Secret Lives Of The Tsars: Three Centuries Of Autocracy Debauchery, Betrayal, Murder, And Madness From Romanov Russia

Secret Lives Of The Tsars: Three Centuries Of Autocracy Debauchery,Betrayal, Murder, And Madness From Romanov Russia by Michael Farquhar, 349 pages

This book chronicles the lives of the tsars in the Romanov dynasty from Michael through Nicholas II.  It includes chapters on the more well-known tsars such as Peter I (the Great), Catherine II (the great), and the last tsar, Nicholas II, but also the lesser known (at least to me) Anna, Elizabeth, and Paul.  The book’s introduction details how the Romanovs gained power after Ivan IV’s (the terrible) reign ended and several years of political unrest followed before the first Romanov, Michael, was elected tsar.  This was a pretty good book.  It was easy to read, gave an adequate amount of information for people who are looking for an overview of the Romanov history and was pretty interesting.