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The Empress of Tears
As the ‘Funeral Bride,’ Alexandra of Hesse-Darmstadt marries Tsar Nicholas II only a week after the premature death of his father, Tsar Alexander III.
Already dismissed out of hand by the court, Alexandra has to further contend with the continuing ambition of her mother-in-law, the Dowager-Empress Minnie, who has no intention of ceding imperial precedence to the new Empress or of giving up one inch of her power and influence over her emotionally-dependent son, the new Tsar.
Nevertheless, Empress Alexandra is determined to stamp her authority on Russia as a whole and on Nicholas in particular, but to do so she must produce an heir. Having given birth to daughter after daughter after daughter, she becomes desperate and turns to the first of her mystical advisors, Msgr. Philippe, who persuades her, among other things, that she is invisible.
And then comes the moment of her greatest triumph with the birth of her son and the heir to the throne of all the Russias, the Tsarevich Alexei.
All four volumes are (planned) as follows:
1. 'The Funeral Bride' 1884-1894 - published November 2015
2. 'The Empress of Tears' 1895-1904 - published March 2016
3. 'The Pride of Eagles' 1905-1914 - to be published by November 2016
4. 'No Greater Crown' 1914-1918 - to be published by April 2017
Already dismissed out of hand by the court, Alexandra has to further contend with the continuing ambition of her mother-in-law, the Dowager-Empress Minnie, who has no intention of ceding imperial precedence to the new Empress or of giving up one inch of her power and influence over her emotionally-dependent son, the new Tsar.
Nevertheless, Empress Alexandra is determined to stamp her authority on Russia as a whole and on Nicholas in particular, but to do so she must produce an heir. Having given birth to daughter after daughter after daughter, she becomes desperate and turns to the first of her mystical advisors, Msgr. Philippe, who persuades her, among other things, that she is invisible.
And then comes the moment of her greatest triumph with the birth of her son and the heir to the throne of all the Russias, the Tsarevich Alexei.
All four volumes are (planned) as follows:
1. 'The Funeral Bride' 1884-1894 - published November 2015
2. 'The Empress of Tears' 1895-1904 - published March 2016
3. 'The Pride of Eagles' 1905-1914 - to be published by November 2016
4. 'No Greater Crown' 1914-1918 - to be published by April 2017
- GenresRussiaHistorical Fiction
316 pages, Paperback
Published March 19, 2016
51 people are currently reading
302 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 25, 2016
I have just read Kathleen McKenna Hewtson's 'The Empress of Tears' hot on the heels of her 'The Funeral Bride' (both being about the Empress Alexandra and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia), and I have to say that those plucky chappies who made up the firing squad in the Urals, or wherever it was, sure did us all a favor. Yay to Yakov Yurovsky! (Conspicuous alliteration.)
If anyone is expecting these books to be hagiographies of Empress Alexandra, often portrayed as the beautiful, romantic martyred Princess Diana or Empress Sissi of her day, think again. Personally, I have never quite gone for that myth. Everyone knows that the Russian aristocracy fiddled in obscene luxury while the peasants starved, so their loss never seemed so great to me, but I didn't realize how right my prejudices were until I read these books.
Yes, Alexandra was a great beauty once, but she was no longer so by the time the royal family was executed. I would also guess that some of the romance fell out of their lives once they were demoted to being mere human beings like you and me. And as for martyrdom, in what cause were they martyred exactly: the cause of conspicuous spending and autocratic bad behavior?
I am sure some people will say that Empress Alexandra cannot possibly have been as she is portrayed in these books, basically as a bitch on wheels (literally), but the evidence does seem to suggest that Ms. Hewtson is right. As far as I can tell, nobody who ever met her liked her, unless they wanted something from her, such as a job or the entire country (in Rasputin's case). The Russian people didn't even cheer her during the coronation. And nobody can argue with her being a credulous idiot (Rasputin again). You can maybe try to claim that she was an innocent young girl from a nowhere German duchy who was horribly bullied by people who were jealous of her looks, but shouldn't somebody have liked her, other than possibly Queen Victoria who was even more unpalatable than Empress Alexandra (although portrayed relatively sympathetically here)?
Actually, you can just look at the photos of Empress Alexandra. She never smiles or appears remotely to be enjoying herself. That might have been a Victorian affectation but, if so, it was an affectation no-one else was sharing. And most of the time she has that Resting Bitch Face look, as an alternative to the soulful martyred look she put on in earlier times. I know that people cursed with the RBF expression think it is just bad luck, but I am a great fan of the saying, “Until forty, you have the face you are born with; after forty, you have the face you deserve.”
So, while it is a little tiresome having to share space with a very difficult woman indeed, whose sole purpose seems to be to pick petty fights with everyone, I have become rather entranced by her. She just seems right; the psychology makes sense; it's almost modern. And I've begun to feel sorry for that great lummox Nicholas too. Having to rule Russia and Empress Alexandra as well, that has to be beyond the wit of any man, and especially of his.
The world of books is a strange place.
If anyone is expecting these books to be hagiographies of Empress Alexandra, often portrayed as the beautiful, romantic martyred Princess Diana or Empress Sissi of her day, think again. Personally, I have never quite gone for that myth. Everyone knows that the Russian aristocracy fiddled in obscene luxury while the peasants starved, so their loss never seemed so great to me, but I didn't realize how right my prejudices were until I read these books.
Yes, Alexandra was a great beauty once, but she was no longer so by the time the royal family was executed. I would also guess that some of the romance fell out of their lives once they were demoted to being mere human beings like you and me. And as for martyrdom, in what cause were they martyred exactly: the cause of conspicuous spending and autocratic bad behavior?
I am sure some people will say that Empress Alexandra cannot possibly have been as she is portrayed in these books, basically as a bitch on wheels (literally), but the evidence does seem to suggest that Ms. Hewtson is right. As far as I can tell, nobody who ever met her liked her, unless they wanted something from her, such as a job or the entire country (in Rasputin's case). The Russian people didn't even cheer her during the coronation. And nobody can argue with her being a credulous idiot (Rasputin again). You can maybe try to claim that she was an innocent young girl from a nowhere German duchy who was horribly bullied by people who were jealous of her looks, but shouldn't somebody have liked her, other than possibly Queen Victoria who was even more unpalatable than Empress Alexandra (although portrayed relatively sympathetically here)?
Actually, you can just look at the photos of Empress Alexandra. She never smiles or appears remotely to be enjoying herself. That might have been a Victorian affectation but, if so, it was an affectation no-one else was sharing. And most of the time she has that Resting Bitch Face look, as an alternative to the soulful martyred look she put on in earlier times. I know that people cursed with the RBF expression think it is just bad luck, but I am a great fan of the saying, “Until forty, you have the face you are born with; after forty, you have the face you deserve.”
So, while it is a little tiresome having to share space with a very difficult woman indeed, whose sole purpose seems to be to pick petty fights with everyone, I have become rather entranced by her. She just seems right; the psychology makes sense; it's almost modern. And I've begun to feel sorry for that great lummox Nicholas too. Having to rule Russia and Empress Alexandra as well, that has to be beyond the wit of any man, and especially of his.
The world of books is a strange place.
May 21, 2016
This is the second book in a series about Empress Alexandra, and just like the first book, I found myself hating Alexandra, but also oddly sympathetic to her, too. She was surrounded by bullies and weaklings, so she made the best of it as well as she could, but man, was she a mess. Selfish with a sense of overbearing superiority, she didn't seem like the nicest person, and her attitude made it nearly impossible for people to like her. The author does an amazing job of portraying her this way, and somehow manages to get me to feel bad for her sometimes, too. Great book!
October 17, 2021
Self-absorbed?
I'm not certain that the real Alexandra was entirely SO self-absorbed as this book makes her seem. In fact, I suspect Empress Minnie's feelings on the matter/letters may have colored this book. Nonetheless, a valuable way of looking at the life of the last Russian royal family. (Even if EVERYONE in photos of the 1903 ball had on huge headdresses and robes!)
I'm not certain that the real Alexandra was entirely SO self-absorbed as this book makes her seem. In fact, I suspect Empress Minnie's feelings on the matter/letters may have colored this book. Nonetheless, a valuable way of looking at the life of the last Russian royal family. (Even if EVERYONE in photos of the 1903 ball had on huge headdresses and robes!)
June 23, 2017
Great book
If you enjoy history, this series is for you. I love the way it's written in first person and it gives you the feeling you are there while everything happens the Romanov's history is a great subject.
If you enjoy history, this series is for you. I love the way it's written in first person and it gives you the feeling you are there while everything happens the Romanov's history is a great subject.
February 20, 2019
The Tsarista is portrayed as a clueless bitch. Whether she was one or not, I do not know. She still remains a fascinating and tragic figure. Truth be told I don’t know why I am reading this series as no one knows what the empress would say about herself and her life.
October 21, 2021
A wonderful sequel
This book takes up where the last one left off. It was seamless. Just like the first book, it was engaging, interesting, and a real page-turner. I couldn’t put the book down.
This book takes up where the last one left off. It was seamless. Just like the first book, it was engaging, interesting, and a real page-turner. I couldn’t put the book down.
March 21, 2017
I cannot say I would hate her or love her. I feel like there are so many dramas, back-stabbing and pressure for her and those in her world. This book did a good job at showing how fragile she was, how arrogant she was to those beneath her but that she also had a huge amount of judgement and scorn from her class to deal with. I would not want her life at all!
May 9, 2016
Excellent. I loved this book. The author really captures Alexandra. This book deals with the first ten years of her marriage and her quest to have a son. The characters are drawn exactly as I have read them in non-fiction. Nicholas is a weak man rule on one day his mother, on other days, his wife. Empress Minnie is a selfish woman refusing to let go of the limelight. Alix herself is controlling and somewhat hysterical. Her longing for a son causes her to go to mystics. You see Alix at war with everyone and you can see how tragic it will be for Russia if she gets any control.
If you love historical fiction, read this series.
If you love historical fiction, read this series.
June 17, 2016
So many other books on my reading shelf but once you started this book had to give up on the others for a bit.
This is the 2nd book of the series. Alexandra has married her Nicky and through the 10 years of marriage had 4 daughters. At the end of the book she has finally had her SON. She thinks that if she finally gives the people a male heir they will love her. She sure is a hard person to love.
Getting ready to order book #3.
This is the 2nd book of the series. Alexandra has married her Nicky and through the 10 years of marriage had 4 daughters. At the end of the book she has finally had her SON. She thinks that if she finally gives the people a male heir they will love her. She sure is a hard person to love.
Getting ready to order book #3.
Want to read
June 23, 2016I very much enjoyed this book and I thought it gave me insight to the royals of Russia and how sad this woman must have been raising all these children only to see them be slaughterd along with her and her husband the czar .
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews