Rasputin’s Daughter by Robert Alexander

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 The Mad Monk’s Daughter.


What an interesting insight into the Russian “Mad Monk” who was rumored to be almost impossible to kill: poisoned, stabbed, shot numerous times, then drowned.  This book is about Rasputin’s last days before his murder in December 1916. We learn about the charismatic man through his daughter Maria’s eyes—the man who was hated by so many, yet an indispensable healer and advisor to Empress Alexandra, before the Romanovs' own fall, their execution, which is detailed in another novel by Robert Alexander, The Kitchen Boy.  


Both books are excellent and unlike other novels set in Russia like Anna Karenina and War and Peace, these are slim volumes that you can breeze through with ease. 



EXTRA:  Check out these AWESOME colorized photos of the opulent Russian society of the Romanovs' 1903 last costume ball.  Jaw-dropping wealth while the masses outside the palaces were starving. No wonder there was a revolution! 

 

https://www.thevintagenews.com/2019/07/16/romanov-costume-ball-1903/


Note: Russian dates differ according to whether they’re listed using the old style Julian calendar which was in use in until 1918 or the Gregorian calendar. This explains why the Russian Revolution can be listed either as February or March, 1917; the second revolution in October or November, 1917; and why Rasputin’s death can either be listed as December 16, 1916 or December 30, 1916.

 

Happy reading,

 

Annette




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