The Romanov Royal Martyrs: What Silence Could Not Conceal

This book was recommended to me by one of the nuns at St. John Chrysostomos monastery in Wisconsin. At first, there was nothing about the appearance or title of the book that made me want to read it, but the sister always gives the best recommendations. It sat on my shelf for a month or so and then I thought about the sister and picked up the book to start reading. I could not put it down. It is not just interesting, and it is not another book containing history. It is an absolutely gorgeous story about the Orthodox faith lived out in a saintly family. It draws heavily on their personal correspondence and their own diary/journal entries, which sounds kind of boring but I assure you it is not. There is an incredible example of parental love (demonstrated both by Tzar Nicholas’s parents for him, and by Nicholas and Alix for their children), and in Nicholas and Alix there is the story, from start to finish, of a God-ordained sacramental marriage—a true Orthodox union of two into one flesh—that unfolds on these pages in a way too beautiful for me to describe. The legacy of faith handed down from grandparents through the parents to the Romanov children is edifying. How could those children have the strength to become martyrs? What am I doing (or not doing) in my own life with my own children? This book is even a bit of a parenting manual in disguise. There are many other interesting things, like a more balanced perspective on the relationship of Rasputin to the imperial family, the Romanov’s love and service to their country and the opportunity that war afforded them to serve, the perspective of various Orthodox saints (Tikhon, John of Kronstadt) and priests who knew the family personally, and much more than can be contained on the back cover of the book or a simple online review. Like the sister who recommended the book to me, I commend it to you. If you read it, you will love it. God bless you my beloved in Christ.

A wonderful telling of the story of the Holy Martyrs. Especially in America, we’re taught to believe these people were tyrants and incompetent rulers. This book makes it evidently clear that it’s quite the contrary

I am very pleased with the quality of the Romanov Royal Martyrs book—it’s superb and thanks to Holy Trinity Church Supplies & Bookstore for making it possible. The illustrations are fantastic and by far the best book on the market today, detailing the Romanov’s lives in a bright light. Must read! Thanks and God Bless!