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I owe Massie a huge debt as reading Nicholas and Alexandra was what caused me to fall in love with history. Here he has repeated the excellent and well-researched process for another of Russia's rulers, this time Catherine the Great (who wished to be called Catherine the Second while she was alive).
I was struck by how unfortunate it was that the French Revolution happened in her reign, which caused her to reverse her course of enlightened ruling out of fear that the revolution would endanger her ...more
I was struck by how unfortunate it was that the French Revolution happened in her reign, which caused her to reverse her course of enlightened ruling out of fear that the revolution would endanger her ...more
Totally fascinating and engaging. I recommend the audio version, which I enjoyed thoroughly. The story moves along at a good pace and it is possible to listen easily at double speed in the car or while doing household chores and get everything very clearly. I did find the narrator a bit slow paced for my taste at regular speed. I cannot even fathom what this woman went through in her life. It was inspiring to see how she navigated some real challenges and come out ahead ruling such an enormous c
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A thoroughly enjoyable, and very well-researched, biography of Catherine the Great. I was inspired to read it after reading The Winter Palace: A Novel of Catherine the Great and wondering if Catherine (and Elizabeth) really had that much sexual freedom, that much power. And it seems the answer is yes, they really did. The mind boggles. When Catherine couldn't conceive with her lawful husband (perhaps because they hadn't had sex) she was encouraged to seek a sperm donor elsewhere. Everyone seems
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A real life 'Game of Thrones' and a neat link to my new German town Darmstadt. Now I know why there is a Russian Orthodox church on the hill - for the Hesse-Darmstadt princesses sent to Russia to marry into the Romanov family!
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Great (long) read, well researched and told. Would that this be made into a tv show to binge on!
Nov 07, 2011
Heather
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