The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia

By: Candace Fleming

Narrated by: Kimberly Farr, Eugene Alper, Mark Deakins, Julia Emelin, Gleb Kaminer, Rustam Kasymov, Paul Michael, Stefan Rudnicki

Length: 9 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

Here is the tumultuous, heartrending, true story of the Romanovs - at once an intimate portrait of Russia's last royal family and a gripping account of its undoing. Using compelling first person accounts, award-winning author Candace Fleming (Amelia Lost; The Lincolns) deftly maneuvers between the imperial family’s extravagant lives and the plight of Russia's poor masses, making this an utterly mesmerizing listen as well as a perfect resource for meeting Common Core standards.

©2014 Candace Fleming (P)2014 Listening Library

Critic reviews

Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Literature

Winner of the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award for Nonfiction

A Robert F. Sibert Honor Book

A YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award Finalist

Winner of the Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction

“[A] superb history...In these thrilling, highly readable pages, we meet Rasputin, the shaggy, lecherous mystic... we visit the gilded ballrooms of the doomed aristocracy; and we pause in the sickroom of little Alexei, the hemophiliac heir who, with his parents and four sisters, would be murdered by the Bolsheviks in 1918.” (The Wall Street Journal)

"For readers who regard history as dull, Fleming’s extraordinary book is proof positive that, on the contrary, it is endlessly fascinating, absorbing as any novel, and the stuff of an altogether memorable reading experience." (Booklist, starred review)

Good expansion of popular understanding

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Anyone who is interested in learning more about the Romanovs would not be ill-served to listen to this audiobook. It's engaging, well-written, and well-performed.

Who was your favorite character and why?

It's hard to pick a favorite character in a historical work but I suppose Czar Nicholas qualifies as my favorite character, despite being hopelessly out of his depth.

Which character – as performed by Kimberly Farr and Various – was your favorite?

I liked her voice for diary entries.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Much of the book was wholly unsurprising. We've heard all the tragic points before. But I think what was most moving was the execution.

Any additional comments?

This is yet another example of a ruler with a good reputation being completely responsible for the total lack of preparedness of the next ruler, which ends in disaster. (Louis XVI comes to mind.) Czar Nicholas was awful - but he was awful largely due to the fact that his father did absolutely nothing to prepare him for ruling a nation.

Excellent!

One of the best books I have ever listened to and read. Just came back from St Petersburg a month ago and wish I had read this before I went.

Their humanity really stood out; Thank you Candace.

Candace Fleming gave me an overview history of this time period in Russia, based on this family.

Astonishing

this book had me on edge, from me only knowing the cartoon movie about Anastacia and not really knowing the Romanov family history, this book really informed me of the Russian history... I was amazed at the detail of events that happened to this family and how destroyed and destructive Russia was until the fall of the royal family.. I would definitely recommend listening to this book.. even hearing what was written from the diaries of the royal family and other who interacted with them was interesting and touching..

History told in a captivating way!

Best narration I've ever listened to. Kimberly Farr is able to lead the listener through the story and include important sidebars without making it feel like an abrupt interruption. The other voices help create a sense of the times. Brilliant.

best historical book I've read so far!

although the narrator sounded like a robot half the time, the book drastically contrasted that with it's story like depictions. This made the reader feel emersed in the story, made it seem like it was happening right before their eyes.

I thrilling history lesson.

Sometimes The true history is more interesting than fiction. I enjoyed the suspense as well as the learning. The narrator was mostly average.

Great listening

Detail story of Romanov Dynasty describing historical facts of not only daily life of imperial family but many important historical invents at that period of time. Easy to adopt to own knowledge and enjoyable performance of the narrators. Recommending with confidence.

Interesting story!

Great and interesting story! Very sad but still a wonderful story about the family and that time.

Great book

This book was historically correct and a great read. I enjoyed listening to it as well.