Publisher: Bantam Books
Publish Date: January 10, 2012
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 444
ISBN: 978 0553808124
From award-winning author
Eva Stachniak comes this passionate novel that illuminates, as only fiction
can, the early life of one of history’s boldest women. The Winter Palace
Her name is Barbara – in Russian
Varvara. Nimble-witted and attentive,
she’s allowed into the employ of the Empress Elizabeth, amid the glitter and
cruelty of the world’s most eminent court.
Under the tutelage of Count Bestuzhev, Chancellor and spymaster, Varvara
will be educated in skills from lock picking to lovemaking, learning above all
else to listen – and to wait for opportunity.
That opportunity arrives in a slender young princess from Zerbst named
Sophie, a playful teenager destined to become the indomitable Catherine the
Great. Sophie’s destiny at court is to
marry the Empress’s nephew, but she has other, loftier, more dangerous
ambitions, and she proves to be more guileful than she first appears.
What Sophie needs is an
insider at court, a loyal pair of eyes and ears who knows the traps, the
conspiracies, and the treacheries that surround her. Varvara will become Sophie’s confidante – and
together the two young women will rise to the pinnacle of absolute power.
My Thoughts
This was the first historical fiction novel I've read that has been set in Russia and I have to admit that I don't know much about Russian history, especially 1700's Russia. I found this to be a very interesting read. Told from the point of view of Varvara, the daughter of a bookbinder. Upon his death, he has asked for her to be taken care of by the Palace and soon finds herself among different positions in the court.
"The Russian play unfolded before my eyes, I thought, in all its magnificent artifice. Elizabeth the the Terrible, Peter the Fool and Catherine the Wise had made their appearance."
In my opinion, this is not a novel of Catherine the Great. Being told from the POV of Varvara, this was more a story of her encounters in the palace. Don't get me wrong, I found the story very interesting and I was always intrigued...it just wasn't based around Catherine and her rise to the throne, she was just one of many characters Varvara interacted with. While Catherine is a main character I just found the subtitle misleading, the novel could have held strong as just The Winter Palace. The book had a great beginning then started to lag a bit in the middle, when Varvara was married and left the Palace and then redeemed itself in the last 50 pages or so.
Let me tell you - court was cut throat in those times. Lies, deceit, sabotaging...loved it! Well researched, although not bogged down with too much history, dates, battles and what not that happened then, just enough to give you an idea of Russia during that time period.
I would say this is more of a 3.5 star rating. I really went back and forth from 3 to 4.
I look forward to reading Empress of the Night: A Novel of Catherine the Great due out March 2014 which is told from the point of view of Catherine herself.
My Rating: ««««
My Thoughts
This was the first historical fiction novel I've read that has been set in Russia and I have to admit that I don't know much about Russian history, especially 1700's Russia. I found this to be a very interesting read. Told from the point of view of Varvara, the daughter of a bookbinder. Upon his death, he has asked for her to be taken care of by the Palace and soon finds herself among different positions in the court.
"The Russian play unfolded before my eyes, I thought, in all its magnificent artifice. Elizabeth the the Terrible, Peter the Fool and Catherine the Wise had made their appearance."
In my opinion, this is not a novel of Catherine the Great. Being told from the POV of Varvara, this was more a story of her encounters in the palace. Don't get me wrong, I found the story very interesting and I was always intrigued...it just wasn't based around Catherine and her rise to the throne, she was just one of many characters Varvara interacted with. While Catherine is a main character I just found the subtitle misleading, the novel could have held strong as just The Winter Palace. The book had a great beginning then started to lag a bit in the middle, when Varvara was married and left the Palace and then redeemed itself in the last 50 pages or so.
Let me tell you - court was cut throat in those times. Lies, deceit, sabotaging...loved it! Well researched, although not bogged down with too much history, dates, battles and what not that happened then, just enough to give you an idea of Russia during that time period.
I would say this is more of a 3.5 star rating. I really went back and forth from 3 to 4.
I look forward to reading Empress of the Night: A Novel of Catherine the Great due out March 2014 which is told from the point of view of Catherine herself.
My Rating: ««««
The reviews made here are my personal opinion. I’m not being paid to review any of these books. I am by no means a professional book reviewer or editor. I do this for the love of books.
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