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To Kill a Tsar
Palace Square, St Petersburg, 1879. A shot rings out. As Cossacks tackle the assassin to the ground, no one notices a beautiful young woman slip away.
Russia is alive with revolution and Tsar Alexander ll's secret police will stop at nothing to unmask the conspirators. For Dr Frederick Hadfield, favourite of the Anglo-Russian gentry, these are dangerous times. Drawn into a desperate undercover game of plot and counterplot, he risks all in a perilous double life.
Russia is alive with revolution and Tsar Alexander ll's secret police will stop at nothing to unmask the conspirators. For Dr Frederick Hadfield, favourite of the Anglo-Russian gentry, these are dangerous times. Drawn into a desperate undercover game of plot and counterplot, he risks all in a perilous double life.
436 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2010
26 people are currently reading
383 people want to read
About the author
Andrew Williams
9 books33 followersAndrew worked as a senior producer on BBC Television's flagship current affairs programmes, Panorama and Newsnight, covering the major stories of the day. In 1997 he moved to BBC Documentaries and spent the next eleven years writing and directing television documentaries and drama documentaries for the BBC and international co-producers, including the award winning series, 'The Battle of the Atlantic'. He has written two best selling histories of the Second World War; 'The Battle of the Atlantic', and 'D-Day to Berlin'. His first novel, 'The Interrogator', was shortlisted for the CWA Ian Fleming Thriller of the Year Award and the Ellis Peters Historical Fiction Award, and it was the Daily Mail's debut thriller of 2009. His second, 'To Kill A Tsar', was one of the Daily Mail's thrillers of 2010 and was shortlisted for The Scott Prize for Historical Fiction and the Ellis Peters Award. HIs 1960's espionage thriller, Witchfinder, was one of The Times Literary Supplement Books of the Year. Set inside the British intelligence services in the weeks following the defection of master spy, Kim Philby to the Soviet Union, it tells the story of an MI5 and CIA mole hunt that spirals dangerously out of control. Andrew's latest novel, The Prime Minister's Affair, is the story of a plot to blackmail a Labour Prime Minister and bring down the British Government. The Daily Mail described Andrew 'as one of Britain's most accomplished thriller writers', and the Times Literary Supplement noted that 'if le Carré needs a successor, Williams has all the equipment for the role.'
For background to his books and more on the author, visit: http://www.andrewwilliams.tv You can follow and discuss the books with Andrew on Facebook at AndrewWilliamsbooks or follow on twitter @AWilliamswriter.
For background to his books and more on the author, visit: http://www.andrewwilliams.tv You can follow and discuss the books with Andrew on Facebook at AndrewWilliamsbooks or follow on twitter @AWilliamswriter.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
April 24, 2015
I found this book in my local library. I was intrigued by the title and I enjoy history. Andrew Williams is a British writer and former television journalist who was born on 8 May, 1962 in Sheffield, England. He was educated at Trinity College, at Oxford University, Oxford and is a former Senior Producer and Director at the BBC, the author of four historical novels and two histories of World War II. He has been nominated for several awards including CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award and CWA Ellis Peters Historical Award.
This is a historical novel based on the assassination of Tsar Alexander II of Russia in 1881. In To Kill A Tsar, Williams, explores the motives and the methods of the terrorists, and the use of violence as a political tool, that was employed both by the terrorists and by the secret police who tried to catch them. The assassination of the Tsar was carried out by members of Narodnaya Volya,The People's Will, one of the world's first terrorist organisations. The story of The People's Will is intertwined with the love story of an English doctor, Frederick Hadfield, who falls in love with one of the terrorists, and because of his association with her comes under suspicion by the secret police.
The story in To Kill a Tsar begins in St Petersburg, Russia, in 1879 when a shot rings out in Palace Square and the cossack guards tackle an aspiring assassin to the ground. In the confusion that follows no one notices a beautiful dark haired young woman in a thick coat leave the scene. It is a time when Russia is alive with revolutionaries. While Tsar Alexander II remains a virtual prisoner in his own palaces, his ruthless secret police will stop at nothing to unmask those who plot his assassination and the overthrow of the Imperial Regime. Though they were sometimes called "Nihilists", the political reforms that The People's Will wanted were rather mild liberal ones including representative government and freedom of speech. Although in reality, the Tsar was about to introduce some of those reforms before he was killed, and the assassination led to increased state repression.
Tsar Alexander II was, in truth, a reformer, but, of course, one of the features of reform is often that it increases the demand for reform. Those who want reform often demand that the pace of reform be speeded up, and so reform tends to encourage revolution. This book raises important questions about the use of violence and terrorism to achieve political reform. It does not give answers, though in this case history itself gave the answer.
I really enjoyed To Kill A Tsar. It was an elegant story in a well-researched book. I highly recommend the book and look forward to reading other novels by this author.
This is a historical novel based on the assassination of Tsar Alexander II of Russia in 1881. In To Kill A Tsar, Williams, explores the motives and the methods of the terrorists, and the use of violence as a political tool, that was employed both by the terrorists and by the secret police who tried to catch them. The assassination of the Tsar was carried out by members of Narodnaya Volya,The People's Will, one of the world's first terrorist organisations. The story of The People's Will is intertwined with the love story of an English doctor, Frederick Hadfield, who falls in love with one of the terrorists, and because of his association with her comes under suspicion by the secret police.
The story in To Kill a Tsar begins in St Petersburg, Russia, in 1879 when a shot rings out in Palace Square and the cossack guards tackle an aspiring assassin to the ground. In the confusion that follows no one notices a beautiful dark haired young woman in a thick coat leave the scene. It is a time when Russia is alive with revolutionaries. While Tsar Alexander II remains a virtual prisoner in his own palaces, his ruthless secret police will stop at nothing to unmask those who plot his assassination and the overthrow of the Imperial Regime. Though they were sometimes called "Nihilists", the political reforms that The People's Will wanted were rather mild liberal ones including representative government and freedom of speech. Although in reality, the Tsar was about to introduce some of those reforms before he was killed, and the assassination led to increased state repression.
Tsar Alexander II was, in truth, a reformer, but, of course, one of the features of reform is often that it increases the demand for reform. Those who want reform often demand that the pace of reform be speeded up, and so reform tends to encourage revolution. This book raises important questions about the use of violence and terrorism to achieve political reform. It does not give answers, though in this case history itself gave the answer.
I really enjoyed To Kill A Tsar. It was an elegant story in a well-researched book. I highly recommend the book and look forward to reading other novels by this author.
August 29, 2018
Las revoluciones suelen ser contadas como heroicas gestas de hombres nobles. Pocas veces se nos cuentan los crudos detalles del proceso bélico revolucionario.
Muerte al Zar nos revela una faceta mas realista, mas humana, de aquellos que dieron los primeros pasos que llevarían a la colosal revolución rusa, en un proceso que llevo mas de 30 años.
Los atentados contra el Zar Alejandro II son el marco para que, a través de la vida de un médico y una revolucionaria, nos sea mostrada la vida cotidiana de nobles, burgueses y conspiradores en los últimos años del imperio ruso. Se nos confronta con los sacrificios personales, las victimas colaterales y la enorme apatía de la población en general, para meditar y aprender del pasado.
Justo en ésta época de cambios, es relevante no olvidar que toda revolución armada, conlleva demasiado dolor para los inocentes.
Muerte al Zar nos revela una faceta mas realista, mas humana, de aquellos que dieron los primeros pasos que llevarían a la colosal revolución rusa, en un proceso que llevo mas de 30 años.
Los atentados contra el Zar Alejandro II son el marco para que, a través de la vida de un médico y una revolucionaria, nos sea mostrada la vida cotidiana de nobles, burgueses y conspiradores en los últimos años del imperio ruso. Se nos confronta con los sacrificios personales, las victimas colaterales y la enorme apatía de la población en general, para meditar y aprender del pasado.
Justo en ésta época de cambios, es relevante no olvidar que toda revolución armada, conlleva demasiado dolor para los inocentes.
July 11, 2014
A very disappointing book as it glorified the murder of a reforming Tsar, who had emancipated the serfs, and dozens of innocent bystanders. While the history of the radical group and events are well-done, the fictional love-story is simply ridiculous including both of the characters. I was hoping to see both characters swinging from the end of a noose at its conclusion; sadly it was not to be. The writing style is simple which some may enjoy but I expected a bit more: simplicity is not always the best route.
June 12, 2015
i enjoy fiction novels based on historical facts… however, i found this story totally weak!!!
Read
May 29, 2018I just couldn’t read on. Not sure why I found it to be the very opposite of gripping but slither around I did.
December 18, 2016
The atmosphere was well created and whilst none of the other characters moved me, I warmed to Anna's character. Although flawed, I felt her pain, anguish, fear and intensity.
It took a long time for this story to gain momentum. It finally took off in the last quarter. I only wish I had read the historical information at the end of the book, at the beginning, as it was fascinating and mentioned that many of the characters actually existed.
This book has stimulated me to read more about Imperial Russia.
It took a long time for this story to gain momentum. It finally took off in the last quarter. I only wish I had read the historical information at the end of the book, at the beginning, as it was fascinating and mentioned that many of the characters actually existed.
This book has stimulated me to read more about Imperial Russia.
January 25, 2015
Clearly well-researched, but somehow it just came across as a Brit writing about Russia - does the author speak Russian? I was pleased to have a map of St Petersburg to follow, and the detail was all spot-on, but the relationships between the characters....Not sure what I am trying to say, other than that it just failed to convince me.So I was surprised that he was shortlisted for so many prizes.
November 19, 2015
The writing style is effective, but it lacks beauty. I found the main characters unengaging and the turns of the story quite predictable and sometimes clichéd; the ending in particular felt gratuitous. I would not recommend it!
March 29, 2012
Not for me ... Ridiculous
June 30, 2017
An impressive, powerful, compelling read. The setting is St. Petersburg in 1871 and an attempt has been made on the life of Tsar Alexander II. Frederick Hadfield, a young English doctor and favourite of the Anglo-Russian gentry becomes infatuated with Anna, a member of a group of anarchist, known as "The People's Will". He soon finds himself embroiled in the fringes of their activities, with his life under threat from the suspicions of Anna's conspirators and from the Russian secret police.
I was slow to get into the book, and coming to grips with the many characters and the Russian names. But the tension was skilfully built up to make it a "can't put down" read. You could call Frederick foolish in falling in love with Anna, but my sympathies were with him. Their love scenes were sensitively written; likewise the prison scenes were understated and graphic descriptions of the violence avoided. I particularly found moving the chapter where Frederick treats the young soldiers seriously injured in the second attack on the Tsar and meets the monarch on a visit to the hospital- realisation dawning on him of Anna's part in the attack. You could not help but link what the anarchists were doing with the recent terrorist attacks on innocent people in Britain.
One reviewer criticises the writing as "simple" - I totally disagree. This was no superficial, quick read, as it demanded close attention to to the well-researched storyline. The city of St.Petersburg, at all levels of society were vividly described and the harshness of the Russian winter made me shiver.
Two features of the book, added to my enjoyment - the map of St. Petersburg enhanced the knowledge of places in the city and its layout, and made it easier to follow the journeys of the protagonists. The historical notes and sources were impressive, and reinforced the impact of the book, as so many of the characters were not fictional beings, but real people. I came close to giving the book 4.5, but for the ending. Without giving away any spoilers, it left me hanging.
I was slow to get into the book, and coming to grips with the many characters and the Russian names. But the tension was skilfully built up to make it a "can't put down" read. You could call Frederick foolish in falling in love with Anna, but my sympathies were with him. Their love scenes were sensitively written; likewise the prison scenes were understated and graphic descriptions of the violence avoided. I particularly found moving the chapter where Frederick treats the young soldiers seriously injured in the second attack on the Tsar and meets the monarch on a visit to the hospital- realisation dawning on him of Anna's part in the attack. You could not help but link what the anarchists were doing with the recent terrorist attacks on innocent people in Britain.
One reviewer criticises the writing as "simple" - I totally disagree. This was no superficial, quick read, as it demanded close attention to to the well-researched storyline. The city of St.Petersburg, at all levels of society were vividly described and the harshness of the Russian winter made me shiver.
Two features of the book, added to my enjoyment - the map of St. Petersburg enhanced the knowledge of places in the city and its layout, and made it easier to follow the journeys of the protagonists. The historical notes and sources were impressive, and reinforced the impact of the book, as so many of the characters were not fictional beings, but real people. I came close to giving the book 4.5, but for the ending. Without giving away any spoilers, it left me hanging.
July 26, 2022
Muerte al zar - Andrew Williams
San Petersburgo, 1879. Rusia vive bajo el yugo del zar Alejandro II, en una sociedad terriblemente rural, empobrecida e ignorante. La novela nos sumerge en los movimientos revolucionarios que quieren terminar con las desigualdades sociales por medio del terrorismo, y que ven en la muerte del zar el paso imprescindible que desate el cambio. Tenemos los puntos de vista de la policía, de una revolucionaria nihilista que forma parte del grupo terrorista y de un médico inglés que se ve envuelto en la trama sin tener un papel realmente activo. La novela es una cuenta atrás para cometer o prevenir un atentado que termine con la vida del zar.
Opinión: Novela histórica con buenas dotes narrativas y que disfraza la historia con una trama de espionaje e investigación policiaca bastante interesantes. Me ha resultado amena e interesante. Nota: 7/10.
San Petersburgo, 1879. Rusia vive bajo el yugo del zar Alejandro II, en una sociedad terriblemente rural, empobrecida e ignorante. La novela nos sumerge en los movimientos revolucionarios que quieren terminar con las desigualdades sociales por medio del terrorismo, y que ven en la muerte del zar el paso imprescindible que desate el cambio. Tenemos los puntos de vista de la policía, de una revolucionaria nihilista que forma parte del grupo terrorista y de un médico inglés que se ve envuelto en la trama sin tener un papel realmente activo. La novela es una cuenta atrás para cometer o prevenir un atentado que termine con la vida del zar.
Opinión: Novela histórica con buenas dotes narrativas y que disfraza la historia con una trama de espionaje e investigación policiaca bastante interesantes. Me ha resultado amena e interesante. Nota: 7/10.
November 22, 2025
To Kill a Tsar is an atmospheric, tightly woven historical thriller set in the politically volatile streets of 1879 St. Petersburg. Andrew Williams captures the tension of a city simmering with revolutionary fervor, painting a vivid backdrop of secret police, conspiracies, and ideological unrest.
The novel follows Dr. Frederick Hadfield, a man caught between privilege and the dangerous underworld of radical politics. Williams excels at portraying moral ambiguity no character is fully innocent, and each choice pushes Hadfield deeper into a labyrinth of plot and counterplot. The pacing is deliberate yet gripping, with intrigue layered through every encounter and setting. Readers who enjoy richly detailed historical fiction with a sharp thriller edge will find themselves thoroughly immersed.
A compelling blend of espionage, political drama, and historical authenticity.
May 10, 2019
To Kill a Tsar is based on actual events and mixes real characters will fictional ones. To be in any way convincing, which it mostly is, a great deal of research is necessary and, to his credit, the author has done a fine job in this respect.
What is less convincing, as is often the case in Russian based novels, are the various institutions and the roles of some of the characters. It becomes confusing at times. The morality is at times confused. Is it legitimate to kill an autocratic monarch who has freed the sure? The love story is, as well, a little unconvincing.
Still I learned something about the beginnings of the Russian revolutions.
David Lowther. Author of The Blue Pencil, Liberating Belsen, Two Families at War and The Summer of '39, all published by Sacristy Press.
What is less convincing, as is often the case in Russian based novels, are the various institutions and the roles of some of the characters. It becomes confusing at times. The morality is at times confused. Is it legitimate to kill an autocratic monarch who has freed the sure? The love story is, as well, a little unconvincing.
Still I learned something about the beginnings of the Russian revolutions.
David Lowther. Author of The Blue Pencil, Liberating Belsen, Two Families at War and The Summer of '39, all published by Sacristy Press.
February 7, 2021
This is an always involving 400 pages based on the historically genuine People’s Will, the Russian terrorist organisation that successfully assassinated Tsar Alexander II in 1881. The problem comes from the two fictional characters, a Russo-English doctor, Hadfield, and a female revolutionary, and their clichéd and unconvincing love story, which is a shame as much of the description of the organisation, the authorities who tracked them and urban society is fascinating and St Petersburg is convincingly evoked
January 16, 2020
Factual with a fictional interweaving
This novel vividly depicts St Petersburg at the period up to the assassination of the Tsar. It clearly describes the way in which terrorists justified violence as a means towards a changed society. The novel is exciting, well plotted and has contemporary resonances. We, of course, no what happened when revolution finally took place. Andrew Wilson is not a Dostoevsky, but he has produced a memorable literary achievement.
This novel vividly depicts St Petersburg at the period up to the assassination of the Tsar. It clearly describes the way in which terrorists justified violence as a means towards a changed society. The novel is exciting, well plotted and has contemporary resonances. We, of course, no what happened when revolution finally took place. Andrew Wilson is not a Dostoevsky, but he has produced a memorable literary achievement.
March 1, 2022
The romance between Frederick Hadfield, a young doctor from a respected family that falls in love with Anna Kovalenko, a teacher who is a committed member of The People’s Will, a small but single-minded group of revolutionaries.
The book mixes fact and fiction, presenting the contrasts between rich and poor, love and duty, reason and blind idealism.
The main question is whether the ends justify the means. But violence can never be justified.
The book mixes fact and fiction, presenting the contrasts between rich and poor, love and duty, reason and blind idealism.
The main question is whether the ends justify the means. But violence can never be justified.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 3, 2018
Not the book described by the reviews...
I could only give this 2 stars as it just did not live up to the hype. Supposed to be a thriller, I found it dull and lacking in the necessary plot to be called a thriller. Filled with historical fact, the main characters were one dimensional at best. Sorry was not for me, dull and plodding.
I could only give this 2 stars as it just did not live up to the hype. Supposed to be a thriller, I found it dull and lacking in the necessary plot to be called a thriller. Filled with historical fact, the main characters were one dimensional at best. Sorry was not for me, dull and plodding.
April 19, 2018
Clearly well-researched and a very good description of the personalities involved in the various plots to assassinate Alexander II. However, the central relationship was unconvincing and the English doctor abroad, just a cipher, that it was almost easier to skip his bits and stick to the political infightings both on the government and the assassins' sides - that was a more interesting story.
April 26, 2023
Una trágica historia de amor que sucede en medio del caos previo a la revolución rusa, pensé que sería más acerca de la organización que lo comenzó todo. No es lo que me "vendieron" con la contraportada y el final es de los más planos que he leído. Si andas buscando un thriller, este libro NO es para tí.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 20, 2017
No soy amante a la novela histórica pero sin lugar a duda Muerte al zar es un libro impresionante. La narrativa que utiliza el autor hace que el lector se sienta en las calles de San Petersburgo y sienta todas las emociones que los integrantes de la voluntad del pueblo, sienten desde 1879 a 1882
April 17, 2019
Es interesante ,pero en partes se vuelve aburrido y un poco estresante , no me gustó el final abierto entre el personaje principal.
March 5, 2020
“La libertad y la revolución siempre van codo a codo con el sufrimiento y la muerte. Eso es lo que nos enseña la historia.”
October 13, 2021
Excellent book
Very enjoyable and well researched book. I would highly recommend to anyone interested in Russian history. I am looking forward to reading more books by this author.
Very enjoyable and well researched book. I would highly recommend to anyone interested in Russian history. I am looking forward to reading more books by this author.
Want to read
May 15, 20225/14/2022 reminded of this book here https://shereadsnovels.com/2022/05/14...
October 11, 2025
Loved it. Good characters and writing.
April 29, 2014
A historical novel based on the assassination of Tsar Alexander II of Russia in 1881. The assassination was carried out by members of Narodnaya Volya (The People's Will), one of the world's first terrorist organisations.
Andrew Williams explores the motives and the methods of the terrorists, and the use of violence as a political tool -- a tool that was employed both by the terrorists and by the secret police who tried to catch them.
The story of The People's Will is intertwined with the love story of an English doctor, Frederick Hadfield, who falls in love with one of the terrorists, and because of his association with her comes under suspicion by the secret police.
Though they were sometimes called "Nihilists", the political reforms that The People's Will wanted were rather mild liberal ones: representative government, freedom of speech, and things like that. In that respect the assassination was counter-productive, as the Tsar was about to introduce some of those reforms when he was killed, and the assassination led to increased state repression.
There are some parallels with South African history too.
Tsar Alexander II was a reformer, and one of the features of reform is that increases the demand for reform. Those who want reform demand that the pace of reform be speeded up, and so reform tends to encourage revolution. It leads me to wonder what would have happened in South Africa if F.W. de Klerk had been assassinated in January 1990, just before he announced his reforms, which included the unbanning of opposition parties and the release of political prisoners. It might have led to a period of even worse repression, as the assassination of Alexander II did in Russia.
I also compare The People's Will with the African Resistance Movement, a group of South Africans from the privileged classes who resorted to using violence to bring about political reforms. The difference is that they weren't dedicated terrorists, and lacked the dedication of the hard-crore revolutionaries of The People's Will.
The book thus raises questions about the use of violence and terrorism to achieve political reform. It doesn't give answers, though in this case history itself gave the answer.
Andrew Williams explores the motives and the methods of the terrorists, and the use of violence as a political tool -- a tool that was employed both by the terrorists and by the secret police who tried to catch them.
The story of The People's Will is intertwined with the love story of an English doctor, Frederick Hadfield, who falls in love with one of the terrorists, and because of his association with her comes under suspicion by the secret police.
Though they were sometimes called "Nihilists", the political reforms that The People's Will wanted were rather mild liberal ones: representative government, freedom of speech, and things like that. In that respect the assassination was counter-productive, as the Tsar was about to introduce some of those reforms when he was killed, and the assassination led to increased state repression.
There are some parallels with South African history too.
Tsar Alexander II was a reformer, and one of the features of reform is that increases the demand for reform. Those who want reform demand that the pace of reform be speeded up, and so reform tends to encourage revolution. It leads me to wonder what would have happened in South Africa if F.W. de Klerk had been assassinated in January 1990, just before he announced his reforms, which included the unbanning of opposition parties and the release of political prisoners. It might have led to a period of even worse repression, as the assassination of Alexander II did in Russia.
I also compare The People's Will with the African Resistance Movement, a group of South Africans from the privileged classes who resorted to using violence to bring about political reforms. The difference is that they weren't dedicated terrorists, and lacked the dedication of the hard-crore revolutionaries of The People's Will.
The book thus raises questions about the use of violence and terrorism to achieve political reform. It doesn't give answers, though in this case history itself gave the answer.
January 14, 2017
Un libro bastante fácil de leer. El estilo del autor es claro, bastante directo. A lo largo del mismo va alternando entre los puntos de vista de diversos personajes en el escenario que supone la Rusia de finales del siglo XIX: toca a los revolucipnarios, toca a los encargados de perseguirlos desde la Tercera Sección, también al médico inglés que se encuentra entre ambos puntos y que es el protagonista de la novela... Esto permite ver lo que iba sucediendo durante los tres años que abarca la novela y cómo van avanzando todas las líneas. La mayor pega que se me ocurre es que me hubiese gustado ver el punto de vista del zar, me pareció muy interesante los detalles de su personalidad y su forma de ver los atentados que deja caer el autor y me hubiese gustado conocerle en mayor profundidad. Aunque, por otro lado, el zar es el objetivo de todos: los revolucionarios están obsesionados con matarle, la Tercera Sección con protegerle... ninguno lo ve como una persona, sino por lo que significa para Rusia, y con esta idea es muy curioso que el lector tampoco tenga acceso a él, solo a lo que ven en él todos los que le rodean.
He de destacar el contenido histórico del libro. La documentación me ha parecido muy completa y muy útil, y al final del libro el autor explica cómo fue recabando información de distintas fuentes. Ha conservado muchas figuras históricas de la Voluntad del Pueblo, aunque el protagonista sea ficticio (y, sin embargo, el autor explica que está inspirado en ciertas personas reales), lo que hace que sea un libro muy interesante para descubrir esta época. Me ha sorprendido que, pese a ser finales del siglo XIX, muchas de las preocupaciones, de las cosas que se comentan, serían perfectamente ciertas en una historia ambientada casi actualmente.
El estilo del autor, eso sí, es sencillo y se centra más en la historia que cuenta que en el cómo contarla. A pesar de que va siguiendo las líneas cronológicas de todos los personajes y no se deja cosas sin contar, me he quedado con ganas de saber mucho más.
He de destacar el contenido histórico del libro. La documentación me ha parecido muy completa y muy útil, y al final del libro el autor explica cómo fue recabando información de distintas fuentes. Ha conservado muchas figuras históricas de la Voluntad del Pueblo, aunque el protagonista sea ficticio (y, sin embargo, el autor explica que está inspirado en ciertas personas reales), lo que hace que sea un libro muy interesante para descubrir esta época. Me ha sorprendido que, pese a ser finales del siglo XIX, muchas de las preocupaciones, de las cosas que se comentan, serían perfectamente ciertas en una historia ambientada casi actualmente.
El estilo del autor, eso sí, es sencillo y se centra más en la historia que cuenta que en el cómo contarla. A pesar de que va siguiendo las líneas cronológicas de todos los personajes y no se deja cosas sin contar, me he quedado con ganas de saber mucho más.
June 6, 2016
It's rare that the reviews on books even catch my attention, and they didn't with this one until I'd finished. But TKATs is a very, very good tale told by a writer with an unusual ability to develop and retain suspense in a story the end of which is known from the outset.
Following a number of failed assassination attempts, Tsar Alexander II, Russia's most progressive ruler, was murdered by makeshift hand grenade as he sought to view the damage done by an bomb that had hit the wrong carriage. We know this, and we know who carried out the attack, Andy we know in detail of their formation and plans, and we know a great deal about other characters central to the story. To write a novel that is genuinely gripping given all that is not only an achievement but a recommendation.
A lot of research has gone into this book, and the reader will not be disappointed with the way Williams has handled the few unknowns.
Following a number of failed assassination attempts, Tsar Alexander II, Russia's most progressive ruler, was murdered by makeshift hand grenade as he sought to view the damage done by an bomb that had hit the wrong carriage. We know this, and we know who carried out the attack, Andy we know in detail of their formation and plans, and we know a great deal about other characters central to the story. To write a novel that is genuinely gripping given all that is not only an achievement but a recommendation.
A lot of research has gone into this book, and the reader will not be disappointed with the way Williams has handled the few unknowns.
January 2, 2015
3.5 stars
I usually stumble upon historical fiction about Imperial Russia during or after the Bolshevik's revolution, so I was thrilled that this story takes place before; with the Tsar Alexander II.
I love when authors take already interesting historical events and add that magical spark of fiction to them. Williams did an excellent job researching this era and this particular Tsar; I loved how historically and politically accurate it was, despite having fictional situations incorporated to it.
A very interesting, detailed and well researched story. Williams transports you to 1881 and wraps you with mystery and intrigue, and even though his writing is simple, it's very refreshing and enthralling.
I usually stumble upon historical fiction about Imperial Russia during or after the Bolshevik's revolution, so I was thrilled that this story takes place before; with the Tsar Alexander II.
I love when authors take already interesting historical events and add that magical spark of fiction to them. Williams did an excellent job researching this era and this particular Tsar; I loved how historically and politically accurate it was, despite having fictional situations incorporated to it.
A very interesting, detailed and well researched story. Williams transports you to 1881 and wraps you with mystery and intrigue, and even though his writing is simple, it's very refreshing and enthralling.
January 21, 2016
Solid historical fiction from a period of history that is rarely visited, I found it interesting when focusing on the The Third Section and The People's Will but the more it became a love story the more dissapointed and disaffected I became. Sometimes the facts and the actual history is more interesting than the narrative that is weaved around them and I found that to be the case here. It also ended rather abruptly and not really on a cliff hanger that made you think. I feel if the book focused more on the nuances of the different groups and why they did certain things it would have been more interesting.
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