What readers think of The Romanov Sisters, plus links to write your own review.

Having read many books about the Russian Royal Family in past years, I looked forward to filling in the gaps left by those books--and wasn't disappointed. The content is amazing, yet I felt somewhat mired in information toward the middle. The book shatters some of my earlier ideas as it shows how socially isolated the Romanovs were, in part to protect Alexey's hemophilia and because Alexandra was chronically ill. Nicholas was a good family man, but not cut out to be the Tsar, the leader of Russia. The reader watches as the children mature, influenced heavily by the war at one point, yet remaining cosseted by life within the palace. Rasputin was exposed not just as a charlatan, but as a source of support for the very religious Alexandra, throughout Alexey's illness. This well researched book should be read by devotees of Russian history and those visiting St. Petersburg, especially the Winter Palace..

This was a very interesting story of what the jacket calls "the Princess Diana's of their day". Four years ago I visited the palace in Lavadia in the Crimean area of Ukraine. As I walked through the rooms and saw so many things belonging to the children of Nicholas and Alexandra, I was saddened to think how their lives were cut short. Having read their story by Helen Rappaport, I now know why I felt so sad. This is not a history book telling of all the mistakes made by Tsars, generals, and politicians, but a moving record of real people caught up in awful political upheaval. This is a history book with a cultural bias - my favourite kind. I will need to buy a copy because the photos were not included in the advance copy!

I really enjoy reading biographies and social histories above all in non-fiction. That said, I can't say I disliked reading this book but I was left as unsatisfied as if I had been served a slice of sugar free pie while expecting a slice of the real deal. Tasty but not fulfilling.

History and Russian buffs will love this history of the last Tsar and his family. Although the title seems to indicate the book will revolve around the four Romanov daughters more than half of the book is spent with their mother Alexandra and her ills, their brother Alexie who suffers from Hemophilia and the influence of Rasputin. Perhaps because the girls were so sheltered from the public little actual “news” is available to write about them, their lives, their schooling and private lives. The book reads quickly and is interesting, especially as it relates the family to their English and German relatives.

If you are hoping to read the bloody details of the family’s end, you will need to find another book as this one ends with their banishment from public and royal life. You will, however, discover a family that cherishes normality and each other.