THE BOOK FAIR

Review:

The glitzy, glittering novel, “The Imperial Wife”, splits into two stories:  One of Tanya Kagan, art specialist, residing in present day New York, and the second, of Catherine the Great of Russia, during the 1700’s.  The two tales weave back and forth.

Tanya Kagan, a Russian born, Jewish immigrant and Russian art expert, verifies the authenticity of Russian art for Worthington’s Auction House.  Tanya’s devotion and love for Russian art propels her to seek out clients who share the idea that Russian art belongs in Russia.  Tanya’s expertise and pursuit of such dealers and buyers leads her into a world of extraordinary wealth and to some interesting as well as to some unsavory characters.

 

The Empress Elizabeth transports the young teen, Sophia Fredericka Augusta, from Zerbst, Germany, to St. Petersburg, to marry her nephew, Peter, the weakling grandson of Peter the Great.  Empress Elizabeth re-names Sophia, Catherine the Great, and gifts Catherine with the medallion, The Order.  It is said that Peter the Great once bestowed the medallion upon extraordinary women.

 

Tanya, the dutiful daughter, struggles to please her parents, to live up to their expectations in maintaining both her Russian culture, and her Jewish heritage.  Tanya balances their wishes along with the reality of her life as an American girl.  She also balances her type A personality to the weaker personality of her husband, Carl Vandermotter, even though Carl comes from a distinguished family of old wealth.

 

Catherine must navigate around her unhappy marriage to Peter, his refusal to consummate their marriage, and the politics of the court.  Catherine also endures the constant humiliation of Peter’s infidelities.

 

Carl, a historian of Russian history, writes an historical novel of Catherine the Great, detailing her personal life, and the gift of the medallion, The Order. Worthington’s Auction House secures the Russian artifact, The Order.  Using her relationships in the art world, Tanya efforts to steer the coveted and priceless medallion back to Russia.

 

Amid colorful, lavish lifestyles, name dropping, lively characters, emotional relationships, and vibrant depictions of cultures, the author draws two distinct parallels of interrelating stories of strong, determined women in an often deceptive and hazardous world.  Entertaining.