Eye of the Red Tsar

As a history buff, I can tell you that the author did his research and homework. It wasn't just about the slaughter of the Romanov family, it was jam-packed with details of the whys and who-done-its. It was a page-turner with fast-paced action, and even if the reader knows that the family will not survive but this answers a lot of questions, some that remain unanswered to the last page. It packs a wallop and begs the question if one or possibly two of the children survived the carnage. The suspense was like popcorn.

if yall like history and fiction with a hint of Mystery...........buy the Book. (jokes aside it was written very well and kept me glued.... Buy It)

Sam Eastland is a novelist whose work is new to me. I am delighted to have discovered his new work, "Eye of the Red Tsar." This is historical fiction at its best. The story is set around the Russian Revolution and the assassination of Tsar Nicholas II and the massacre of the entire Romanov family. Eastland creates the fictional character of Pekkala, a Finnish member of the Tsar's household who is a master detective with a steel-trap mind. Based on a real historical figure, Pekkala becomes famous as "The Eye of the Red Tsar." He becomes the most feared and respected investigator in all of Russia. After the Tsar is deposed, Pekkala is captured attempting to flee the country, and is sent to Siberia. Stalin wants to keep him in the "deep freeze" rather than kill him in case his skills are needed in the future. Sure enough, when questions arise around the deaths of the Romanov's and the disposition of their fabled treasure, Pekkala is sent for and given the task of solving the mystery. The writing is excellent. Eastland knows Russia. In reading his descriptions of place, I could smell and taste and feel the same sensations that wash over me whenever I visit that mystical land. Here is a small sample of Eastland's narrative voice. This passage explains some of the reasons behind Pekkala's great success as an investigator, rooted in his apprenticeship to his father, the undertaker: "As the younger son, Pekkala had always known he would remain at home, service as an apprentice to his father. Eventually, he would be expected to take over the family business. His father's quiet reserve became a part of Pekkala as he assisted in the work. The draining of fluids from the bodies and replacing them with preservatives, the dressing and the management of hair, the insertion of pins in the face to achieve a relaxed and peaceful expression - all this became natural to Pekkala s he learned his father's occupation. It was with their expression that his father took the greatest care. An air of calm needed to surround the dead, as if they welcomed this next stage of their existence. The expression of a poorly prepared body might appear anxious or afraid, or - worse - might not look like the same person at all. It fascinated him to read, in the hands and faces of the departed, the way they'd spent their lives. Their bodies, like a set of clothes, betrayed their secrets of care or neglect. As Pekkala held the hand of a teacher, he could feel the bump on the second finger where a fountain pen had rested, wearing a groove into the bone. The hands of a fisherman were stacked with calluses and old knife cuts which creased the skin like a crumpled piece of paper. Grooved around eyes and mouths told whether a person's days had been governed by optimism or pessimism. There was no horror for Pekkala in the dead, only a great and unsolvable mystery." (Page 16) There is a promised sequel to "Eye of The Red Tsar" in the works. I look forward to reading

Review: Eye of the Red Tsar: A novel of suspense Reviewer: Brenda Rackley The "Red Tsar" as Joseph Stalin is referred to and the period of time is 1929. A great investigator, by the name of Pekkala who works for the Tsar and solves the most difficult of crimes. Pekkala also known as "The Emerald Eye" a name renowned for always ending his investigation and always gets his man. Becomes a "political prisoner, Who finds his self imprisoned and in Siberia in one of the harshest climates know in Russia. He is given only a year to live as he is posted in an ice forest to mark the trees for cutting. Expected to live only a year, he defies the elements and lives alone for many years. He has resolved his mind that he will never return to his beloved Finland or to be with the Tsar in St. Peters burg. Only to find In the year 1929, Stalin orders the Tsars "Emerald Eye" brought to Moscow to investigate the murder of the Romanov and his entire family. Mainly, Stalin is more interested in the Tsars treasure than who killed the Tsar and his family. The investigation begins and a wonderful tale of events during the historical period is disclosed. The people who The Emerald Eye knew in his childhood, his brother and his life from the beginning to his current tast off finding a long ago iced up family. In the last known village of the Romanov and his family he is able to find the actual details of the murder of the Tsar and the question answered of a treasure. An enjoyable reading. Given a 5 star. Brenda Rackley

Before the Revolution in two steps, Tsar Nicholas Romanov trusted his brilliant Finnish born investigator Pekkala to solve impossible cases. However, in the Summer of 1917, the great detective became Prisoner 4745-P exiled to spend the rest of his life for crimes against the state in the harshest Siberian gulag. Surviving in his icy forest more as a wily beast over the next decade, he remains with no hope of either going home to Finland or St. Petersburg. However in 1929, Stalin orders the Tsar's "Emerald Eye" brought to Moscow to investigate the murders of the Romanovs in Ekaterinburg. The Communist leaders wants to know who killed the Tsar and his family; who survived if any; and what happened to the Tsarist treasure? Although a super investigative frozen case, the story line is in many ways a wonderful historical thriller as the audience learns plenty of what happened to the Tsarist family, the hero's back-story in Finland and on the train to Russia, and the salad days of Stalin's rule. Fast-paced throughout, readers will appreciate this fine tale as every Russian who knows anything understands the need to remain mute as death by assassination is better than the one way ticket to the gulag. Harriet Klausner

DISCLOSURE: This review is based on an Advance Review Copy (ARC) received from the publisher, Simon & Schuster. A trusted friend and confidant of Tsar Nicholas II, Pekkala was a detective with unlimited power and unlimited public appeal. But his relationship with the tsar caused him to be imprisoned following the murder of the tsar and his family. Only the lure of untold wealth could have caused the red tsar (Stalin) to bring him back from confinement. Here's my take on Sam Eastland's first novel: PROS: 1. For me, this novel was a fascinating introduction to life after the revolution. Although I cannot say I'm surprised, I had no idea that villages were created to give journalists false ideas about conditions in the Soviet Union. 2. The character development is excellent. While there's still a lot to be discovered about Pekkala (in Eastland's next novel I suspect), we learn a lot about who and what he is as the novel progresses. We learn how he came to be such a skilled observer of details. We learn about the tragic riff between Pekkala and his brother. We learn what the Emerald Eye means to him, both professionally and emotionally. Added to this cast of characters is the Tsar himself, and, this is the first time I'd really thought about him as a human being rather than simply as a tragic victim of a revolution he could not see coming until it was too late. 3. Suspense? Here aplenty, as the protagonist leads us into creepy settings and deals with men of less than sterling character. Hints to the final solution are blessedly few and far between. CONS: The Eye of the Red Tsar ended before I was ready. I wanted More, More! OVERALL: The Product Description was right on target . . . if you're a fan of Gorky Park, or if you, like me, thoroughly enjoyed Child 44, this novel's a great pick for you. I highly recommend it!

Sam Eastland has scored an impressive triumph in his first novel, Eye of the Red Tsar. I'm a big Romanov-fan, and Eye of the Red Tsar provided me with a periodic fix. Eastland mixes history with fiction to great effect. However, in order to enjoy this book, you have to keep in mind that this is a work of fiction. The murder of the royal family as Eastland writes it is not how we know it to have happened. Opening in 1929, Pekkala finds himself a prisoner in Siberia. He has served 9 years of a 30 year sentence for Crimes Against the State. Pekkala was once the Emerald Eye, the personal investigator of Tsar Nicholas II. He was the only man that Nicholas II trusted. But after the Revolution, he finds himself living a solitary existence, marking trees for cutting. Most men don't live out the year. But Pekkala's survival is a testament to his mental and physical toughness. Commissar Kirov is sent to bring Pekkala back as the communist government has a job for him. The government wishes to discover what really happened to the Romanovs. There is also a possibility that at least one of them is still alive. More likely, they're also interested in what may have happened to the Romanov treasure. Kirov offers Pekkala his freedom at the end of the job, so the former investigator reluctantly signs on. It doesn't take Pekkala long to get back into the routine of investigation. He seeks out clues, interviews witnesses, and tries to discover what happened to the royal family. But whoever had a hand in their murder is still trying to remain underground. Some witnesses to that fateful night in Ekaterinburg are still in danger. As Pekkala starts digging, his life is also threatened. Aside from the plot, what makes Eye of the Red Tsar so satisfying is Eastland's wonderful prose. Alternating between the past and the present, you get the feeling that Eastland personally knew the Tsar. "The Tsar's narrowed eyes were hard to read. His expression was not unkind, but neither was it friendly. It seemed to hover between contentment and a desire to be somewhere else. More of a mask than a face, thought Pekkela." The Tsar is actually jealous of his humble investigator and the simple life he lived. I read that Sam Eastland has already started on another Pekkala mystery. If this is going to be a series, I'm definitely on board.