Princess Anya, born to the nobility, is viciously attacked on her uncle's estate, a crime that sets in motion whispered rumors that she has been made unmarriable. Refusing to be intimidated by slander and lies, she plots a brilliant counterattack. Confounding society, Anya marries an American diplomat, bringing new blood into the Sviridov family. She stuns the gossips and begins her ascendancy as the Sviridov princess who will rise to every challenge to protect her family against their nemesis, the revolutionary Oleg Ivanov, who once attacked and nearly killed her, and will act out his obsession until one or the other is dead. Against the backdrop of growing unrest in Moscow and St. Petersburg, World War One, and the Revolution, Anya must either prevail or perish. When Oleg kidnaps her son, the die is cast for the end game.
Reviews:
"A lushly detailed historical romance ... Robust!" ~Publishers Weekly
"A cocktail compounded of all those cordials after which readers thirst." ~Robert Elegant, author of Dynasty
"Captures the romance and suspense of a thrilling time in history." ~Sally Mandel, author of Change of Heart
Publishers Weekly Full Review:
The Russian Revolution is the crucible in which the mettle of a young wife, mother and princess, is formed in this lushly detailed historical romance. Princess Anya Sviridova, born to the ruling class, early on earns the lustful hatred of one Oleg Ivanov, a peasant child who grows up to be a Bolshevik. Anya’s reputation is besmirched in Petrograd social circles when it is rumored that she was raped during one of Oleg’s obsessive ambushes. The situation is brilliantly remedied by Anya’s hastily arranged marriage to an elegant widower, Adam Lowell, a Bostonian attached to the Russian legation; with the marriage, Adam is given the title of prince. As their privileged lives advance, we are treated to scenes of lavish balls and splendid appointments at the Sidirov palace, and glimpses of an extravagant lifestyle that only dimly perceives lower-class unrest and dissatisfaction with the Rasputin-dominated court of the Tsar. When revolution becomes reality, the Sidirovs are wracked by political and familial conflict, and the reappearance of murderous Oleg, as they begin the flight across the border to Finland. Interpolating authentic background material in a robust, well-paced narrative, Kane makes Anya a woman of developing independence who sustains the reader’s interest.
Reviews:
"A lushly detailed historical romance ... Robust!" ~Publishers Weekly
"A cocktail compounded of all those cordials after which readers thirst." ~Robert Elegant, author of Dynasty
"Captures the romance and suspense of a thrilling time in history." ~Sally Mandel, author of Change of Heart
Publishers Weekly Full Review:
The Russian Revolution is the crucible in which the mettle of a young wife, mother and princess, is formed in this lushly detailed historical romance. Princess Anya Sviridova, born to the ruling class, early on earns the lustful hatred of one Oleg Ivanov, a peasant child who grows up to be a Bolshevik. Anya’s reputation is besmirched in Petrograd social circles when it is rumored that she was raped during one of Oleg’s obsessive ambushes. The situation is brilliantly remedied by Anya’s hastily arranged marriage to an elegant widower, Adam Lowell, a Bostonian attached to the Russian legation; with the marriage, Adam is given the title of prince. As their privileged lives advance, we are treated to scenes of lavish balls and splendid appointments at the Sidirov palace, and glimpses of an extravagant lifestyle that only dimly perceives lower-class unrest and dissatisfaction with the Rasputin-dominated court of the Tsar. When revolution becomes reality, the Sidirovs are wracked by political and familial conflict, and the reappearance of murderous Oleg, as they begin the flight across the border to Finland. Interpolating authentic background material in a robust, well-paced narrative, Kane makes Anya a woman of developing independence who sustains the reader’s interest.
