Searching around the internet I can conclude that there is no middle ground when it comes The Bronze Horseman. You either love it or hate it. A few months ago I probably would have been in the camp of those who hated it.
- I thought I did not enjoy historical fiction
- I did not think I would like a book which had a war setting
- I thought I preferred contemptarary romance
- I don’t like to read series…
Well the only thing I got from that is that I should not make these silly lists in my head as two of my all time favorite books are Shadow of the Wind and The Book Thief but I digress…
I recently stumbled on a book The Secret Wife by Gill Paul and I really enjoyed the flashbacks to the Tsar era and I think in many ways this book prepared me for The Bronze Horseman. I felt after reading this book I was ready for a book which has been for some time on my TBR list.
But then again I don’t think anything can prepare you for this journey. Because this book will take you on a journey that you have never experienced before. I don’t think I will recover from this, it’s been a month and all books seem pointless at this point.
Synopsis
The golden skies, the translucent twilight, the white nights, all hold the promise of youth, of love, of eternal renewal. The war has not yet touched this city of fallen grandeur, or the lives of two sisters, Tatiana and Dasha Metanova, who share a single room in a cramped apartment with their brother and parents. Their world is turned upside down when Hitler’s armies attack Russia and begin their unstoppable blitz to Leningrad.
Yet there is light in the darkness. Tatiana meets Alexander, a brave young officer in the Red Army. Strong and self-confident, yet guarding a mysterious and troubled past, he is drawn to Tatiana–and she to him. Starvation, desperation, and fear soon grip their city during the terrible winter of the merciless German siege. Tatiana and Alexander’s impossible love threatens to tear the Metanova family apart and expose the dangerous secret Alexander so carefully protects–a secret as devastating as the war itself–as the lovers are swept up in the brutal tides that will change the world and their lives forever.
My review
When people tell me that romance has no substance, and they are all the same, formulaic and stale, this is probably the book I will throw at them. Everything about this story was different and if we going to talk about book couples then Tatiana and Alexander are THE only book couple for me. I am not sure if I have processed what I have read but this book left me feeling raw, emotional, restless and with an unadulterated feeling which I can’t seem to explain.
“Somewhere in those weeks Tatiana’s innocence was lost. The innocence of honesty was gone forever, for she knew she would have to live in deceit, ever day in verse and prose, in close quarters, in the same bed, every night when her foot touched Dasha’s, she would live in deceit. Because she felt for him. But what Tatiana felt for Alexander was true. What Tatiana felt for Alexander was impervious to the drumbeat of conscience.”
This love story is the kind of love story which will come along once in your life. Because it is just not a story but an experience.
So what is this book about? Tatiana Metanov, a 17-year old girl, meets Alexander Belov, a soldier in the Red Army, the day after Germany attacked The Soviet Union, propelling Leningrad and the entire country into the violent war of WWII. As she sits on a bench, waiting for the train and eating crème brûlée ice cream soaking what was in retrospect her final moment of bliss, she sees this soldier across the street and something magical happens instantly inside of them, as if destiny pushed them together at this very place, at that very time.
But besides the war there are many challenges that stood in the way of them being together. Not only was this book powerful but it had a magical prose somewhat even poetic. It was I was right there with Tatiana experiencing the pangs of hunger and devastation of war.
I cried a few times throughout the book, my heart breaking multiple times, only to begin to heal, and then break again. And at the end, I was just a mess.
I still am…
“Ask yourself these three questions, Tatiana Metanova, and you will know who you are. Ask: what do you believe in? What do you hope for? But most important – ask: what do you love?”
“I am Tatiana. And I believe in, and hope for, and love Alexander for life.”
Tatiana and Alexander fought for survival but most of all they fought for their love, because through it all they knew one thing that they belonged together. Yes, I agree that perhaps they were selfish in their love for each other but I don’t think it would have been such a phenomenal story if they had not been. I know that there have been reviews about Alexander’s behavior. I think they were going through extraordinary times and it just was not ordinary circumstances that he found himself in. He was a complex character with many layers but a damn brilliant soldier. And being a soldier changes you…Surrounded by death and destruction and knowing that there is no way out certainly the would not make you just an ordinary man with ordinary issues.
In the end, we are left heartbroken and hopeful at the same time. There are three books in the series and there is an HEA, but you are going to have experience this road for a while. Trust me you will be sorry when it ends even after all those pages.
Moments of happiness are paved with breathless heartache and unspeakable pain. You will feel every moment, every word, every stolen glance and your heart will break into a million pieces through it all. This achingly beautiful love story is one of survival and sacrifice, an urgent desire to be together despite the looming threat of death… never knowing which minute together will be the last. An absolutely unforgettable romance. Tatiana and Alexander will forever live in my heart.
“Good-bye, my moonsong and my breath, my white nights and golden days, my fresh water and my fire. Good-bye, and may you find a better life, find comfort again and your breathless smile, and when your beloved face lights up once more at the Western sunrise, be sure what I felt for you was not in vain. Good-bye and have faith, my Tatiana.”
Ten stars for this epic journey.
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