Search - The Kitchen Boy: A Novel of the Last Tsar

This was a very suspenseful and sympathetic tale that focused on the last months of the Romanovs' lives. The kitchen boy reflects on his role in the assassination of the Romanovs, on how he failed them, and what really happened to the two youngest Romanov children. While largely a tale of fiction, the author has made the book as accurate as possible, including actual notes and events from the House of Special Purpose. The book is further enhanced by visiting the author's website, where he has many photos and a reader's guide to the book.

A really spellbinding read. You won't be disappointed. It also gives you insight as to what might have happened to Ana and how the family must have felt, and those guarding them. If you've ever had any interest in the Tsars, I suggest you read this.

This book really surprised me. At first, I couldn't get into it. I kept forcing myself to open it and read more. But then, the twist that the story took towards the end was completelly unexpected. One thing that irritated me was the use of Russian words (and I say that as a person who speaks and reads Russian). I thought that there were way too many of them. Much more than the story called for.

This was a good read although a bit slow at times. The author does a good job of making a historical event suspenseful. Even though you know what happened in history, he is still able to give the story a surprising twist at the end.

Pretty much everyone knows the story of the Romanov dynasty and how it ended tragically, or has at least some idea of the mystery surrounding Anastasia for most of the last century.

Having not read anything from this period before it was quite interesting and I’m glad I took the chance on it. This book was well researched and took some great risks as it explored a survival theory.

While the pacing of the novel was a little slow at times, the ending was amazing and it will BLOW YOUR MIND!! I thought I knew how things were going to end, but I was so far off it was ridiculous.

I learned a lot of things about this era and am going to have to do more research to find out if things in the novel were really true. I find it hard to believe that a family who were basically being held prisoner by rebels would have been so accommodating and good natured. I may have a new favorite genre.

There are some very gruesome scenes near the end of the book, which should be expected considering the circumstances. However, if are disinclined to very descriptive, graphic scenes, you would probably want to skip those scenes. I was a little shocked by the descriptions, and I was expecting the outcome. However, I would read more about the Romanov’s as well as more from this author.

Interesting book, meant for a younger audience, I think, although it was well written.