This was a good look at the lives of six ladies of the Russian Imperial court written by someone who knew them personally. Meriel Buchanan was the daughter of the British Ambassador to Russia. She was included in many of the Imperial festivities and saw a great many things. She was in a unique position to observe these ladies.

I enjoyed the vignettes of each profiled woman. This book was a reprint. I wish the editor had updated it a bit, correcting some of the author's original mistakes. However, this is delightful reading. ( )