Amid the violent last days of the glittering Russian monarchy, a princess on the run finds her heart where she least expects it.
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
This book is the epitome of a cozy Winter read. Its atmospheric and immersive in a way that only a good historical fiction novel can be. This book follows the story of a Scottish doctor enlisted in the war with a mysterious past and a Russian princess who’s on the run and hiding as a refugee with her family under a church. We follow these two aristocrats as they navigate through the war and get drawn into a very dangerous Russian society that’s hidden in the war torn streets of Paris.
The story starts off in the peak of Russian history where the Bolsheviks are taking over the country and murdering and looting aristocratic families in all forms and shape. In a train packed to the brim with aristocratic runaways, our main character Svetlana and her family leave their country with nothing more than what they can sew into the insides of their clothes. Svetlana is such a wonderful character to read from. She exudes the confidence and arrogance of an aristocrat but also bravery, a trait that’s become vital for helping her family’s survival. Her character carries this book and I love how resilient she is even as everyone in every society is doing their very best to kill her and her family.
The number one thing I hate about this book is the mother. She’s so unlikeable and left me fuming to the point where I had to stop reading to call my friend and trash take a non-existent person before I could continue on with the chapter. My hatred for the mom shows how great the author’s writing is when it comes to the characters. The author did such a good job in developing strong characters like the mother to showcase how different the aristocratic world is from an every day normal life and how the power and influence of aristocracy changes from generation to generation. The mother who grew up in the golden hour of Russian aristocracy is frustratingly powerless to a world without golden trays, ball gowns, or any form of attention. She’s literally unable to cope without the world and society she grew up and prospered in to the point where she’s endangering her and her family. It was eye opening to see how defenseless aristocrats can be and how their lives are so secular.
Wynn is also such a fun character to read from. While Svetlana is fighting to survive and pull herself safely back into the aristocratic world, Wynn is running from it. The differences in their upbringing set them on the opposite ends of the aristocratic spectrum. One was touted around in a world where they were thought to be higher than normal people while the other was brought up amongst their people. I loved reading about Wynn’s passion for surgery and how different medical science was back then. The historical nerd in me enjoyed following the cultural, historical, and medical revolutions in a war ridden time period. It really puts in perspective how far we’ve come as a society, especially in the world of healthcare.
This book was an atmospheric read full of Russian culture and history. I loved how the author took her time to build this rich, extravagant, Russian aristocratic society in Paris and transition us into Scottish aristocracy which was a lot different than the Russian one. I also appreciated the friend group in this book. Leon was such a fun character and I enjoyed all his scenes from his introduction to his exit in the book.
This book does include a romance but it’s not something you should go into this book looking for. Go in for a historical journey with interesting characters and rich, mesmerizing societies that are just as dangerous as they are extravagant. If I was to describe the romance in the book, I’d say it’s a slow burn without the burn. The romance isn’t the center point of the book but when it does come to fruition, it’s sweet and wholesome in a way any marriage of convenience romance relationship is. The respect Wynn has for Svetlana is endearing and heart warming. I think that the way the romance developed is perfect and authentic to the cultural nuances, historical time period, and the general situation of the plot. We can tell right away that Wynn is hooked onto Svetlana and his chapters with her were always so sweet. I love how he’s introduced in this book as such a fun and jovial character. Seeing his one sided romance become two sided was well worth the wait. I say that this is a slow burn romance without the burn because it’s not steamy at all. There also isn’t much tension between the two romantically till the end, and that too, objectively, it isn’t much. So while I’m saying that the way they came together romantically was very slow and sweet, the romance aspect of this book felt a bit more surface level than what you might expect going into it.
If you’re looking for a cozy historical fiction novel with a strong female lead, pick this one. You’re going to get an European cultural road trip that’ll take you through war time Paris, secret Russian societies, and to Scotland.