Travail and Triumph

The Russians #3

by Michael R. Phillips, Judith Pella

From Siberia to St. Petersburg, tsarist Russia continues to crumble. The noble house of Fedorcenko, however, has much to rejoice in: the marriage of Princess Katrina, the anticipation of a new baby, and the return of Prince Sergei. But even as they celebrate, rebel forces are at work to overthrow the tsar--and the house of Fedorcenko as well.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Christian Fiction, Fiction, Christian, Romance, Historical, Russia

348 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1992

About the author

Librarian Note: there is more than one author with this name in the Goodreads database.

Michael Phillips has been writing in the Christian marketplace for 30 years. All told, he has written, co-written, and edited some 110 books. Phillips and his wife live in the U.S., and make their second home in Scotland.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Well, the authors no doubt left all of the hardship for the third installment of the series. Sergei is exiled after offending the Tsar and his father, Katrina finds herself in an unhappy marriage, Paul becomes the hardcore rebel, and Anna tries to help everyone while also dealing with a love triangle. There are four more books in the series, but from what I can see from the reviews of book 4, that it will happen 18 years after the events in this book and concentrate on the Russian Revolution and WWI. However, I think my interest has run its course and for now I bid adieu to the families-Fedorcenko and Burenins.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

If The Crown and the Crucible made me believe (no pun intended) in Christian Fiction again then Travail and Triumph made me believe that sequels and sequels to those sequels can be better than their predecessors.

Seriously, when was the last time you read a trilogy or a series where the sequels lived up to everything the first novel had been all about? For most sequels, it becomes obvious that the only reason any of them were written was because it was a cash grab by the authors.

For this novel, it's the exact opposite. I read the first book thinking it was good, great even. I read the next and it was even better. And then I got to this one. OMIGOSH I DIDN'T KNOW BOOKS COULD BE THIS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The two authors must have spent a lot of time planning everything out because all the plot points entwine to a climax that is absolutely perfect for every single one. Every chapter has some epic thing happening, has some character doing something we've been waiting the whole series to see, has some resolution. We have Sergei and his father finally having it out, Katrina finding out that she is pregnant, and Paul has become a hardened radical and those are only in the first few chapters.

If I had to pick a favourite plotline, though, it would have to be Sergei's. He's just so hardcore. And hot. And awsome. Why? Because he shot his commanding officer to stop the man from committing atrocities, languished in Siberia for the crime, and then escaped in an elaborate plot to hook up with the girl he loved while all the while being freaked out about killing other people and really just wanting to write poetry which is what got him into this mess in the first place.

It's not like the rest of the characters aren't awesome too. It's just that Sergei's taking the brunt of Russian suffering over here. I just got to give credit where credit's due.

The writing continues to be top notch as well with the intertwining of a passage from the book of Ecclesiastes and a character on his forlorn journey to Siberia coming to mind. I'll never figure out how they managed to match the two so perfectly but there you go.

Okay, to be fair though, there are a few things which fall a bit flat as well. Again, like in the first two books, some of the plotlines are a bit forced while a few of the characters have become noticeably stereotypical. Seriously, how hard is that Basil guy to kill? And how did he ever manage to escape from that insane asylum? And why does Vlasenko have no redeeming qualities at all and is just completely bent on revenge?

Also, some anvil dropping on the Christian message, which I find very disappointing. You guys had been doing so well up till now, what happened?! Also made worse by the fact that it is completely shoehorned in with absolutely no build up. But at least this only happens for a few brief pages near the end so it's not a constant thing.

Even so, this is a great book and is a very satisfying conclusion to The Russians series. That's right, you heard me correctly. Although there are more books in the series after this, I consider in my mind The Russians to be a trilogy. Don't read the four books after this, they only ruin everything that made The Russians so great.

An awesome book to end an awesome trilogy. A very rare thing indeed.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a well written story of challenges of life and how our responses and our choices in response can totally alter the rest of our lives. Wonderful insights into the challenges of Russian society as well as the characters followed through this story.

[s · Rating 0.25 out of 5]

all travail, no triumph. this was the worst one thus far, and it's not even close.

spoilers abound

travail and triumph suffers the same fate as all bad books at the end of a bad series--it closes off its own potential and makes the rare good moments feel retroactively stupid. at least after book 2, which was marginally interesting at times, we could hope that something good would happen in the next book. here, there is no such hope. it was bad all along

the failures of this book are especially painful because there ARE good interesting moments! the way other characters learn about or demonstrate their previously held knowledge of sergei and anna's relationship are genuinely good drama. sergei shooting his commanding officer and getting exiled to siberia? based. pavel also being sent to siberia is stupid (it didn't have to be, but the way it plays out is), but the brief moment where he sees sergei, recognizes him as someone anna knew, and (STARVING) gives him a bit of bread is a GREAT moment. man it's crazy how the most christian character is atheist revolutionary pavel. katrina getting everything she wants by marrying dmitri but then it turns out he sucks? also a good idea in theory. anna fighting off basil with dmitri's abandoned sword to protect katrina? INSANE YURI BEHAVIOR

the problem is how every single plotline and character arc get resolved (or unresolved).

anna: basically not there for 90% of the novel; never had an arc or a growth moment or a second to be interesting

sergei: briefly interesting when he shoots his commander to stop war crimes, then becomes insane in siberia and manages to escape in a very stupid, uninteresting, and essentially unWRITTEN way

katrina: gets pregnant, gets abused, has a baby, dies. horrible ending and horrible writing for the only good female character in the entire series

dmitri: remember how in book 1 he was a rakish gambler and book 2 a legitimate love interest (which was also stupid but whatever)? well now he's just drunk and abusive. can't be with katrina when she gives birth, nor when she DIES, and also can't even kill the guy who caused them so many problems. instead he gets arrested because basil kills a different random woman in front of him. finally makes it back to find his daughter and is like well i wouldn't be a good dad (true) so anna can you just take care of her for me. insane

pavel: sent to kolyma and never heard from again.

basil: went insane. still alive at the end of the book somehow and apparently causes problems in the sequel series

misha: CUCKED. gets engaged to anna, then gets dumped the day before the wedding, after everyone has arrived, and then is still cool with her and sergei, and is actually the only person at THEIR wedding.

yevno: still not dead for some stupid reason

sergei and katrina's dad also goes crazy and causes the death of his wife. nothing good happens to women here! no one has any agency! nothing interesting ever happens on the page--anna breaking things off with misha? skipped over. sergei's escape from siberia? told in the final 10 pages of the book, by him to anna, in an excruciating and unreal story which revolves around sergei's newfound love for god and admiration of a TOTALLY NEW CHARACTER WE NEVER EVEN MEET

i have to stop or i'll go on all day. possibly the worst book i've ever read. can't believe we will next be reading the sequel that takes place like 20 years later and involves pavel befriending lenin

[faith · Rating 1 out of 5]

Omg this was the worst one! Not that the others were by any means "good," but at least the second book set up some interesting tidbits (mostly about Pavel). This book not only tragically fails to deliver on ANY of those interesting moments, but gives us the most egregious examples yet of telling instead of showing. It was bad enough in the first two books to constantly hear about how much Anna and Katrina had "changed" despite never really seeing this in any of their actions. This book is somehow worse--perhaps especially so because Anna isn't even an important character for 90% of the book. How is this a romance book where the two leads are barely even characters in their own love story? And where does this book take our beloved characters, you ask?
1. Anna: not a POV character for 90% of the book. Passively reacting to her environment as usual and incapable of making decisions. A woman of God just accepts whatever he provides I suppose. Has one cool moment fighting with a sword but it doesn't even matter in the end. Decides to call off her wedding the night before, but the narrative skips over the actual act of doing so, and everyone understands perfectly, so it doesn't matter anyway.
2. Katrina: Our best female character (the only one who seems to have any agency or independence) immediately gets pregnant and has to deal with her horrible husband for the whole book. Until she dies giving birth at age 20.
3. Sergei: Cool that he defies his commander, but then is immediately sent to the gulag where he goes crazy. He just escapes somehow, but of course the reader does not get to see that…we just hear it recounted in the last 15 pages of the book in a monologue where he can’t stop talking about a beautiful Scottish man who brought him to Jesus and completely changed his life (naturally, we never get to meet this character).
4. Pavel: WHY did the authors not send Pavel and Sergei to the same gulag and have them escape together?? It’s almost as if they set this up with the section titled “brothers in exile” but then completely dropped the ball. So disappointing! Pavel is still the best character (and they’ve made him the most kind and moral despite being the only non-Christian), and even though we are left in a very muddled place as to his outlook in Siberia, I at least will keep reading so I can see how he ends up friends with Lenin.
I’m starting to see why the Zion Covenant won so many awards for Christian fiction if this is the kind of thing they were up against—just complete inability to structure a story, have any character development at all, or create action or tension that isn’t just talked about after the fact.

[Cassidy Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book! As the third in The Russians series, it continues the story of Anna and Katrina.

Though I do connect with certain characters in books, I felt a deep connection to the story of these girls. Their many difficult decisions and their determination to do what is right in the face of government corruption. They are so inspiring!

The only difficult part of this series that I have found so far is that the authors go into almost too much historical detail and follow the stories of many characters. At times it made the book hard to keep reading through.

However, this book in particular touched my heart so deeply that I found myself staying up late into the night and finishing it. Weeping over the heartbreak and finding solace in the characters' unwavering faith in God. All in all, this is a worthy read! Though I do recommend reading the series in order, so be sure to start with book one :)

[Talia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Within a few pages of beginning this book, things went from bad to worse. That's probably why the authors left off with such a great ending in the last one, to make up for all the trauma they were about to inflict on the characters haha.

In this book, there was way more of Basil's psychopathic POV. I didn't really like reading these parts because I don't care for being inside the mind of a lunatic. And it made me dread even more what he would do to Katrina if given the opportunity.

You know how some authors set up an idea or two to plant into our minds of the harm that could be done to characters but they usually don't follow through? Not so with this series. Much of what can go wrong does go wrong, even if you think it won't...

So many people have died so far in this series but there is one death in this series that made me cry. It was one I did not think would happen! Those scenes were tearjerkers.

Anna continues to grow and steps up to the plate even in the hard times when she must make difficult decisions and sacrifices. It's been interesting watching her grow through everything that's happened so far.

There was one semi-detailed kiss. More gory deaths. A man tries to commit suicide.

I have to say, even though it was been one tragedy after the other since the beginning of the book, the end almost makes up for all of that. Almost.

I'm looking forward to the next in the series.

4 stars.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first two books in this series held few surprises. That changed in this one though. There are some unexpected twists. While I didn't like what happened to all the characters, I do like that it was realistic, though at times emotional. Some of the longer sections of introspection do slow the story down a bit and it would have been nice to have more active storytelling for some portions. However, the characters captured my attention and I truly cared about the events they were going through, which ultimately kept me reading even through the slow parts. Though there are 7 books in this series, this one wraps up quite a bit. Assuming I can continue to get this series through inner library loan, I will keep reading it. Given that the major storyline still left open was my least favorite through out the series, I could stop reading at this point and be content. I am curious to see how things workout with Dmitri and the elder Fedorocenko though.

[Whitney White · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the worst of the series, but I am not talking about quality. It made me grieve for the Russian people, because of all the things they could have had if their tsar had been a stronger man, or if he had lived one more day, the list goes on and on. Also, when Natalia died, I almost cried. I didn't realize I was so attached to her, but her character development in the last few chapters before her death really made me start to like her. And when Katrina died, I was just as sad, but I also felt that the authors had killed her off just so they would not have to reconcile her with her husband. These first three books were wonderful, and I hope that the next three live up to the legacy.

[Adelein · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mielestäni tämä sarjan kolmas osa oli huonompi kuin aikaisemmat. Suoraan sanottuna välillä oli tylsiä kohtia, eikä paljoa tuntunut tapahtuvan. Kunnolla alkoi tapahtua vasta loppupuolella, tapahtumat käytiin läpi jopa liiankin nopeasti. Katarinan kuolema yllätti minut, sillä olin ollut aivan varma, että tarina päättyisi kaikkien osalta onnellisesti. Sergein ja Annan päätyminen yhteen oli tietysti itsestäänselvyys ensimmäisestä kirjasta asti. Äh, Misha olisi ollut yllättävämpi ja kiinnostavampi valinta.

[AnnaLee Conti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beginning in 1880, the seven-book series gives amazing insight into the conditions that led up to the Russian Revolution of 1917. Not light and fluffy reading, but the story line and the historical line interweave into a suspenseful tale I am unable to put down. In-depth characterization of members of a fictional peasant family and an aristocrat family as well as historical figures. Am currently reading the seventh and last book in the series. I highly recommend reading the entire series from the beginning.

[Jeni Enjaian · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this book many years ago as either a middle schooler or underclassman in high school. I adored the book and entire series then. This remembered adoration helped me make the decision to skip these books when reading through my collection four years ago. I read many books by both of these authors since then and gradually became aware of the glaringly obvious shortcomings of their authorship. These shortcomings infected every book I read by them. I had no hope that these books would survive a second read. As I supposed, they did not.

[Hayley Shaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. Anna and the Fedorcenkos are caught up in great and terrible things. Anna's brother has decided to take the dark path with the Fedorcenkos' dangerous foe. A foe that works with other men to overthrow the tsar. Will the tsar and the Fedorcenkos and those closest to them survive the plotting of madmen, or will all be destroyed? This is a must read, but you must read the other two books in the series first.

[Debbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Long and drawn out. A big portion of the book is spent with characters thinking or talking about what has happened, what might happen, etc. What action there is, is gone through quickly before returning to talking about it. I kept wondering when the triumph would show up - not till the very very end.

[Kristelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was sad when Katrina passed away but surprisingly not all that upset. I realized I was not as attached to her as I was to Anna and Sergi. I am interested to see where the story goes since there was an epilogue that covered the next little while in the story. A great continuation of the story.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The series started out with promise, but each book I read in the series is getting more trite and predictable. I'll keep going, just cause I always finish what I start. But I ended up speed reading though a lot of this one.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite installment of the Russian series so far! The events that unfold in this book are captivating. Heart wrenching, insightful, and truthful.

The characters really came into their own in this book! And the bits on Siberia add a new perspective!

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Revolution and tragedy dominate the book but it is a very interesting historical novel. In spite of the sadness, this is an uplifting Christian book. The Russian names are difficult and one wonders how accurate the history of Russia is.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a well-written and truly interesting historical subtly Christian novel, which is part of a series set in Russia in the 1870s and 80s. All of the characters are well drawn, and most of them are also likeable. I really enjoyed the novel and am looking forward to reading more of the series.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historical/Religious Fiction about the Russian Revolution (Book 3). This book wasn't as good as the previous two so I stopped reading the series. I think there are 7 books in the series.

[Ann]

Learned a little more about the history in Russia in the late 1800's

[Stephie · Rating 5 out of 5]

it is a great series of the early russian history... i could hardly put it down... i read all 7 books and didnt want it to end...

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read this book several times. It is a good series. It is set around the revolution in Russia.

[Kim]

These books are sooo good! I love historical fiction, and Judith Pella is one of my favorite Christian authors. I loved this series.

[Diena Riding · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loving the series

[Marlene · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars.. It has its place. Good beach read.

[Sandra Benford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good series

[carol jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read

As always, the story was captivating. This is the second time I have read this series and I loved it even more.

[Sharilyn Walters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful

All those who enjoys excellent historical fiction blended with romance will enjoy this series by Michael Phillips and Judith Pella

[Beverly Knudsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good portrayal of this time in Russian History. The separation of family members was handled very well.