OVERVIEW
This is the first book by Helen Rappaport that I have read and finished (DNF another of her books). This is a dense, footnote-heavy, and thoroughly researched non-fiction book. It was very scholarly and detailed which was not what I was expecting rather than a historical fiction novel.
I liked this book but would have loved it if I understood more about the main character, Julie. She sounds like an amazing historical individual but not much remains of her letters, journals, or anything else that would allow insight into her thoughts and feelings.
It might have been a better book if each chapter was devoted to a member of the Saxe-Coburg family starting with Julie's parents and ending with their children. There was a lot of backstabbing, social climbing, and secret alliances in this family.
If you are a huge British/Russian history nerd, this is the book for you!
TRIGGER WARNING: Death, forced marriage, violence, animal abuse, infidelity, alcohol abuse, war, intermarriage, pregnancy
OVERALL REVIEW: 3.5 stars
Writing: 3.0 stars
The writing in this book was research-like but also salacious as well. Julie is believed to have destroyed most of her received correspondence and requested that her letters be destroyed upon reading. There was no way to verify much about Julie, herself, as so much was drawn from others' letters, official records, and observations. The gossipy aspect of this book just bothered me.
Also, why I love to increase my vocabulary and knowledge, so many SAT words were included as well as unknown places and individuals. It hurt my reading experience to look up so many words, places, and individuals.
Character development: 3.5 stars
The main character is Julie of Saxe-Colburg. She was one of three sisters from her family who were summoned by Catherine the Great to evaluate her as a potential wife for her grandson.
The secondary characters are Konstantin (Julie's husband), Leopold (Julie's brother), and Auguste (Julie's mother).
The tertiary characters are the royal families of Europe and Julie's extended family and friends which are one and the same.
This historical book had a huge cast of characters. Many family members became royalty in another country and changed their names to the country they joined via marriage.
Unfortunately, there were too many characters to be able to fully develop them very well. This was a massive project to undertake and it just didn't succeed to me.
Storyline: 3.5 stars
The basic premise was that a Coburg princess married the grandson of Catherine the Great at FOURTEEN. The husband was an erratic and violent individual which resulted in an unhappy marriage. In the background, Napolean is marching through Europe and the other Coburg siblings are also marrying into the Russian royal family and/or marrying first cousins.
The main locations were in various cities in Europe; particularly, St. Petersburg, Russia, Bern, and Geneva, Switzerland. and Coburg, Germany.
Memorable/Informative: 5.0 stars
My knowledge of European royalty was that there was a lot of intermarrying between the royal families for power and money. Also, marriages were conducted along religious lines unless the prospective spouse converted. So this resulted in cousins marrying cousins, especially first cousins.
Since Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were first cousins, Julie was their aunt. Auguste (Julie's mother and Victoria/Albert's grandmother) plots the marriage of Victoria and Albert when they are infants knowing the close familial ties to consolidate the influence of Saxe-Coburg.
Finally, when the brides and grooms were presented to potential royal in-laws, it was like a cattle call. It was humiliating and arranged without regard to love matches. The women especially were helpless as it was a fait accompli if selected.
Book cover: 4.0 stars
Pretty!
Book title: 4.0 stars
The subtitle is very misleading as Julie was unlikely to ever be Empress of Russia.
Recommend
NetGalley ARC (eARC/eBOOK)
The Rebel Romanov by Helen Rappaport
328 pages
Simon & Schuster UK
FUTURE release date of 4/15/2025
INFORMATIONAL LINKS
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
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