In Tsarina, Ellen Alpsten imagines the life of a peasant widowed soon after her marriage, claimed as a war prize and handed up the ranks until she catches the eye of Peter the Great, Tsar of Russia.
Marta may be illiterate, but she uses her wiles, wit, and physical attractiveness to become Peter's favorite bed partner. She becomes necessary to his happiness as a man and as a ruler. Renamed Catherine, Peter marries her and then crowns her his equal-- Tsarina.
The novel follows Marta/Catherine's life, taking readers into the peasant villages and the brutal life of serfs, into war, the building of St. Petersburg, and the decadent royal courts with all its intrigue and shifting alliances.
Since the novel is written from the viewpoint of Catherine, we can't expect to understand much about Peter's inner life. Which is too bad, since he was a complicated man who pushed Russia to Westernize and modernize but still employed brutality and ruled with a heavy hand. His excesses resulted in terrible health problems. His volatile temper and complete power resulted in the torture and murder of his enemies. It appears that Catherine was able to calm his temper, and minister to him when he suffered seizures.
I did expect to understand more about Catherine's inner thoughts. Did she truly love Peter, or, as a powerless female, was she merely using her wit to survive? Late in their story, she fears Peter and has doubts.
That Peter loved Catherine appears to be true if we believe the love letters he sent her.
Catherine's twelve pregnancies resulted in only two surviving children, but not the sons Peter so desperately desired to keep his dynasty intact. Upon Peter's death, Catherine had to quickly react to maintain control of the government.
The violence of the age comes through, the court entertainment revolving around mistreatment of jesters and anyone the royals decided to force into humiliating situations, including physical abuse, the torturing of political or romantic rivals, real or perceived, to downright murder.
Readers will gain insight into the development of Russia. Peter envisioned a modern Russia, emulating France and European civilization. It required the heavy taxation of serfs, forced labor to build St. Petersburg which would protect Russia's western border and access to the North Sea for trading. Meanwhile, he fought endless wars with Sweden, Persia, and the Ottoman Empire.
Alpsten's debut novel has its drawbacks, and yet still was compelling; Catherine's story is at once that of a fairy-tale princess and of a powerless pawn struggling to survive. My Goodreads friends highly rated Tsarina, swept away.
I did not appreciate the frequent, descriptive sex scenes of rape or lovemaking, which to me were not well written and took up too much space. I really don't need to know about parting thighs, etc., when knowing feelings and thoughts in response could add depth to a character. The writing is at times awkward. But I have to admit, I did not walk away from the story.
I received a free book through the Book Club Cook Book. My review is fair and unbiased
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| Catherine I By Jean-Marc Nattier - http://www.barmin-ekb.ru/?page=katalog&id=100065, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2074479 |
TSARINA: A Novel
Ellen Alpsten
St. Martin's Press
On Sale: 11/10/2020
ISBN: 9781250214430
hardcover $27.99
from the publisher
St. Petersburg, 1725. Peter the Great lies dying in his magnificent Winter Palace. The weakness and treachery of his only son has driven his father to an appalling act of cruelty and left the empire without an heir. Russia risks falling into chaos. Into the void steps the woman who has been by his side for decades: his second wife, Catherine Alexeyevna, as ambitious, ruthless and passionate as Peter himself.
Born into devastating poverty, Catherine used her extraordinary beauty and shrewd intelligence to ingratiate herself with Peter’s powerful generals, finally seducing the Tsar himself. But even amongst the splendor and opulence of her new life—the lavish feasts, glittering jewels, and candle-lit hours in Peter’s bedchamber—she knows the peril of her position. Peter’s attentions are fickle and his rages powerful; his first wife is condemned to a prison cell, her lover impaled alive in Red Square. And now Catherine faces the ultimate test: can she keep the Tsar’s death a secret as she plays a lethal game to destroy her enemies and take the Crown for herself?
From the sensuous pleasures of a decadent aristocracy, to the incense-filled rites of the Orthodox Church and the terror of Peter’s torture chambers, the intoxicating and dangerous world of Imperial Russia is brought to vivid life. Tsarina is the story of one remarkable woman whose bid for power would transform the Russian Empire.
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