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Enchantments: A novel of Rasputin's daughter and the Romanovs Audiobook
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(2.99) - 999 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK From Kathryn Harrison, one of America’s most admired literary voices, comes a gorgeously written, enthralling novel set in the final days of Russia’s Romanov Empire. St. Petersburg, 1917. After Rasputin’s body is pulled from the icy waters of the Neva River, his eighteen-year-old daughter, Masha, is sent to live at the imperial palace with Tsar Nikolay and his family—including the headstrong Prince Alyosha. Desperately hoping that Masha has inherited Rasputin’s miraculous healing powers, Tsarina Alexandra asks her to tend to Aloysha, who suffers from hemophilia, a blood disease that keeps the boy confined to his sickbed, lest a simple scrape or bump prove fatal. Two months after Masha arrives at the palace, the tsar is forced to abdicate, and Bolsheviks place the royal family under house arrest. As Russia descends into civil war, Masha and Alyosha grieve the loss of their former lives, finding solace in each other’s company. To escape the confinement of the palace, they tell stories—some embellished and some entirely imagined—about Nikolay and Alexandra’s courtship, Rasputin’s many exploits, and the wild and wonderful country on the brink of an irrevocable transformation. In the worlds of their imagination, the weak become strong, legend becomes fact, and a future that will never come to pass feels close at hand. Mesmerizing, haunting, and told in Kathryn Harrison’s signature crystalline prose, Enchantments is a love story about two people who come together as everything around them is falling apart.
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"I won this book through First Reads and absolutely loved it. There is something incredibly real and moving about the narrative voice--Masha, Rasputin's daughter. Her attempts to reduce the strain of captivity for herself and Alyosha, known to history as Alexei Nikolaevich Romanov, through storytelling were delightfully imaginative and written using beautiful language that transported the reader as easily as it would have an ailing tsarevich. (view spoiler)[The fictional doomed romance between Masha and Alyosha was portrayed with a touching even-handedness, beginning subtly and innocently as teenage and forbidden romances often do and left unresolved at their parting, adding layers of poignancy to their separation and the Romanovs' subsequent deaths. (hide spoiler)] All in all, this book lent a refreshingly novel perspective, as well as educated and drew in its readers, to this period of history, meeting the ideal of historical fiction."
— Ann (5 out of 5 stars)
Awards
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One of the 2012 New York Times Book Review 100 Notable Books for Fiction
Enchantments Listener Reviews
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" I really had difficulty getting into this one. I think it may have been all the stories within the story. "
— Angela, 2/14/2014 -
" Did pick this up three times but finally finished to the end. I got lost a few times with the story. There are stories in the stories so it gets hard to follow - to me. But I always pick up stories on the Romanovs. "
— Rachael, 1/29/2014 -
" I think if I were remotely itnerested in Russian history, I would love this book. It concerns Rasputin's daughters and their connection to the royal family in the waning days of their reign. The writing style could get a bit tweely poetic for my tastes, but if it were about a time period I was interested in, I'd forgive these minor flights. As it is, I don't know why I thought I'd like this, as I am irrationally put off by nearly all things Russian. I forced myself through the Furst books featuring Russian spies only because I love the writing and to complete the picture of esionage during WWII. "
— JodiP, 1/21/2014 -
" I liked it. Must like Russian history "
— Rosemary, 1/12/2014 -
" A story about Rasputin's daughter who lived with the Romanov's and then became a circus performer in the U.S. should have been thrilling. Instead, the appealing characters and plot were bogged down by hundreds of pages of stories that Masha tells to entertain Alexei. "
— Kathleen, 1/9/2014 -
" I really enjoyed this book. It kept me intrigued from start to finish. "
— Karin, 12/12/2013 -
" This book could not hold my attention long enough to finish. I love historical fiction set in Russia, but this one was not good "
— Sharon, 12/8/2013 -
" oddly fascinating - nice look at period history from another P.O.V. "
— Mom, 12/4/2013 -
" I liked it, the writing was good and it was a nice spin on the final days of the Romanovs. A little disheartening when you know how many of the characters will die, but overall worth reading. "
— Andi, 8/23/2013 -
" I am not in the habit of giving up on books but this one I gave up reading 40% through it is inconsistent and confusing "
— Rie, 8/19/2013 -
" I don't even want to talk about the fact that I just spent way longer than necessary writing a review for this book only for it not to load.................... "
— Elizabeth, 5/11/2013 -
" I wish I had liked this book, but it was just so dull. Also, the author has a love for using completely inappropriate words. Ugh. "
— Cait, 4/24/2013 -
" This is a competent, interesting book. I'm not very into the Russian royal family, though. "
— Ayelet, 3/10/2013 -
" I made it 160 pages before giving up. I didn't get this book at all. "
— Gail, 12/10/2012 -
" Liked parts of it. I think the writing was too bombastic and the story while a good idea flighty, didn't make me want to follow even though I WANTED to want to follow. Really emphasized my desire to read Nicholas and Alexandra as this was the book that inspired the author when read at age 11. "
— {eri}, 9/25/2012 -
" I listened to this. Not the author reading but an actress, Russian accent which for the most part was consistent throughout the book. Kathryn Harrison's work (Poison/The Binding Chair) and now this) is very poetic. you can get lost in her sentences. I loved it. "
— Kikireads, 7/26/2012 -
" I wanted to enjoy this novel, but just could not. It felt disorganized, disjointed, and never captivated my attention. "
— Holyn, 6/22/2012
About Kathryn Harrison
Kathryn Harrison has written the novels Thicker Than Water, Exposure, Poison, The Binding Chair, The Seal Wife, Envy, and Enchantments. Her autobiographical work includes The Kiss, Seeking Rapture, The Road to Santiago, The Mother Knot, and True Crimes. She has written two biographies, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux and Joan of Arc, and a book of true crime, While They Slept.
About Julia Emelin
Julia Emelin is a voice talent and audiobook narrator. She is the winner of an AudioFile Earphones Award.