Review: The Bronze Horesman by Paullina Simons

I was hoping to like this book a lot more than I did. I have a very strong interest in things associated with WWII and also a strange fascination with Russia, so this book seemed perfect for me.  I was specifically searching for a book, a historical romance of some sort, based in Russia during WWII and saw this mentioned and it was only 1.99 on amazon.  Several people I follow on twitter had mentioned loving this book, so I was eager to read it. 

 

I liked the book, but I wasn't blown away by it, the way I expected to be.  I really didn't like Tatiana very much, she was a little too perfect, too heroic, too selfless. She's so childlike. There seemed to be something disturbing about a grown man being so attracted to someone who acted like such a child - I get that he was drawn to her innocence while surrounded by the horrors of war, but still. Even after they're married, she's wanting to play games with him all the time. Also, near the end of the book, I grew so tired of the "it's a sign from God" statements she kept making. She's surrounded by sickness and starvation and death and perfect little Tatiania is so arrogant as to think for some reason God has singled her out to save, but he cares nothing for the bodies piling up in the snow on the side of the street?  (That's one of those things that always bothers me when people start involving God in tragedies. When someone says, "God saved my child" and to me I'm hearing, God neglected the people who died.)

The story did hold my interest, I'd been worried about the length, but finished it in about a week, reading the last 50% in one night. But despite being interested in what happened to the characters, I didn't feel a strong connection to the characters. Their story didn't break my heart as I expected it should. (Also, I know that there are two sequels, so the ending isn't as devastating as it might have been had I not known there were sequels.) I don't feel any strong compulsion to read the sequels. Maybe if I ever see them at the library or I can find them at a deep discount. But at the moment, too many other books I want to read more. 

 

Suffice it to say I'm still in search of a great Russian romance/war story.  I've got a list, but welcome any suggestions.