Review: Escape of the Grand Duchess by Susan Appleyard

May 19, 2026

Review: Escape of the Grand Duchess by Susan Appleyard

Today, I'm delighted to welcome author Susan Appleyard to Ruins & Reading. I'm sharing my review of her utterly compelling novel, Escape of the Grand Duchess. It's my personal book of the year so far. If you enjoy thrilling historical adventures based on dramatic real events, read on!

Escape of the Grand Duchess is currently on blog tour with Yarde Book Promotions. Find other fabulous posts and more reviews HERE!

*Yarde Book Promotions Book of the Year 2025*

Escape of the Grand Duchess

by Susan Appleyard

Review:

Oh my word, where to begin with this compelling rollercoaster ride?!

The protagonist of the novel is Olga Alexandrovna, Grand Duchess of Russia and youngest sister of ill-fated Tsar Nicolas II. She grows up within the protected network of the extended Romanov court, with many social gatherings and pursuits. Unlike her older sister, Xenia, Olga is less into superficial events, but she is still fully aware of her status.

When her mother, Dowager Empress Maria, suggests marriage to a young man of the Oldenburg family, Olga is resigned to her fate, even though – just as many girls her age – she was actually dreaming of love.

Sadly, love is the last thing on her husband's mind. A renowned gambler, he turns out not at all interested in her, but rather in spending time in gambling halls – or with his male lovers.

At first, Olga hides her disillusionment from her family, but after a few years of a sad co-existence, during which he raided her dowry, she starts to push her brother, the Tsar, to agree to an annulment. But he wouldn't hear of it.

Nicolas has troubles of his own, and following the advice of his wife isn't always in the empire's best interest. Soon, criticism of his inaction and bad decisions becomes more widespread. As young Russians die and many families starve, the ground is fertile for revolution.

Olga, meanwhile, continues with social engagements. Her relationship with her sister-in-law is fraught, and tensions rise within the family, partly due to the fact that the heir to the empire – finally born – is suffering from haemophilia. Yet this fact is kept quiet. Instead, the imperial couple look to alternative healers – cue the appearance of the sinister Rasputin. His behaviour towards Olga and other females in the household is revolting, and she voices her distaste at him spending time with the couple's girls, unsupervised.

As unrest grows within Russia, and across Europe, Olga's world as she knows it collapses. Her hands-on approach leads to her working as a nurse, but in the changing atmosphere of revolutionary Russia, she eventually finds herself shunned.

As war erupts in central Europe, Russia has its own worries, even after Nicolas’ eventual abdication, when the Bolsheviks begin to fight the more moderate White movement who had taken control of the government. Soon, the collapsing empire is embroiled in a vicious civil war, and the hunt on any Romanovs is on.

Before Nicolas’ abdication, Olga has finally managed to gain an annulment of her loveless marriage, and just in time. She marries Nikolai Kulikovsky at a time when her family has already come under attack. They escape to an estate on the Crimea together with her mother, and Xenia's family, but with the changing fortunes of war, they are soon forced to flee again, and this time for their lives.

Reluctant to leave Russia, and still believing that 'her' people would not want to harm her, Olga and her small family settle in a village in the Caucasus. But the Bolsheviks, keen on Romanov blood, are on their trail. Their treatment of various members of the extended imperial family is shown in tragic detail.

Will Olga escape once more? Well, I recommend you read the novel, and you'll find out!

Escape of the Grand Duchess is a highly detailed account of the early part of the life of Olga Alexandrovna, daughter and sister of Russian tsars. Through Olga's eyes, we witness her brother's mismanagement of the war against Japan, his ignorance of the suffering of ordinary Russians, the eruption of civil war and World War I, and the brutal spread of the Bolsheviks under Lenin, who stop at nothing.

This book is one that makes you think during and after you finish reading it. It's a long novel, but the riveting pace means you keep turning the pages. You also keep checking out people and events as you read on, as Ms Appleyard's narrative gets you really close to them. You can't help but want to know what happens next to everyone.

Most of us readers know the tragic fate of the immediate imperial family, but in this novel, we learn about what happened to the extended family – cousins, uncles, aunts, etc at varying degrees of separation. Ms Appleyard brings them all to life, and in a way that is completely compelling.

When Olga is with her rather secluded nieces, trying to get them to mingle with others outside their limited sphere, you meet young girls keen to discover the world. Yet we know their fate already, and you keep reading with a lump in your throat.

Olga is a fascinating character. No-nonsense, resilient, and, although always aware of her status, she is not beyond mucking in. Literally!

Ms Appleyard's description of Olga seems to be quite close to the real woman, who, after her escape, swapped manor houses (unlike some of her surviving relatives) for a simple farm life with her husband.

And at the end of this novel, I really want to find out more about this brave woman who had lost so much, including beloved close family, and coming close to death herself several times.

Escape of the Grand Duchess is a truly immersive story that grips you and doesn't let you go. The narrative feels, at times, like a history overload, but with so much going on, this actually adds to the growing sense of danger surrounding Olga and her loved ones.

I could go on and on about this engrossing novel, but suffice to say, it captivated me from the first page. Perhaps because it's based on real, dramatic (and traumatic) events; or perhaps because Ms Appleyard has created realistic characters in such a way that we feel a personal affinity with them.

Escape of the Grand Duchess is an absolute gem of a novel, and I can't recommended it highly enough. It's a book to treasure and read again...

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Blurb:

Escape of the Grand Duchess by Susan Appleyard is a gripping historical novel that shatters the notion that royalty is synonymous with privilege and ease. At its heart is Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna, the youngest sister of Tsar Nicholas II—a Romanov who defied a doomed destiny and survived.

Unlike her ill-fated brother and his family, Olga’s story is one of resilience, sacrifice, and daring escape. Trapped in a loveless marriage to a reckless gambler—who harbours secrets of his own—she finds hope in the arms of a dashing army lieutenant. But before she can claim her own happiness, she must first endure the brutal realities of World War I, where she serves as a nurse on the frontlines.

As the Russian Empire teeters on the brink of collapse, the infamous Siberian mystic Rasputin tightens his grip on the imperial court, setting the stage for revolution. With the Bolsheviks seizing power and the Romanovs marked for death, Olga faces an impossible choice: risk everything to stay or flee into the unknown with her true love and their children.

Rich in historical detail and driven by an unforgettable heroine, Escape of the Grand Duchess is a sweeping riches-to-rags tale of survival, love, and the strength it takes to forge a new life in the face of unimaginable upheaval.

Buy Links:

Amazon UK Amazon US

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About the Author:

Susan was born in England, which is where she learned to love English history, and now lives in Canada in the summer. In winter she and her husband flee the cold for their second home in Mexico.

Susan divides her time between writing and her hobby, oil painting, although writing will always be her first love. She was fortunate in having had two books published traditionally.