The book was archived before our group could download it. We are sure that we would have enjoyed the book judging from the reviews it has received.

I've always had a mild interest in the Romanov family and what happened to them during the revolution and this had me hooked from the first few pages. It's really interesting and defiantly worth a read.

I've read so many books and watched so many tv shows about the Romanovs, and the Bolsheviks I feel like I know quite a lot. This book, however, even being fictional, a counterfactual, challenged what I know. Even though I know this is fiction, I'm a bit more tweaked by conspiracy theories etc because of what we're currently living through. The true skill of this book is that it's so convincing it makes you think it's all real.

A very interesting book with a lot of twists and turns. Really gave a new perspective on certain historical events. I would definitely recommend this one to people interested in the time period.

Ever since I was a little girl I have loved the animated film Anastasia. I loved the story, the music and of course I felt that having long brown hair too I could easily pretend I was her. When I was older and found out that it was actually based on a real story I loved it even more. I know there have been many theories about what happened to the Romanov family but I always liked the idea of Anastasia living out her life in secret, away from the royal limelight.

Whilst I am not an expert of Russian history I was aware of the main facts before reading this book. From the start it was clear to me that it had been well researched and I loved the inclusion of photographs and emails/letters between the different characters. It did have me questioning if this was a true story? Like Nicholas I too had a soft spot for Bushravna. Lets be honest she was responsible for Dmitri escaping Ekaterinburg and living his life in America, she always had his best interests at heart and I dread to think what would of happened had he not had her there to guide him.

I love a good conspiracy theory and so listening to Dmitri tell his story was beautiful. There was so much detail and whilst I could tell where the story was heading I loved how it unfolded. A large part of me would love to believe his account and in some ways I do but unfortunately it is one of those things that we are never going to know for sure.

My main problem with the story was the research segment at the end. I enjoyed reading the correspondences between Hannah and Andrei but I didn’t feel like I needed all the information about DNA and different versions of what happened to the Romanov’s. For me I was happy enough to leave the story where Dmitri had finished it, perhaps it would of been nice to see more of his family know the truth?

This had some good moments in it but it was not for me. I did like the premise and how the story was told but it did not connect with me. I liked how it explored the Romanov family but it just fell flat for me.

Could it be true? I found this book really interesting and it threw up many questions. I have always been interested in the Romanovs so found this especially fascinating.

This book was unexpected.
I don't think it was a bad book at all but it was very very long winded. By my own mistake I was under the impression this was non-fiction but it is in fact historical fiction. That definitely took me too long to realise.
I didn't really care for Dimitri or his life.
Unfortunately nothing amazing about this.

This book was very different to anything I have read before. I opened it thinking it was fiction, but was so gripped by the story that the more I read the more I wanted it to be true. I don't know much about the historical side, other than the time line and that there have been rumours of Anastasia Romanov's body never having been found, I don't think I was aware of Alexei's body being missing too, but that didn't matter.
The details and photos made it all seem very real and very plausible and I guess really the only disappointment is that it was fiction. I would have loved it to have been fact.
Can thoroughly recommend it and suspect that the historical facts about Ekaterinburg and the Czech Legion etc were all well researched.

This is a super interesting take on what might have happened to the Romanovs in 1918. If you're interested in Russian history then this is definitely a book to read. Toeing the line between fact and fiction, the book is engrossing and offers a fresh take on a century-old conspiracy with depth of field, great writing and a super readable structure.

I enjoyed reading this historical fiction on Russian history about the Romanovs and it kept me engaged until the very end.

Historical Fiction that reads and feels like historical fact.
19 days in June 1987- Nicholas Malinovsky interviews a dying russian with a story to tell about the russian revolution, the execution of the tsar and his family and the truth of what happened to the youngest two.
Nicholas then spends his life in a state of flux between denial and investigation.

An interesting premise of a book, using photographs etc to create a new narrative and an interesting addition to the Historical Fiction genre. The cover could have been better it looks like an after thought.

I am a big fan of historical books and this one does not disappoint. Loved it from start to finish. There are so many versions of events that happened during the revolution but this one seems to have become my favourite!

A gripping true story of what allegedly happened to Alexie and Anastasia Romanov which takes you from Russia to Brighton Beach. An intriguing read and one that is highly addictive.

If you're a foolish person, like me, you might start reading this unaware that it's historical fiction rather than non-fiction. Ahem. What can I say, I was given a free copy and read the blurb (which reads as though the Malinovsky Papers are real) but not the book category. Yep totally my mistake!

The premise is that back in 1987 June 1987, Professor Nicholas Malinovsky interviews a dying Russian emigre and is so taken back about what he learns - about the fate of the Romanovs - that instead of running to publish the information as soon as possible, he buries the knowledge in a hefty manuscript leaving his family with instructions to give it to someone trusty (the book's 'author') to deal with.

We read the hours of interview material from Professor Malinovsky and learn along with Harriet Jones the 'astounding' facts about the Russian Revolution and what was to follow. Afterwards she analyses whether or not it could be true. But the thing is, she has 'evidence' - this manuscript. In the real world, said manuscript is fiction, and so I didn't find it as interesting as lovely fictional Harriet does to look at whether the alternative/possible history presented here could be true or not.

Worth a read if you are particularly interested in the fate of the Romanovs and have read everything else on the subject. Personally, I'd rather start with the material that isn't fiction.

Over nineteen days in June 1978, Professor Nicholas Malinovsky interviewed a dying Russian emigre, Dimitri Kurshunov. The stories he told were unbelievable, about the Russian revolution, the House of Special Purpose in Ekaterinburg, and what really happened to the two youngest members of the Romanov family. Going through his interviews and research many years later, Hannah Jones is left with one question: Can any of this be true?

I really liked the interview style of storytelling in this book. With the addition of Malinovsky's notes at the end of each chapter, the story felt truly authentic. The most engaging aspect of this book was definitely Kurshunov’s story about living in Ekaterinburg and knowing the Romanovs. However, I didn’t care much for the parts about Malinovsky and his own life. The deterioration of his relationship with his own family was not particularly enjoyable to read about. Without those parts, the book could have been a lot shorter and told much quicker.

On that note, this book was seriously long, man. The pacing was incredibly slow and, although the detail of the time was truly fascinating, I could have done with things being more to-the-point.

I thoroughly enjoy this book. I've always been fascinated with the Romanov family so this book was a delight to read. You won't be able to stop reading once you start!

When Professor Malinovsky is contacted by a Russian emigre, Dmitri Korshunov to hear his story as he is dying of cancer, he discovers one of the greatest mysteries of 20th century Russia. He learns of the House of Correction at Ekaterinburg and about the Romanovs and an amazing tale evolves over a summer break in Mainhattan Beach.. All this knowledge lead to a breakdown of his health and his marriage and he lost touch with his son. Later his son, Andrei inherits his father’s papers and tapes and asks a known authority, H. Jones who had respected his Professor father to read through and listen to them. Andrew acknowledges that he should have persisted in getting his father to a medical centre and that a lot of his strange behaviour could have also been caused by the cancer. What she learns is mind boggling as one of the greatest stories of how Anastasia escaped her captivity, how the her young brother, the Tsarevich died in the attempt and of the long involved journey she and her young hero made as husband and wife to the safety of America, with them they took his Father’s girlfriend’s baby as cover. This is a fantastic book and the detail of how facts were used by both the Bolsheviks and the White Russians to smear each other and how the simple kindness of one man allowed it to happen. Beautifully crafted details like the Nurse who helped his mother and the stranded Czech Legion who ended up going 4,000 miles by Trans-Siberian railway to Vladivostok and then go by ship to France to offer their services to the Allies fighting Germany, this journey eventually took six years to be accomplished. A wonderful read for someone who is acquainted with that period of time or someone who comes to it fresh.

This sounded incredibly interesting and I was beyond excited to give it a go. The Romanov assassination is something that has alway interested me. However, I just couldn't get into this. At all. I couldn't even get ten pages in. Maybe if it was in a traditional textbook format I would have found it more enjoyable.

The tragedy and mystery surrounding the last Tsar of Russia and his family has always been fascinating to me. So of course I was eager to read this book. And it is a wonderful historical fiction of what if.

What if a young man found himself in an extraordinary situation of being near the Romanovs in captivity? Dmitri Kurshunov is dying but before he goes, acting on the request of his beloved wife who passed before him, he decides to tell his story to Prof Malinovsky. What he tells the highly regarded historian/author sounds too good to be true...and yet so full of details that after checking, seem to be most likely true!

I truly enjoyed the story of Dmitri. So much that I was sad when he finally died and Malinovsky followed though many years later. What I didn't like is the part of Hannah and Andrei trying to see whether the story was worth publishing and their research into the lives of Dmitri and the events that followed, as well as the alleged Romanov bodies being found here and there. I get that Hannah and Andrei, now in possession of the papers, had to check...but it was soooo tedious to read. I don't care that there were so many conflicting reports on how the Romanovs were killed, buried, found and analyzed, about Anna Andersen and the other alleged Romanovs who would pop out every now and then. The best part of this story was the story of Dmitri, his life as a teenager in Russia at the start of Lenin's rule, and later, how he and his wife came to America and lived. It could've ended there and it would not take away from the romance of this novel and the fascination with the Romanovs. Instead, the last few chapters felt to me, to academic, wholly unnecessary to the book.

I should've stopped when Prof Malinovsky died and before Anna and Andrei started their research. Hmm wait, maybe we didn't need to see Hannah's research.

I received a copy of the book for my honest opinon.