![]() ![]() The novel ends as the stories collide in 1918. The novel switches between chapters entitled “Anna,” (which begin 1970 and then move backwards through time) and ones entitled “Anastasia," (which begin in 1917 and move forward). The novel tells two stories simultaneously, that of the young Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov during the Russian Revolution as her family is dethroned and shipped off to exile, and the other of a mysterious woman called Anna, who claims to be Anastasia and to have escaped the firing squad that destroyed the rest of her family. In the end, “I Was Anastasia”’s promising concept sets expectations high, which makes the novel’s less-than-perfect execution slightly disappointing. The epigraph is an omen of what is to come: a novel with an interesting story and refreshing structure that falls slightly short. Ariel Lawhon’s novel “I Was Anastasia” opens with an epigraph, a bold assertion from the iconic novelist Rudyard Kipling: “If history were taught in the form of stories, it would never be forgotten.” It’s a powerful sentiment, compelling yet undoubtedly grandiose. ![]()
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