it but found I needed to read it in big chunks rather than little bits here and there. The desire of the Romonovs to be in control, be more like the West but also be accepting of some failure was good. I think because all we are hearing at the moment is around female empowerment the inital focus on the need to marry well for posterity was a little jarring to read - but it was in keeping with the time of the story so Im not complaining about it, it just felt unusual I guess.
The story follows the change that happens and pushes female empowerment but there are key parts of the story that remind us that the women have this power because a man desperate to make sure his family remained in control allowed it.f you like historical fiction or Romanov inspired stories then i suspect this is someting you'll definetly want to be adding to your TBR pile.

This book follows Elizabeth, daughter of Cathrine I and Peter the Great; it details her remarkable and often suspenseful journey from innocence to surviving life in the volatile Imperial Russian court.
The story timeline overlaps with Tsarina by Ellen Alpsten however, you could read this one without having read the first book.

Similarly themed to Tsarina, this is a novel filled with love, lust, heartbreak, greed, murder, and betrayal. There are some fantastic descriptions of their insane wealth and how they spent it.

I enjoyed this book; I found the story engaging and a fascinating fictional insight into the Russian Courts.

A stunning sequel to Ellen Alpsten's "Tsarina" published last year, where we follow the life of
Catherine's daughter the Tsarevna Elizabeth as she tries to manoeuvre her life through the dangerous waters of Russian politics between 1727 and 1740. A magnificent and very colorful tapestry of Imperial Russia and its dysfunctional rulers, the dangerous shenanigans of their faithless courtiers and an outrageous court life that can only be described as a disgusting and corrupt cesspool full of jealousies, hates, vengeful desires, venomous grudges and murderous intents just to name a few. Historically accurate, very entertaining and blessed with a cast of unforgettable characters, this outrageous and often funny historical romp his a winner from start to finish and it should be enjoyed without moderation. Hopefully Ms. Alpsten will gift us with a 3rd installment very soon......with a young Catherine the great??? Let's cross fingers....

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury for the opportunity to read this wonderful novel prior to its release date

Wow. I really thought this was such an interesting read. It’s very descriptive and you know you hardy find books based on this historical woman so it was refreshing to see something totally new in my opinion.

My only issue is that the digital copy is kind of messed up, I know I’m seeing something that is perhaps not in the final stage of editing but it can be a bit vexing at times when you’re reading and then suddenly some random text appears that hasn’t got a connection with the current paragraph. It kind of ruins the mood.

Thanks netgalley for allowing me this chance to check out some good fiction!