“The combined romance of the ambitious empress, the fate and forays of great art, and the joys of maritime archaeology make this an inspiring, completely riveting read.” Inspiring! Completely riveting! The Historical Novel Society has posted a stellar review of The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure (even though it’s not a historical novel). Read the Historical Novel Society review here.
Check it out: the The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure in PAPERBACK! Now available at your favorite bookstore. Buy The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure in paperback here…
Just when we started to think the world had forgotten about The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure, our editor sends us a fantastic review in Wreckwatch Magazine. (Who knew there was such a magazine? I sure didn’t. But I’m glad there is!)
“The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure is a wreck detective story with many twists, branching out into the art collecting history of the Tsars and Baltic relations in the 18th century. With its deep research and gripping story-telling, it is a tour de force that uses the sunken past as a launchpad into royal biography and a golden age of art and commerce.” You have to subscribe to read the full review, but it’s free! Read the review in Wreckwatch Magazine…
The new maritime archeology museum finally opened in Stockholm – the long-awaited Vrak Museum of Wrecks. The museum is located in the Royal Djurgarden, a delightful island with a slew of parks and museums. In fact, it is located right next to the fabulous Vasa Museum, so a visitor might spend the whole day immersed in underwater adventures.
And yes, the Vrak Museum of Wrecks includes an exhibit about the Vrouw Maria. Here’s the quick blurb about the wreck that is on the museum website. But that’s just a teaser. As far as I understand, the museum exhibit features the latest and greatest in interactive 3D modeling. So it offers the most complete look you can get at the Vrouw Maria, short of diving down into the Baltic depths yourself.
By the way, the Vrak Museum of Wrecks is also utilizing our map—normally found in the endpapers of The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure—in their educational materials. So if you can’t make it to Stockholm right now, you know what the next best thing is, right? Reread The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure!
“This book is for anyone who wants to learn more about art history or the role of ships in eighteenth-century transport, or who likes to empathize with historical characters. There is really not a single boring sentence… You just want to read on.” What a fantastic review of De verzonken kunstschatten van de Vrouw Maria (The Sunken Treasures of the Vrouw Maria) on the Dutch website NEMO Kennislink. With accompanying podcast if you happen to understand Dutch. Read the NEMO Kennislink Review here…
Do you love: Shipwrecks, world-class art, treasure hunting, history, palace intrigue, power struggles and suspense? The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure has all of this, and more. The premise is simple: Catherine the Great bought some of the finest art in the world; while it was being shipped from the Netherlands to Russia, the ship went down off the coast of Finland in a Baltic storm. Hundreds of years later, a crafty treasure hunter is out to find the ship and its loot. Read the review by Michael Daswick…
TODAY is the day that readers all over Finland finally get their long-awaited copies of The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure. Knowing the Finns, there are probably stampedes at the libraries and brawls in the bookstores. The book has a different publisher (Docendo), a different cover, and a different title (again). It translates as Vrouw Maria and the Lost Treasure of Catherine the Great.
We don’t love the cartoonish cover. And nevermind that the boat looks nothing like the Vrouw Maria nor does the treasure look anything like the real treasure. But our book is out in Finland! See or order the Finnish version from Docendo…
“What’s better than going on a treasure hunt? Reading about a treasure hunt from the safety of your own home. You won’t get rich, but you’ll get a lot less dirt in your shoes.” The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure makes Book Riot’s list of real-life treasure hunt books. There we are, right between Robert Kurson and Gary Kinder. Read Book Riot’s recommendations for real-life treasure hunt books…
“The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure” offers readers a fascinating tale. It wanders from field to field, holding readers at each long enough to maintain interest and wanting more, yet compelling them to move to the next. It is history at its finest. Read the review of Tsarina on Ricochet…
It’s not the strongest endorsement we’ve ever received. Nonetheless, we are pleased that The Tsarina’s Lost Treasure continues to get attention from book bloggers and reviewers. This month, Meaghan Walsh Gerard includes Tsarina on her list of Books for February. She writes “This is an extremely detailed history of the old Dutch Masters. The writers have documented every home owned, every student taught, every art show mounted, every brush used by these artists. The other half of the book is a detailed history of Russian imperial court, palace intrigues, and Catherine the Great. It’s interesting but dense, so be prepared.” See the complete list of Books for February and read the reviews here…
