Tsarina

Catherine Alexeyevna progressed from humble origins as a serf to become Catherine I, Empress of all the Russias. The first woman to rule Russia in her own right, she was the second wife of Peter the Great, a man whose legacy of modernizing Russia in the early eighteenth century is well-documented in popular culture. Lesser known is the sometimes bloody story of the more than twenty years Catherine spent coddling, supporting, and challenging him. Alpsten's debut relates a compelling, if unverified, story of Catherine's early years before she entered Peter's orbit. Once married, Catherine bore him twelve children, only two of whom lived to adulthood. She traveled with him to war fronts. She was a constant in his life through successes, failures, and numerous mistresses. She was the one person who could soothe his rages and return him to reason. Illuminating the realities of life in premodern Russia and the growth and changes brought about in the Petrine Era, this is a fascinating and extraordinary ride from slavery to royalty. Fiction about real people appeals to readers who like history and also like to listen in on conversations. Offer this to fans of historical fiction, Russia, political intrigue, and powerful women.Women in Focus: The 19th in 2020

Alpsten's overlong but ultimately rewarding debut chronicles the life of the first woman to rule Imperial Russia. In 1725, Peter the Great dies without a male heir old enough to rule, and his second wife, Catherine Alexeyevna, schemes for a place in the succession. Alpsten flashes back to Catherine's past, beginning with her birth as a peasant in 1684 and the poverty and abuse she suffers until her beauty catches the eye of Alexander Menshikov, the czar's closest friend, when Russia's wars with Sweden brings its army to her home near the Baltic Sea. Peter is drawn to her sexuality and fearlessness and takes her as a mistress. None of her 12 pregnancies with him result in a male heir, but her shrewdness helps cement her relationship with the czar, who marries her in 1712 and crowns her czarina in 1724. Catherine bonds with Menshikov and others as a way to cope with Peter's philandering and cruelty, even as his vision transforms a once-hidebound nation with a series of modernizing reforms. Though the prose can be clumsy and the time spent on Catherine's early years feels superfluous, Alpsten shines once she puts Catherine in Peter's orbit. Lovers of Russian history, strong women protagonists, and sweeping historicals will savor this vivid portrait. (Nov.)

DEBUT Marta was born an illegitimate serf in the harsh lands of Swedish Livonia. In the early 18th century, Tsar Peter of All the Russias cast his gaze east, seeking to conquer an ice-free port for his eponymous new capital of Saint Petersburg. During the ensuing 20-year war, Marta gradually elevates her station until she comes to Peter's notice, first as his mistress, then as his wife. She bears him 12 children, but only two girls survive. Upon Peter's death, the now renamed Catherine I succeeds as tsarina and transforms the weakness of being born female into her greatest strength. In this debut, journalist Alpsten ambitiously imagines Catherine's ascent to power through war-torn decades. The story's strength is its portrayal of the vulnerability of the serfs in contrast to the elites. Marta suffers multiple rapes in the course of survival; Peter's cruelty extends to murdering his own son. Supporting materials such as maps of now nonexistent countries through decades of war would aid comprehension of such a thick history. VERDICT This debut features a female power player who triumphs over misogyny, but the nonlinear time line, narrative jumps, and many characters who are not fleshed out may confound all but the most die-hard historical fiction fans.--Jessica Bushore, Xenia, OH