Tells the epic story of Catherine the Great's improbable rise to power--as seen through the ever-watchful eyes of an all-but-invisible servant close to the throne. Her name is Barbara--in Russian, Varvara. Nimble-witted and attentive, she's allowed into the employ of the Empress Elizabeth, amid the glitter and cruelty of the world's most eminent court. Under the tutelage of Count Bestuzhev, Chancellor and spymaster, Varvara will be educated in skills...

"The Imperial Wife is a smart, engaging novel that parallels two fascinating worlds and two singular women. Irina Reyn writes beautifully of immigrants, art and the vagaries of love."--Jess Walter, National Book Award finalist and author of the New York Times bestseller, Beautiful Ruins Two women's lives collide when a priceless Russian artifact comes to light. Tanya Kagan, a rising specialist in Russian art at a top New York auction house, is trying...

A fictional diary of Princess Sophie, later named Catherine, from 1743 until 1745, when at age fifteen she is married to her second cousin Peter, Grand Duke of Russia, who will one day be Emperor. Includes historical notes on her later life.

The Great returns in Season Two from Golden Globe and Academy Award nominee Tony McNamara (The Favourite). Catherine finally takes the Russian throne for her own- but if she thought coup-ing her husband was difficult, it's nothing compared to the realities of liberating a country that doesn't want to be. She'll battle her court, her team, even her own mother in a bid to bring the Enlightenment to Russia.

A follow-up to "The Winter Palace" continues the Romanov monarch's reflections on her world-changing rule in the shadow of the French Revolution, during which she orchestrates a political maneuver to secure her successor.

Set in the royal court in eighteenth-century St. Petersburg, a sweeping historical novel follows Xenia, who undergoes a profound transformation that radically alters the course of her life and instills fear in the heart of the new empress, Catherine.