The Romanov Cross
Written by Robert Masello
Narrated by Paul Boehmer
4/5
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About this audiobook
Frank and his handpicked team arrive by helicopter, prepared to exhume history. The colony, it transpires, was once settled by a sect devoted to the mad Russian monk Rasputin, but there is even more hiding in the past than Frank's team is aware of. Any hope of success hinges on their willingness to accept the fact that even their cutting-edge science has its limits, and that the ancient wisdom of the Inuit people who once inhabited this eerie land is as essential as any serum. Frank soon finds himself in a brutal race against time. With a young, strong-willed Inuit woman by his side, he must put a deadly genie back in the bottle before all of humanity pays the price.
Robert Masello
Robert Masello is an award-winning journalist, television writer, and bestselling author of many novels and nonfiction books. His historical thrillers with a supernatural bent have been published in seventeen languages and include The Night Crossing, The Jekyll Revelation, The Romanov Cross, The Medusa Amulet, Blood and Ice, and the Amazon Charts bestseller The Einstein Prophecy. His articles and essays have appeared in such prominent publications as the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, New York magazine, People, Newsday, Parade, Glamour, Town & Country, Travel + Leisure, and the Wilson Quarterly. An honors graduate of Princeton University, Masello has also taught and lectured nationwide, from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism to Claremont McKenna College, where he served as visiting lecturer in literature for six years. A long-standing member of the Writers Guild of America, he now lives in Santa Monica, California. You may visit him at www.robertmasello.com.
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Reviews for The Romanov Cross
55 ratings7 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The best way I could think to describe this book is "supernatural biological thriller". It's also a testament to Murphy's Law. Interesting premise, using throwbacks in history to convey the story. I really cannot say much more about the story without giving away plot points, but you have a Russian Grand Duchess, a mad monk, a remote Alaskan island, wolves, a somewhat disgraced epidemiologist, a Russian geologist, an Inuit mayor, and two criminal brothers who are the most idiotic, hapless pair you ever met. Add in the aurora borealis and amazing Alaskan setting, and I found myself almost overwhelmed with the cast of characters! Good read, though. I might try his stuff again. (This one was definitely not in my normal wheelhouse, but the cover and blurb were intriguing enough to get me to check it out of the library.)
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I can see this being made into a movie, or at least, I hope it is!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5In The Romanov Cross, author Robert Masello combines a historical mystery with the heart pounding action of a thriller. After facing military ramifications for his maverick behavior, Dr. Frank Slater is sent to the graveyard on St. Peter's Island in Alaska to see if he can isolate the 1918 flu virus from any remains and hopefully head off a flu pandemic. Unknown to him, however, is the existence of a treasure, an emerald encrusted cross, that is going to put treasure hunters on the same island and set into motion a devastating chain of events. The cross points to the survival of
Anastasia Romanov, the youngest daughter of the last czar of Russia.
There is a lot going on in this novel, but the story lines are easy to follow and the action moves along at a brisk pace. While I could introduce more of the various characters and their plans, rest assured that this is a perfect summer read. The events may move along quickly, but the characters and their stories are all well developed. Masello brilliantly divulges just enough information as the novel unfolds to keep you engrossed in what will happen next.
While I enjoyed The Romanov Cross immensely, I kept thinking I had read it before, or certainly a novel that had some of the same components in its plot: Anastasia, Alaska (or Canada) and the 1918 flu and a present day doctor searching for victims buried in the permafrost. But a name or author didn't present themselves to my memory so perhaps I'm cobbling several other books that did come to mind together and thinking they were one book like The Romanov Cross. Does it matter? Probably not since these are all plot elements that have certainly been in more than one novel.
Very highly recommended - this one is for all the action/adventure junkies out there looking for a well written summer fix/thrill.
Disclosure: My Kindle edition was courtesy of Random House via Netgalley for review purposes. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Anastasia supernatural in legend to some, is present through the mists and dangers of time. Once again criminal minds think of her wealth the royal treasure; when they gain knowledge of the scientist’s mission. Their actions leave them without protection as terrifying dangers evolve from the cunning guardian wolves. Kozak and Slater fellow scientist’s research in Alaska, a world saturated with a deadly virus. Vicious wolves appear and scientists fight for their own lives. They are caught in the virus contamination that could lead to a disaster of epic proportions. Gripping suspense unfolds in each thrilling trial for their survival. I recommend this book.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5There is something endlessly fascinating about the Romanovs. Last Tsar of Russia, Alexie the son with the crippling illness, Rasputin the mad monk, the exile and brutal murder of the royal family, and the rumors of a survivor along with the mystery of the missing Romanov jewels. This is just part of the backdrop of The Romanov Cross by Robert Masello. When a ship off the coast of Alaska sinks in the Bering Strait and a survivor clings to the lid of a coffin his fishing boat has caught, the army sends a disgraced former soldier and epidemiologist, Frank Slater, to investigate. The island graveyard dates from the early part of the 20th century and no one knows if the victims may host a viable virus from one of the deadliest plagues ever to walk the earth, the spanish flu, and if the melting permafrost is about to once again unleash it.Masello works back and forth between the time of the Russian revolution and the eventual journey of Anastasia to a remote island between Russia and Alaska where followers of Rasputin have settled and the present time where Slater and his team try to investigate and contain the potentially deadly virus.Masello’s character and settings really come alive. His description of the harsh climate will make you feel the cold. The main characters as well as the supporting cast in both timelines are three-dimensional and substantial. The locales, both real and fictitious, are vivid. Both storylines are compelling and the suspense as they converge is real. There is a sense of the supernatural about the story as well, which works well with the myths surrounding Rasputin, and this atmosphere lends itself to the tension of the story. Robert Masello brilliantly works facts, supposition and invention together to create a plausible, thrilling and haunting story. This is a book not to be missed. Highly recommended.I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5THE ROMANOV CROSS is the first book I've read by this author I'm sorry to say. Taking place against fictional Alaska settings and involving Russian history, the author takes his readers on a journey through time and along the way introduces us to some Native American beliefs, romance, the Spanish flu and it's devastation, not to mention poses a solution to where the royal Romanov family ended up. One of the best things about the story, is that it introduces a little of US history, by telling how Alaska and parts of the west were acquired from Russia.When you finish the story, you look up and are surprised to find that time has passed without you realising it, leaving you wanting more. Thanks to the little mouse and eagle at the end, it gives the reader hope of seeing more of what happens in the modern day when the world is faced with a pandemic in this authors mind.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is a story within a story, it begins in 1918 with the arrival of Grand Duchess Anastasia on St Peter Island in Alaska unknowingly carrying a disease that would eventually kill all. It then continues to present day with Dr Frank Slater and his teams trying to determine if the Spanish Flu is still viable. This is a story filled with history,chaos,paranormal,death,investigation and of course a little romance.I enjoyed this book immensely.