This book is not for the faint of heart. But then, the history of the Romanovs is not for the faint of heart. The story is written in first person, which typically I do not care for. In this instance it was very well done. The first person narration causes the reader to be blind to some things that Minnie herself does not realize until the moment of realization hits. If it were not written in first person, we would've missed out on this interesting aspect of the story.

The story itself is excellent. Full of political intrigue and historical drama, it gives the reader an insight into the temperature of Russian culture at the time of the revolution which may have been overlooked in previous historical study.

Minnie herself is such an interesting character. I found myself sympathizing with her as she foresaw the coming storm and tried so desperately to prevent it. Her frustrations with her limited means to prevent the calamity was heartbreaking. Reading the story while knowing the sadness she would endure at the end was also quite interesting. My heart broke for her.

C.W. Gortner has turned a long, tragic political history into a page turning story. Fans of Phillipa Gregory will doubtless enjoy this lengthy historical. It was quite heavy, but worth it.

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