Customer Reviews

Tsars and Imposters: Russia s Time of Troubles

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There is no pleasure in writing a review of a book that was a disappointment, but had someone else fairly reviewed this book earlier it would have saved me from purchasing an expensive mistake.

Russia's "Time of Troubles" extends from the death of Tsar Feodor (1598) to the coronation of the first Romanov as Tsar (1613), as fascinating a period of time as can be imagined. To the extent that this book presents this period in a condense narrative it has some value. The book, however, suffers from several material weaknesses, such as:

1) Sloppy editing (from multiple spelling errors to the complete repetition of a paragraph at one point - pg. 8);
2) Sweeping statements about crowds ("Russians seethed with odium and whispered to one another, 'Vengeance is near.'" - pg. 139);
3) Melodramatic language ("The avarice megalomaniac saw only one item standing between him and the throne, a defenseless child" - pg. 41);
4) Lack of substantive footnotes or an index; etc.

The bibliography consists of six Russian sources, and the claim is made that, "This history is the author's translation and adaptation into English" of those texts (apparently a pastiche, of sorts). Without footnotes it is impossible to know which of the sources serve as a basis for any episodes in the book (and from what little I know, two of the source authors - Karamzin and Skrynnikov - had very different approaches to "history" and different views of events).

In short, this is not a book crafted to rigorous scholarly standards and the entire tone undermines its credibility as an attempt at "proper" historical writing. It is an undiscerning, albeit interesting, exercise in storytelling.

The subject period is fascinating enough that the book can sustain some interest (just how many times can a False Dimitri surface? And given the short life expectancy, why would he want to?), but it is more a "beach-read" in paperback than a pricey hardcover purchase.

Addendum: The example of "melodramatic language" cited above appears to come almost directly from Karamzin, who writes in vol. X, "Convinced that the scepter would be handed him who had so long and gloriously ruled as if tsar, this greedy and ambitious man saw only one helpless infant between him and the throne. Just as a lion sees a lamb ..." Closely paraphrasing the rhetoric of Karamzin, who had his own narrative style and purpose, does not indicate independent inquiry or thought.