Anastasia's Secret by Susanne Dunlap

Summary

For Anastasia Romanov, life as the privileged daughter of Russia’s last tsar is about to be torn apart by the bloodshed of revolution. Ousted from the imperial palace when the Bolsheviks seize control of the government, Anastasia and her family are exiled to Siberia. But even while the rebels debate the family’s future with agonizing slowness and the threat to their lives grows more menacing, romance quietly blooms between Anastasia and Sasha, a sympathetic young guard she has known since childhood. But will the strength of their love be enough to save Anastasia from a violent death?

Inspired by the mysteries that have long surrounded the last days of the Romanov family, Susanne Dunlap’s new novel is a haunting vision of the life—and love story—of Russia’s last princess.

Number of pages: 327

Review

Here is a good dose of historical fiction for you. I find that writing about a historic event or time isn’t as hard as writing about a person in history, I mean, what have you got to work with? What has been known about the person? Rumors of what could have happened in their lives? And then to write about that person in first person, to write the feelings that they might have had or their thoughts on this or that subject. I would think it takes more than a bit of imaginations and common sense to fill in the blanks. And then to make it interesting! I’d say that’s no small job! So what’s that got to say about Susanne Dunlap’s book Anastasia’s Secret? She nailed the facts and history part. It was informative, but definitely not boring. it was funny because a week after I finished the book, I was in history class when we started to learn about World War I and how the Russians affected a great deal of the events. I had already learned basically everything from this book. It talked a great deal about the conditions of the poor, and how bad the army was going into the war by sending in really you boys to fight when most had never even worn a pair of shoes before—which is where Sasha comes in.

I really loved taking a look through Anastasia’s eyes. The book tells her story from a little girl with a curiosity that may not be all that favorable to a Grand Duchess, up until her time as a young woman in the fate of those who wish harm on her, and her loved ones. So maybe it’s not the traditional way most thought of the youngest grand duchess, but I think it is a new refreshing way to look at her life story. It gives Grand Duchess Anastasia, who I always thought of as a rich girl with an unfortunate life, personality and depth. From 1-10? Anastasia’s Secret gets a 6.5