book review
In her new novel “The Imperial Wife,” Russian American author Irina Reyn introduces two women living more than 250 years apart who are curiously connected by culture, intellect and enormous ambition.
Tanya Kagan Vandermotter is is a rising star in New York City’s auction world, recently elevated to recognition via her outstanding ability to certify authentic Russian art. To the media, she describes herself as a “simple girl from Moscow.” In reality, Tanya is quite designing in her strategy to cultivate buyers who will then send the masterworks back to Russia, their historic home.
Poised to climb higher on the ladder, Tanya is inspired by memories of life as a young immigrant, her cultural and religious heritage, her desire to please her aging parents, and her aspiration to balance it all as an “authentic” American — an achievement she hopes can be attained through her marriage into the Vandermotter family.
The historical character, Catherine the Great, is a powerful 18th-century figure who at age 15 is chosen to marry the grandson of Peter the Great, designated heir to the Russian throne. She manipulates the court, eventually taking the throne herself in a swift, violent move.
Just as Tanya’s Russian art auction is releasing its catalogue, she is alerted that an astonishing artifact, a medallion of the Order of Saint Catherine, has come onto the market. Legend has it that the Order was gifted during the Imperial era by Peter the Great to extraordinary women, and awarded to young Catherine upon the announcement of her engagement.
The magnificent jewel quickly becomes the unifying motif in the narrative about the two ambitious women and the threat they poses to the men in their lives.
“Imperial Wife” glides seamlessly between the two main characters’ respective centuries, providing a historically accurate, dramatic and provocative journey.
“The Imperial Wife” by Irina Reyn (288 pages, Thomas Dunne Books)
Review provided by the Jewish Book Council, www.jewishbookcouncil.org