THE ROMANOVS: Simon Sebag Montefiore
THE ROMANOVS
by Simon Sebag Montefiore
Simon Sebag Montefiore is best when he is working with big characters and themes. With the Romanovs he has a massive canvas to work with – a crazy, militaristic and lavish canvas. There is an intelligent pulpy quality to this book. Churchill's quote is apt "Russia is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma". This is why I keep coming back to books about Russia; the country, its history, its literature, are endlessly fascinating and completely mad.
- Reviewed by Lindsay