James-Charles Noonan

Having finished the trilogy, I think I can honestly say that there is absolutely nothing here that I didn't already know about these sisters. My overall complaint about it is that there is no bibliography, notes section, or index in the actual physical copies of the books. This, in my opinion, is a huge drawback.

For this specific volume, I have a couple of issues. Firstly, the back cover of the book indicates "This is the second part of a royal trilogy..." Wrong. This is the third part. The designer did a horrible cut and paste job there. Next, the death of Alix and Minnie's father, King Christian IX of Denmark, was covered twice, almost word-for-word, in different sections of the book. I found myself with a puzzled expression on my face, thinking "Didn't I just read that?" Also, when you spell Queen Elizabeth II's name with an "s", it's just sloppy. She doesn't spell it that way, never has, never will.

However, if you want an entertaining read about a fabulous set of sisters. By all means, these books are for you. I appreciate the huge amount of research done, however, a lot of pure gossip is treated as fact. Be careful.… (meer)

This is pretty much going to be a copy-cat review of my comments on the first book in the series. Alix and Minnie led fascinating lives, absolutely worthy of a dual biography. However, this just falls flat in being a serious biography.

Having the physical copy in my hands, I became supremely frustrated. No index or bibliography is included. If you want to look something up or fact check for yourself, you've got to look on a special website to find what you're looking for, hardly convenient for the reader. There was a lot of supposition here in regards to Alix's son Eddy. Some of it was stated as just plain fact. However, towards the end of the book the author says that the truth will never be known because Eddy's info held at The Royal Archives, Windsor, is restricted. So what's the story? Fact or supposition? You can't have it both ways. There were several instances where notations were given, but not included in the book. I would have to look it up elsewhere. If I didn't write down what I wanted to research, I would forget all about it.

Disappointed in something that had the potential to be grand. I'll read the last in the series just so I can say I finished it, but I'm not really looking forward to it.… (meer)

This was book one of a three part series on the lives of Alix and Minnie, respectively Queen of England and Empress of Russia. These two sisters undoubtedly lived fascinating, intriguing lives. While a dual biography is an interesting idea, I wish it had been executed a little better.

One of the things I disliked was the complete lack of end notes and bibliography in the physical copy of the book. Instead, the reader is directed to a website where they can find such material. This is very frustrating when you are actually holding the book in your hands. Secondly, there were a few facts that were misrepresented, such as how Queen Victoria hated morganatic marriages and diluted royal blood marrying into the upper echelons of royal families. She not only approved, she welcomed them in her own family multiple times over.

That being said, the first book in the series is very entertaining, rich details are presented when describing certain aspects of court life in both England and Russia. I will definitely press on and read the next book in the series.… (meer)