After the Romanovs: what happened to the Russian elites after the Bolshevik Revolution

After the Romanovs: Russian Exiles in Paris from the Belle Époque Through Revolution and War by Helen Rappaport is the story of Russians in Paris. Paris has always been the city of culture, fine wine and food, and the latest fashions. It also has also been a refuge for those fleeing persecution. For years, Russian aristocrats had enjoyed all that the City of Lights had to offer. Living lavishly Paris was their home away from home. However, with the rise of the Bolshevik Revolution and the fall of the Romanov dynasty, many Russians came to Paris, some with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Suddenly former princes become taxi drivers, their wives sewing for the fashion houses. It is a story of menial jobs, political plots, espionage and assassination with few success stories while many lived in a cycle of poverty. The one thing that joined them all was love of the land that they were forced to leave behind. 

After the Romanovs bring the human stories to the historical events. A very detailed account of those who left Russia, afraid for their lives, while hoping for the chance to bring Russia back to her glory. The interesting aspect of After the Romanovs is the cycle in which people can easily become “enemies.” Vladimir Lenin declared the bourgeois, enemies of the revolutions. But the bourgeois weren’t just the monarchy and the wealthy class but intellectuals, writers, and artists who influenced the country’s culture. Many of these individuals would have been considered “have-nots” but because of their professions, they were now enemies of the revolution.  I enjoyed reading what happened to those who fled Russia after the revolution and how they fared. Ms. Rappaport does not shy away from the nit and gritty facts of these individuals’ stories, beliefs and attitudes that contributed to their downfall. If you are interested in this area of history, I highly recommend After the Romanovs. 

After the Romanovs: 

Russian Exiles in Paris from the Belle Époque Through Revolution and War 

is available in hardcover, eBook, and audiobook

The Last Tiara: a story of discovery, family secrets and revolution

The Last Tiara by MJ Rose is a story of mystery and discovery. In 1948, Isobelle Moon lost her mother, Sophia, when she was hit by a car as she stepped off the curb into the street. As she begins to renovate their apartment, she discovers her mother’s hidden treasures, a silver tiara without any jewels. Her mother refused to talk about her life in Russia before she immigrated to American after World War I. Isobelle begins to ask questions about the tiara and its ties to her mother, trying to unravel the mystery around it and her mother. Soon she meets Jules Reed, a jeweler who runs his grandfather’s jewelry shop. Together they begin to trace the tiara’s origins. Will Isobelle find the answers she’s looking for? Will she discover why her mother didn’t want to talk about her life before America? The story switches between Isobelle in 1948 and her mother in 1915 Russia as the two timelines reveal the horrors of World War I and the aftermath of the Bolshevik Revolution that drove Sophia to leave everything she had to come to America. 

The Last Tiara is an interesting look at the stories of World War I in Russia. As most books featuring World War I focus on the stories of the English, Americans and even the French, they don’t really look at the other countries who fought in the war too. The tiara at the center of the story really did exist. It was a part of the Imperial Jewels of Tsar Nicholas II and his family, who were brutally murdered by the Bolsheviks on July 17, 1918. The tiara was photographed and cataloged in the 1920s but it has not been seen since. Where did it go? That’s the question Ms. Rose sets out to answer, creating a story of a mother escaping Russia and making a life with her daughter in America. Overall, I enjoyed The Last Tiara. It is a story of a mother and daughter and the mysteries behind. I enjoyed learning more about the Bolshevik Revolution and its impact on Russia and her people. I enjoyed as Isobelle discovered who her mother was before she was born and the pain she kept hidden. I recommend The Last Tiara. 

The Last Tiara is available in hardcover, paperback, eBook and audiobook