Summary from Amazon:
He can’t leave his hotel. You won’t want
to.
In 1922, Count Alexander Rostov is deemed an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal, and is sentenced to house arrest in the Metropol, a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin. Rostov, an indomitable man of erudition and wit, has never worked a day in his life, and must now live in an attic room while some of the most tumultuous decades in Russian history are unfolding outside the hotel’s doors. Unexpectedly, his reduced circumstances provide him entry into a much larger world of emotional discovery.
Brimming with humor, a glittering cast of characters, and one beautifully rendered scene after another, this singular novel casts a spell as it relates the count’s endeavor to gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be a man of purpose.
In 1922, Count Alexander Rostov is deemed an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal, and is sentenced to house arrest in the Metropol, a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin. Rostov, an indomitable man of erudition and wit, has never worked a day in his life, and must now live in an attic room while some of the most tumultuous decades in Russian history are unfolding outside the hotel’s doors. Unexpectedly, his reduced circumstances provide him entry into a much larger world of emotional discovery.
Brimming with humor, a glittering cast of characters, and one beautifully rendered scene after another, this singular novel casts a spell as it relates the count’s endeavor to gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be a man of purpose.
My Thoughts:
Count
Alexander Rostov has been sentenced to live out the rest of his life in the
upscale Metropol hotel in Moscow. Luckily
for him, he has already been living there for four years so he knows the staff
well and since it is/was a rather fancy place all amenities can be found within
its walls. Can you imagine being forced
to live in one building for the rest of your life, never to be allowed outside again?
What
follows is a story not only of one man’s life confined to a small place, but
also the lives of those around him and little bits of history as well. Many great characters come and go through the
hotel and the Count’s life that affect him in all sorts of ways; big and
small. Friends are made, lives are
changed and the Count becomes the central character of so many wonderful
events. Could Alexander’s sentence
really have been a blessing? Would he have befriended and loved these people
otherwise?
I really
enjoyed this book! The characters are funny and sweet and there was just enough
history within the story to keep things interesting but never boring. The Count is such a wonderful character with
an interesting background and an ever evolving personality. The only thing that I can really complain
about is that the ending, while a good one, wasn’t quite as tidily wrapped up
as I would have liked. I can’t say
anymore for fear of spoiling the story but one aspect of the ending left me
dangling a bit and that drives me crazy but I still highly recommend this
historical fiction novel.
4/5 stars
Author's website: http://www.amortowles.com/
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