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Title: Siberian Iris

Author: Lauren Carley

Narrator: Lauren Carley

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 52 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-05-16

Publisher: Kingfisher Studio

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: Fiction, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

Siberian Iris is the story of a young immigrant woman driven from her Russian village in 1912. She becomes a servant in the palace of Tsar Nicholas II and is swept up in the court intrigue. Her creativity and imagination carry her from the palace basement laundry to the rooms of Rasputin and the Dowager Empress. As events unfold, she is sent to a Siberian monastery where she becomes involved with the forest insurgents who call themselves the "People's Army". Her relationships with some of the most controversial figures in Russian history tell a personal story inside the world-changing events of the 20th century's second decade.

Members Reviews:

A good read!

Here's a romantic adventure story, simple and poetic, absorbing and compelling. The intrepid female protagonist goes through the destruction of family and village, then through the dystopia of an autocrat's palace, to an uplifting experience of a kind of spiritual and physical eco-utopia. As she grows, she changes from sad but indestructible survivor to an ingenious devious young woman able to manipulate her oppressors, to, finally, a powerful and heroic actor able to throw in her fate with chosen others. She has blossomed, like the flowers she loves.

For a taste of the style of this work as adventure narrative, consider:

"The Heir Apparent would have ... no one who would be at his side at all times... as would Hannibal, the young [African] prince turned devoted, loyal servant, eight-year-old spy for the Palace and Monastery courier."

But for the frequent and pervasive depth of psychological insight, consider:

"...anxiety, the soul screaming that came from war, and the mind-bending sleeplessness that hovered in the white light of the Siberian midnight."

A riveting and beautifully written story

This is a compelling and luminous story, with a riveting milieu (Russia on the cusp of the revolution) and a clever interleaving of magical realism within that historical context. Aline's story, from rural village to the glamorous intrigues of palace life in St. Petersburg to the mysterious monastery in Siberia, is a world you want to live in. The textures of daily life, and the creative yearnings to create beauty that fuel Aline's inner survival, are poetically and lovingly detailed. Truly a memorable tale.

Well-crafted prose and a unique perspective

Carley weaves historical facts and magical realist fiction to bring the turbulent times of Russia in the early 20th century to life. With a cast of characters including Rasputin and the Dowager Empress, the author gives us a heroine who is driven to express herself creatively, to do the right thing, and to survive.

I have really enjoyed Siberian Iris

I have really enjoyed Siberian Iris. It is imaginative, compelling, and poetic. Reading it is a wonderful encounter with the colorful, subtle, and heartfelt mind of a real thinker! Thumbs up to Lauren Carley!

Doris Moskowitz of Moe's Books