Tsar: The Lost World of Nicholas and Alexandra

If you only have time to read one book regarding The Romanovs, Russian history, and the Russian revolution, this should be the one!

Lush in photography, rich in detail, stunningly organized and exquisitely written, this is a gem which chronicles the opulence of the Romanovis and vividly contrasts this to the brutal massacre that ended their lives and the rule of the Tsars of Russia.

The author and photographer show the before and after of the lush tranquility of summer and winter palaces and of yachts and compare this with the captivity of the royal family at Ekaterinburg and their murder in the basement of the "house of special purpose".

I've read a lot of Russian history, yet this book contained tidbits I didn't know. For example, the show more precursor and ominous signs which pointed to a doomed ending were rife from the beginning.

The shabbily erected accommodations for the populous during the coronation celebration left hundreds dead and trampled as peasants fought for souvenir mugs and beer and wine to fill them.

Knowing this event had occurred, still, the fantastic over-the-top coronation ball occurred, leaving a very bad perception from the start.

Warned of Alexandra's dangerous obsession with the mad monk Rasputin, Nicholas passively ignored the possible repercussion.

Involvement in WWI was disastrous as once again Nicholas' passivity and lack of leadership played a major role in the downfall of him and his family.

Hiding his son Alexi's hemophilia from those who could have had sympathy again proved an inability to judge the masses.

I highly recommend this coffee table style book. show less

This lovely coffee table sized book contains hundreds of archival photographs taken by Nicholas and his family, as well as modern day shots of many of the residences and other locations related to the tsar. The text focuses on the personalities of Nicholas and Alexandra, the out of touch nature of Nicholas’ rule, and the tragic imprisonment and execution of the royal family. Not particularly well-researched, the text should serve as an embellishment to the photos, not as an authoritative history. But the beautiful photographs make the book well worth picking up, even if only to browse for an afternoon.

A behemoth of a book entailing the life and death of the last Tsar of Russia and his family.

This book was fascinating and very educational. Despite the heavy subject matter, Kurth writes history in a very accessible way and for me it was a great chance to learn more about a period and family in history that I have always been interested in.

It is not a quick read but I found myself picking it up every night after dinner and devouring chapters at a time with ease. I especially appreciated the insight into the early years of Nicholas and Alexandra, how they met, and just how incredibly deep their love for each other and their family was.

For anybody fascinated with Russia, this is a great volume to just flick through let alone read from show more cover to cover as I did. You will still learn quite a bit just at a glance. A great read. show less

This book provides a wonderful visual glimpse into the last years of Imperial Russia. The photography evokes a sense of otherness as if the world is fiction rather than history. This is a good adult companion to Anastasia's Album. The photography is comprised of a lot of the personal daily photos of the Romanov's and allows for an intimate view into their world.

Very beautiful.