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Rating: 
Summary: Still not the definitive work
Review: In this wonderfully nuanced book, Greg King explores one of the most complex and contraversial figures in Russian history. Alexandra Romanov was universally reviled by the Russian people and scorned by the Russian aristocracy. King does an excellent job of exposing the woman beneath the legend. One the one hand you see the exceptionally devoted wife and mother who desperately fights to preserve her family and their heritage. On the other hand, you see an unyielding and essentially stupid autocrat who is unable and unwilling to accept wise counsel or clearly see the dangers all around her. The story of Rasputin is the perfect example. She remains desperately devoted to the Russian holy man because of her belief that he can save her hemophiliac son despite the overwhelming evidence that he is a serious threat to the empire. Alexandra is a fascinating subject, and King's balanced analysis of her character and her impact on the history of Russia is excellent. King combines excellent research with complelling story-telling. This book leaves you with a sense of sympathy for such a misunderstood woman and a simultaneous frstration that she was so stubbornly misguided in her attempts to influence political events.
Rating: 
Summary: Compelling insight into a fascinating historical figure.
Review: In this wonderfully nuanced book, Greg King explores one of the most complex and contraversial figures in Russian history. Alexandra Romanov was universally reviled by the Russian people and scorned by the Russian aristocracy. King does an excellent job of exposing the woman beneath the legend. One the one hand you see the exceptionally devoted wife and mother who desperately fights to preserve her family and their heritage. On the other hand, you see an unyielding and essentially stupid autocrat who is unable and unwilling to accept wise counsel or clearly see the dangers all around her. The story of Rasputin is the perfect example. She remains desperately devoted to the Russian holy man because of her belief that he can save her hemophiliac son despite the overwhelming evidence that he is a serious threat to the empire. Alexandra is a fascinating subject, and King's balanced analysis of her character and her impact on the history of Russia is excellent. King combines excellent research with complelling story-telling. This book leaves you with a sense of sympathy for such a misunderstood woman and a simultaneous frstration that she was so stubbornly misguided in her attempts to influence political events.
Rating:
Summary: Exceptional Research!
Review: My personal interest in the Romanov monarchy is relatively recent. Mr. King's book was the first of many that I have read regarding the subject of the Romanovs, particularly Empress Alexandra. I believe that the forenote by Nicholas Romanov says it best; That she must be viewed as two different women, the first as Empress, the second as wife and mother. I enjoyed this book so much that I have since read it 3 times, and on each occasion acquiring something more about her tragic past and upbringing. The direct influence of the British monarchy in the prior 2 generations had so much bearing on the developement of Alexandra's personality. Although her thought processes become somewhat twisted in adulthood, and her behavior having been so influenced by Rasputin, she was a desperate mother praying for a desperate answer. Even though there was so little information at that time regarding hemophilia, her self blame and lack of understanding led to her fanaticism with her faith. Nicholas simply was not the assertive man that she desperately needed and yet she pushed him so hard and isolated him from the people of Russia, that he knew no other way to lead, hence a tragic outcome. This text has a permanent place on my bookshelves. Excellent!
Rating:
Summary: Still not the definitive work
Review: This book is a good retelling of the facts, with some new theories added (King's ideas about the influence of the Empress's childhood, for one) and some academic theses give the popular treatment for the first time. On the latter score, this biography, for example, is the first Romanov book which does not repeat the old stereotype that Rasputin was exploiting the trust of the Imperial family for political ends, but rather adopts the more credible line that he simply agreed with their own views. The political context is presented a little superficially, with no attention being given to the Empress's real reasons for selecting particular ministers, and the assumption made (all too easy with hindsight) that she was pursuing an illogical and doomed course. Dominic Lieven's "Nicholas II" is a good alternative picture, locating her strategies firmly in the populist tradition of the later nineteenth century. In some ways the book does not fulfill the promise of its introduction, which hints at a totally new picture. However, it is a good read and a good introduction for newcomers, and the character it presents, if less attractive, is a more lively and interesting one than that in the celebrated 'Nicholas and Alexandra'. It redresses the balance of the latter by actually discussing the Empress's work beyond the political sphere, in particular her interest in girls' education. For a fuller picture of her political role, see Joseph Fuhrmann's footnotes to her edited correspondence with her husband.
Rating:
Summary: Basically, the Best
Review: This book is better than Erickson's in many ways. I did wish
King could have told us more about Alix's childhood and family.
Read Mager's bio of Grand Duchess Elizabeth for a better narrative on this point. Some of King's phrasing is awkward (he
repeats the word "pair" too often when referring to 2 people.
Overall, this is a pretty good book, as long as you consult
other books to flesh it out.
Rating:
Summary: Basically, the Best
Review: This book is better than Erickson's in many ways. I did wish
King could have told us more about Alix's childhood and family.
Read Mager's bio of Grand Duchess Elizabeth for a better narrative on this point. Some of King's phrasing is awkward (he
repeats the word "pair" too often when referring to 2 people.
Overall, this is a pretty good book, as long as you consult
other books to flesh it out.
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