Carolyn T. O’Neil

Daughters of a Dead Empire

Zoe Smolen

This was a 3.5 rounded up for me. 

Like all Millennial women, I too am obsessed with Anastasia which is why I picked this book up even though it's definitely outside of my reading comfort zone. That being said, I did enjoy this book. The action was great and was paced out well to keep me wondering what was going to happen next. I love the friendship between Anna and Evgenia, and it was clearly very well researched (we love a fiction book with a bibliography!). 

I can't articulate what wasn't prefect for me, but I think it's just a genre preference. If you like historical fiction, war, action stories I would recommend picking this one up. There is a fair amount of violence and gore.

Laura Kehoe

This was such a powerful, thought-provoking book! I've always been interested in Anastasia, and the myths surrounding her. So as soon as I saw this book on NetGalley, I knew I had to read it! And Daughters of a Dead Empire did not disappoint!

The characters felt so real that I instantly connected to them. I loved seeing their development and growth throughout the story. They were all unique in their own way, and I could understand what each was thinking. 

Even though this was historical fiction, and I generally knew how things were going to end, I still felt so invested in this book. I loved the integration of history and fiction. It made the story feel that much more real. 

My only complaint was that I felt the ending was a bit rushed. I would have liked a little more time spend tying up loose ends. There was some closure, but I was still left needing a bit more. 

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction. It isn't a happy book--in fact I nearly cried on a few occasions. But it is so well-written and really made me think. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Roaring Brook Press for the chance to read Daughters of a Dead Empire in exchange for an honest review!

Rina

I don’t have a lot to say about this, except how a large portion of this book just felt like a back and forth - no progress. Sure, there were more action scenes than I expected but the writing was unexceptional; almost everything was unbelievable and so, fell flat for me. The themes were interesting though, just disappointed about the execution.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc!

Amanda Kordeliski

Michelle Miller

Ellie S

Carolyn Tara O’Neil

From debut author Carolyn Tara O'Neil comes a thrilling alternate history set during the Russian Revolution. Russia, 1918: With the execution of Tsar Nicholas, the empire crumbles and Russia is on the edge of civil war—the poor are devouring the rich. Anna, a bourgeois girl, narrowly escaped the massacre of her entire family in Yekaterinburg. Desperate to get away from the Bolsheviks, she offers a peasant girl a diamond to take her as far south as possible—not realizing that the girl is a communist herself. With her brother in desperate need of a doctor, Evgenia accepts Anna's offer and suddenly finds herself on the wrong side of the war. Anna is being hunted by the Bolsheviks, and now—regardless of her loyalties—Evgenia is too. Daughters of a Dead Empire is a harrowing historical thriller about dangerous ideals, loyalty, and the price we pay for change. An imaginative retelling of the Anastasia story.

Daughters of a Dead Empire

Reviews