New York Times Bestseller“Compelling and utterly fascinating.” —Lisa Wingate, author of Before We Were YoursAn enthralling feat of historical suspense that unravels the extraordinary twists and turns in Anna Anderson’s fifty-year battle to be recognized as Anastasia Romanov. Is she the Russian Grand Duchess or the thief of another woman’s legacy? Countless others have rendered their verdict. …
Countless others have rendered their verdict. Now it is your turn.
Russia, July 17, 1918: Under direct orders from Vladimir Lenin, Bolshevik secret police force Anastasia Romanov, along with the entire imperial family, into a damp basement in Siberia where they face a merciless firing squad. None survive. At least that is what the executioners have always claimed.
Germany, February 17, 1920: A young woman bearing an uncanny resemblance to Anastasia Romanov is pulled shivering and senseless from a canal in Berlin. Refusing to explain her presence in the freezing water, she is taken to the hospital where an examination reveals that her body is riddled with countless, horrific scars. When she finally does speak, this frightened, mysterious woman claims to be the Russian Grand Duchess Anastasia.
Her detractors, convinced that the young woman is only after the immense Romanov fortune, insist on calling her by a different name: Anna Anderson.
As rumors begin to circulate through European society that the youngest Romanov daughter has survived the massacre, old enemies and new threats are awakened. With a brilliantly crafted dual narrative structure, Lawhon wades into the most psychologically complex and emotionally compelling territory yet: the nature of identity itself.
The question of who Anna Anderson is and what actually happened to Anastasia Romanov creates a saga that spans fifty years and touches three continents. This thrilling story is every bit as moving and momentous as it is harrowing and twisted.
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It was okay.
It was a little hard to follow as it went back and forth in time. I would have enjoyed it more if it had been linear. I still recommend and am glad I read it.
I love this book. The only downside for some readers may be the fast pace back-and-forth through time periods; as for me I enjoyed that as it kept me immersed in the past, the middle and the present all at once. I felt it added depth to the characters to understand them as they were and as they are all at the same time. But, don’t let that issue keep you from this book or you’ll miss a good read. It does help to have some familiarity with the Romanov history.