Death in St. Petersburg

A Lady Emily Mystery

By: Tasha Alexander

Narrated by: Bianca Amato

"Amato's narration is easy to listen to, and her accents are excellent." — AudioFile Magazine

From New York Times bestselling author Tasha Alexander comes the latest installment in the Lady Emily series. Death in St. Petersburg is a gripping new audiobook that will mesmerize fans of historical fiction and classic mysteries alike.

After the final curtain of Swan Lake, an animated crowd exits the Mariinsky theatre brimming with excitement from the night’s performance. But outside the scene is somber. A ballerina’s body lies face down in the snow, blood splattered like rose petals over the costume of the Swan Queen. The crowd is silenced by a single cry— “Nemetseva is dead!”

Amongst the theatergoers is Lady Emily, accompanying her dashing husband Colin in Russia on assignment from the Crown. But it soon becomes clear that Colin isn’t the only one with work to do. When the dead ballerina’s aristocratic lover comes begging for justice, Emily must apply her own set of skills to discover the rising star’s murderer. Her investigation takes her on a dance across the stage of Tsarist Russia, from the opulence of the Winter Palace, to the modest flats of ex-ballerinas and the locked attics of political radicals.

A mysterious dancer in white follows closely behind, making waves through St. Petersburg with her surprise performances and trail of red scarves. Is it the sweet Katenka, Nemetseva’s childhood friend and favorite rival? The ghost of the murdered étoile herself? Or, something even more sinister?

©2017 Tasha Alexander (P)2017 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"[Bianca] Amato's narration is easy to listen to, and her accents are excellent." -AudioFile

Bianca Amato is Amazing!

The audio version wouldn’t be the same without Ms. Amato’s narration. Her ability to pronounce many of the Russian locations, speak with a Russian accent, and also carry many different male and female parts was pure joy.

Good

The back and forth was not enjoyable, but the story line and characters were interesting

Wonderful

I love these stories. The settings are exciting and the descriptions bring them to life. This mystery had much going on that kept me riveted to the story. Knowing history and what happens in a few years made the setting a little sad but didn't take away from the story it's
self.

Somewhat confusing

I am not a fan of switching between a backstory and the “present” as it can be confusing and interrupts the flow of the narrative

decent story but not great

I really like the series but this one not so much...just not equal plot to earlier books.

Lady Emily did not disappoint. Great storyline

I Love the Narrator and the flow of the storyline. Great job, Tasha! I am looking forward to the next episode.

The best yet

My favorite Lady Emily story. Ms. Alexander is at her best once again. I can’t wait for her next book.

Yet another triumph

Loved this story and the careful, rich descriptions of the Romanov court just 17 years before it came to an end.

Death in St Petersburg

Another entertaining story. It did get a little tedious with the back and forth of the character

Interesting history in Russia and how the times where about to change

Looking forward to the next adventure!

Hated to review harshly

I truly have loved Tasha Alexander. What I don’t love is the manner in which she is essentially writing two books. I almost gave up on the book about a third of the way through because the dual narratives just did not work for me. Not wanting to miss Lady Emily and her “posse,” I decided to simply skip the other narrative, the story of the Russian ballerinas, and read the straightforward tale set in the present. The continuous worked perfectly, and I was satisfied.

I don’t have cognitive difficulty with dual narratives, but it seems that integration is often the problem. When the narratives are not linked, except at the very end, as in this novel, I feel there is little art involved.

Perhaps someday I shall go back and read the Russian tale. I sincerely hope that this novel does not presage the future Lady Emily novels. This was such a disappointment.