Author: Sherry D. Ficklin
Page count: 280 pages
Publishing date: July 14th 2015
Publisher: Clean Teen Publishing
My rating: 4/5 stars!
Blurb:
Sophie—now Catherine, Grand Duchess of Russia—had a tough first year at Imperial Court. Married at sixteen to Grand Duke Peter, heir to the throne, and settled in their own palace, things are finally looking up. As a new day dawns, she thinks only of securing her future, and the future of their country, during one of the greatest political upheavals of her time. Fighting desperately against forces trying to depose the Empress Elizabeth and put the young Prince Ivan on her throne, Sophie soon finds herself in the middle of a war brewing between her beloved Prussia, and her new empire. But even as she navigates the fragile political landscape, she quickly realizes that she has only begun to discover the tangled web of deceit and infidelity woven over the lavish court of Oranienbaum Palace.
When a strange and delicate alliance forms between the young couple, she glimpses a future of happiness, only to see it lost in a moment at the hands of those who still seek to end her life—and prevent her reign. Out of favor with the empress and running out of options, Sophie will have to sacrifice her own innocence on the altar of Russia if she is to save the nation, and herself. To survive, she will have to do the unthinkable, betray those closest to her and become something greater and more dangerous than she ever imagined she could be… a queen.
Catherine the Great is back better than ever. Gone is the naive and innocent Sophie. She's transformed into a strong, calculating, and wise young woman. If she's going to be the Grand Duchess of Russia and do it right, she's going to have to learn how to play the game of the royals.
Deception. Mistrust. Deceit. Love. Hate.
Yes, she's going to have to learn it all.
As the wife to Peter, the Grand Duke of Russia, Catherine must learn the politics and secrets of the palace. This will prove to be difficult, however, with a husband whose sanity is on the fringes, the Empress breathing down her neck, and a war looming between her homeland, Prussia, and her country, Russia. Not to mention her secret love affair with Sergei, her loyal friend and confidant.
Even with all of the problems she faces, Catherine manages to keep her wits about her. She is always trying to come up with a solution that will best benefit herself, the people she loves, and her country. At sixteen, this is a great feat. She has been married, forced to help run a country, and navigate the treacherous stakes that encompasses royalty. She's practically only beneficial to the Empress for being a child carrier. In the Empress's eyes, Catherine is nothing more than a means to an end- or to a heir.
Yet, despite this, Catherine has grown to be so much more. People might look at her at first glance and consider her a pawn, but they are terribly mistaken. This is Catherine's game and she knows exactly what she's doing. A proper and obedient wife on the outside, Catherine is truly, deep down, a force to be reckoned with. She is not going to be that woman who allows others to walk all over her. She's cunning, strong-willed, and will not back down without a fight. I think, in a way, Peter even realizes this to a certain extent.
Peter and Catherine's relationship is very rocky. Peter regards Catherine in either three ways: hostility, compassion, or indifference. One moment he might degrade her to the point where the loathing is almost pure hatred and the next moment he may look upon her with lust or the beginnings of a blooming love. An hour later he may pretend she isn't even there, as if he has no wife. Which may have been easier for him as he sleeps with his mistress, Elizavetta. Peter and Catherine's marriage is very abusive and unhealthy. Both do not love each other even though Catherine wishes it could be different between the two. She wants a loving marriage but that will be one thing that Peter could never give her. He can give her all the jewelry and diamonds all he likes but both know that at the end of the day their marriage was doomed from the very beginning.
Peter himself is delusional. His behavior is erratic and very extreme. He's abusive, controlling, and rash. He doesn't think any of his decisions through- just barges right into a problem head on without weighing the pros and cons. He treats everyone like scum and only truly cares about himself. I don't care what kind of childhood he had... it doesn't excuse him for his actions.
Peter can be somewhat decent at times but it is few and far between. Just enough to make the reader think that there is hope for him after all when really there isn't. Like I said, he only cares for himself. Anyone that gets in his way is either used for his benefit or destroyed.
This is also why I admire Catherine so much. She puts up with Peter and, in a way, sort of has control over him. Peter hasn't realized this, of course, but it seems to me that Catherine has learned how to handle and manipulate him and therefor has gained some sense of control.
The Empress Elizabeth is also someone that Catherine just learn how to deal with. Quick to anger and vindictive, the Empress isn't a person that just anyone wants to or can deal with. The Empress has her own agenda- finding an heir to the throne and sleeping with every man that crosses her path. I would feel sorry for her because I think she is truly lonely but I can't give her my sympathy. She's just as cruel as Peter, maybe even more. She has no regard for human life- anyone that cannot satisfy her agenda has no importance to her whatsoever.Even more so, the people who are caught up in her web mean nothing to her either. I can't give her the benefit of the doubt for her actions in this book. She deserves everything that's coming to her.
Now that I think about it, every character in this book has their secrets and plans. They'll do anything to make them succeed, which means that this series is only going to get more intense. The romance is going to get steamier. The drama is going to get worse. More lies. More pain. More secrets.
Needless to say, I can't wait to read the third book.
Until next time,
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