The Romanov Empress

Gortner, who has chronicled the lives of the Tudor, Medici, and Borgia noble families and most recently Hollywood royalty, in the form of Marlene Dietrich (Marlene), dives into the dramatic final years of the Romanov dynasty. Maria Feodorovna, wife to Tsar Alexander III and mother to Tsar Nicholas II, has a singular viewpoint on the drastic changes in Europe at the turn of the 20th century. Born to a royal though impoverished family in Denmark, she embraces a new religion, a new language, and a new land in order to wed the heir to the Russian throne. He dies shortly before their wedding and she marries his brother instead. Decades of decadence and family strife are followed by immense political upheaval. Assassinations, affairs, exile, and illness take their toll on the royal family's ability to govern a changing Russia. Through the voice of Maria, Gortner succeeds in adding a new perspective to the well-known story of Nicholas, Alexandra, and Rasputin. As a sister, wife, mother, and empress, she is a fierce and dynamic narrator.