Customer Reviews

Most Beautiful Princess

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Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess. She had golden hair and blue eyes and she married a prince. He was a Russian Grand Duke, an uncle of Tsar Nicholas II. But the princess did not live happily ever after. Her coach not only turned into a pumpkin it turned into a nightmare. Christina Croft endows her biographical novel of Ella, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, with sensitivity and flair and with a poetic gift. This story of Ella's struggle is not a litany of woe. Ella's life was scarred by tragedies but she rose above tragedy because she herself never gave in to despair- never- even when she was thrown into a mine pit by the notorious Cheka. (Witnesses to this horrific event could hear her singing a hymn way down below in the shaft). Therefore the tone of this novel is not sordid, but warm, confiding, optimistic, up-beat because Ella would have willed it that way. "Most Beautiful Princess" is a paean to a human spirit that triumphed in the face of the most awful circumstances.

Before discussing this fine novel further, let me put you up to speed as to who Ella was, in case you are unfamiliar with her. She was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria as her mother was Victoria's second daughter, Alice. Alice married Grand Duke Louis IV of Hesse, a small German duchy. Elizabeth, always called Ella, was the couple's second daughter and older sister to the famous Alix, who became Empress Alexandra and wife of Nicholas II.

Ella was considered the most beautiful princess in Europe and she had many suitors including Kaiser Wilhelm II, whom she didn't fancy. She married the very controversial Russian Grand Duke Serge Alexandrovich, a son of Tsar Alexander II. Serge was rumored to be a homosexual and considered by many to be haughty, cold, and even a sadist. But Ella cherished him and when he was assassinated by a terrorist bomb she renounced her worldly goods and glories, became a nun and eventually abbess of the Order of Martha and Mary which she founded. For the rest of her life she devoted herself to charity work and nursing, and although the Bolsheviks killed her in 1918 along with the entire imperial family, they could not quench her spirit. She was canonized as a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1992.

The successful biographical novel depends upon the author's ability to get inside his characters' heads and recreate their speech, their manner, their idiosyncrasies, their very thoughts in a way that is totally convincing. You must feel that if a character did not actually make some observation, say something, or act in a certain way as imagined by the writer, he should have. Christina Croft had to get inside the heads of a great many historical people, people very well known to us and portray them in a refreshingly new light while making them behave in a manner that is totally authentic. Ella comes alive for us as does Queen Victoria, Nicholas and Alexandra, Ella's enigmatic husband Serge, Pavel (her adulterous brother-in-law), the soul-tortured writer Konstantin, Nicky's wily mother Minnie, Ernie (Ella's homosexual brother) and many more. Lots of gossipy facts and conversations the history aficionado will relish.

By marrying a Russian grand duke Ella became a member of the Russian royal family and she entered a very different world in which the tsar was autocrat, the aristocrats were smothered in jewels and privilege and the uneducated peasants toiled and died, unwept unhonored and unsung. Almost unsung. Ella cared about them but she couldn't go among them to help them because her husband, the emotionally sterile, snobbish Grand Duke Serge, wouldn't let her. That would come later.

Ella embraced Russian Orthodoxy after years of soul-searching and she became serene, she had an aura of saintliness. She almost appeared as a spiritual island among the seething jealousies, spites, and intrigues of the Russian court. When her husband was blown to bits by a bomb she did not lose that serenity, she simply rose above suffering. She became a nun and devoted her life to the poor. But she saw the deluge coming. She tried to talk sense into the head of her sister Alix in regard to the latter's unseemly relationship with Rasputin, but to no avail. The Romanov dynasty was doomed and it was destroyed. Ella was destroyed, too, but not before singing a hymn. Not before binding the head of a fellow sufferer in the bottom of that horrible mine shaft.

Breathtaking!

From the first page of this book, I felt I was transported to another time and place, witnessing not only the world-changing events in the final decades of Imperial Russia, but sharing, too, the individual joys, tragedies and dilemmas of these very real people. Although this is a novel, the attention to historical detail is meticulous. Every word spoken seems to come directly from the actual people who lived through these events and gives the reader the sense of being present among them. Kostia's desperate struggle with his conscience, Serge, tensely lighting another cigarette, Ella's excruciation at Queen Victoria, prying into the intimate details of her life - the mannerisms and the asides, all these things brought all these people alive again. I could feel the icy winds and hear the snow crunching, smell the explosives from the shattered carriage, was dazzled by the splendor of ballrooms and the contrast with the Moscow slums. The whole book took me on a truly breathtaking and uplifting journey into another world! A wonderful read!

I finished this book with sadness that it was over, but at the same time, a great sense of satisfaction as though I had met, in person, Tsar Nicholas II, Tsarina Alexandra, Grand Duchess Elizabeth, Queen Victoria and many others. In spite of the heart-breaking tragedy of the story, there is something so refreshing and inspiring in these pages that I came away, too, feeling so much better for having read this book. The author handled the intimate details of Ella's marriage with such delicacy, and the inspired and beautiful descriptions of Ella's spiritual journey show a depths of insight rarely found in fiction. I will never forget the vivid accounts of Serge's murder, nor the sheer poetry of the descriptions of Ella's awe as she stands at edge of the Sea of Galilee. Repeatedly I found myself asking: is this really a work of fiction? It was all so real that it seemed I had been taken on a journey of a lifetime and one I shall not easily forget!

SELDOM HAVE I READ A BOOK AND WAS SO FASCINATED BY THE WAY THE AUTHOR WROTE. IT FELT LIKE MS. CROFT HAD BEEN ALL ALONG ELLA'S SIDE, FROM A CAREFEE BEGINNING AS A CHILD TO THE TRAGIC END. I HAVE READ DOZENS OF BOOKS ON THE RUSSIAN ROYAL FAMILY BUT NEVER SUCH A DETAILED AND BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN ONE. THE WORDS JUST FLOWED FROM THE PAGES INTO MY MIND AND CLOSING MY EYES I FELT LIKE BEING PART OF THE "HAPPENINGS".

THIS BOOK IS A "MUST READ" FOR ANYONE INTERESTED IN THE RUSSIAN ROYAL FAMILY AND ESPECIALLY THE GRANDDUCHESS ELLA.

THANK YOU MS. CROFT FOR SUCH A ONE OF A KIND BOOK.

KLAUS VON HAGEN.

I have to say I was surprised at how good this book was. The author seems to have a good grasp of the various royal characters in Elizabeth's life, and if you have read any memoirs or history books on the Romanovs you will appreciate how spot on the author's characterisations are and how true to history she has stayed with the story.

Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna would have been a remarkable person in any age, but among the Romanovs she stood out for her compassion and willingness to face the ugly lives of the ordinary people under the Tsar and trying actively to do something about changing them for the better. Despite the love of the ordinary Muscovites this gave Elizabeth it did not save her from the revolutionaries. Among the Romanovs Elizabeth is the only genuine saint of modern times and to write a book about a saint is never an easy thing. Elizabeth wasn't flawless and made mistakes in her life and this book doesn't gloss over those so you get the feeling that you are reading about a real person and not a religious cardboard cut out.

If you love historical novels are interested in the Romanovs I recommend this novel as a good read and something you will more than likely enjoy.

For the record, the only reason why this book is not FIVE stars is because of the price, since there are grammatical errors ALL over this wonderful book! Almost all of the characters were "pensive" at one point or another. There were typos in every chapter. And missing words in sentences! The editors should be completely embarassed!

Follow the journey of Princess Elisabeth "Ella" of Hesse, Grand Duchess of Russia (Queen Victoria's granddaughter) on her adventure into the Romanov dynasty before its tragic downfall.

A very realistic account of people and events during the turn of the century, the story of Ella's life is both beautiful and sad. Her loveless marriage to the stotic Grand Duke Sergei was known as a cold union. Ella's warm welcome into Russia was good for the young Princess, as she was a very popular figure in the royal dynasty, and continued to be popular until her death. Ella struggles with her marriage and her religious choices, but remains a charitable and down-to-earth figure in her lavish Russian family. Her decision to become a nun and run a hospital in one of the most dangerous areas of Moscow only endears her to her people even more. Especially during a time of war and revolution. A sad ending to this great family only shows us how strong and charitable a person St. Elisabeth the New Martyr really was!

The author presents a wonderfully written story that is more non-fiction than fiction. Its an interesting read which incorporates historical facts with imperial politics and a dash of religious mysticism too.

Overall a great book that I would highly recommend to fans of historical fiction!

This is the kind of historial fiction I love to read! Ms. Croft expertly captures the personalities of the principal players in the drama of Grand Duchess Ella's life. Her story is told sympathetically but not in a biased manner; some of her less-outstanding qualities such as her relationship with her niece Marie Pavlovna, are brought to light as Ella's character evolves. The events and scenes "improvised" for the sake of telling the story ring true as Ella, her husband Grand Duke Serge and other members of the imperial family come alive for the reader.

All that being said, the book could have been edited better. But overall, this book will delight anyone who is interested in the history of the last ruling family of Imperial Russia.

Opening this book transports the reader back to the last days of the Romanov dynasty. Princess Ella was born a Hessian princess, the daughter of Queen Victoria's second daughter, Alice, and against everyone's objections, she accepts the proposal of Russian Grand Duke Serge (the brother of Czar Alexander III) whose father's assassination foreshadows his own. Their marriage is a study of human perseverence and endurance, displayed sensitively through Ms. Croft's insightful dialogue and carefully-crafted story-telling. Ms. Croft did a monumental amount of historical research to reconstruct each character and their particular motivations and the effort shows quite wonderfully. I can't praise the book enough for it's historical accuracy, entertaining quality, superb prose style and educational usefulness. Kudos to Ms. Croft!