ARC Review: The Lost Daughter by Gill Paul

Pub. Date:	Aug. 27, 2019
Publisher:	William Morrow
Length:	496 pgs
Source:	Publisher

This was my first read from Gill Paul, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. However, I was intrigued by the concept of a historical fiction concerning the Romanov family, whom I was only vaguely familiar with before embarking on this reading venture. I have always thought the Romanovs were fascinating, but it just wasn't something we studied much in school. I have not read The Secret Wife, but I definitely have added that earlier story to my TBR after finishing The Lost Daughter. 

Most people know that the Romanov family were the victims of a political execution following the Russian Revolution in 1917-1918. For many years, people speculated that two of the Romanovs may have escaped the massacre, and this story takes that concept and runs with it. 

Our heroine of The Lost Daughter is Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna, the third daughter of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna. When we meet Maria, she is a somewhat naive artistic girl who is struggling against the confinement of her family. She seems desperate to make connections, and often seeks out the very guards keeping them captive for conversation and inexperienced flirtation. Watching the loss of Maria's innocence was truly sad and heartbreaking. However, I was impressed with her fortitude and ability to survive such varied and difficult circumstances. The relationship between Maria and her husband was her rock and foundation, and there were both incredibly sad and incredibly happy moments that we witnessed between the two. Maria was also a principled and protective mother, willing to go to great lengths to make sure her children survived and thrived the difficult times in which they lived. While we now know through DNA testing of the remains that were found, Maria did perish along with her family. However, I was fascinated by Gill Paul's imagining of her life had she escaped and survived such a horrible tragedy.

The crux of this story occurred during the rise of communism under Stalin, including Russia being drawn into the war after false promises from Hitler led them to think they were safe from the fighting in World War II. Given some of the political hot topics of today, I found this look into communism to be interesting, sad, and accurate with what we learned in our history classes. Not to bring politics into the blog, but I do wish some proponents of modern socialism/communism would read stories such as this to imagine how far these ideals can go awry when giving the government so much control over society. The things experienced by Maria, her family, and her compatriots were truly terrifying. I can't imagine having to live with that level of paranoia and fear.

The Lost Daughter has a dual story occurring in the past and "present," with Maria's life following her family's execution in the early 20th Century, and later in the mid-1970s with Val Doyle - someone who finds that she may be connected in some strange way to the Romanov family. Val's story was not a happy-go-lucky tale by any means, but she didn't have it as bad as Maria. With an abusive husband and a daughter to protect, Val has to make her own difficult choices... but I enjoyed watching her find herself while she tried to unravel the mystery of her father and his Russian past. Val's amateur investigation allowed us to unravel mysteries of Maria's past from another angle, which was quite interesting 

Overall, this story was a poignant tale of love, loss, strife and survival during difficult times in world history. If you are looking for a heavier read, with lots of historical accuracy alongside the fiction, then I recommend The Lost Daughter. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from the publisher.

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