Feb 04, 2005 07:00 PM
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(Updated Feb 04, 2005 07:00 PM)
Zoya is an exciting book written by Danielle Steel.
Historic Background:
Bolshevik Revolution, Soviet Union, 1916-17.
General Theme:
A story of peace and intense human emotion in the backdrop of a war-ravaged society. Although not a war-ravaged in its true sense, it was a boiling pot of revolution during that time.
Brief Plot:
The main character of the story is Zoya Konstantinova Ossupov, who is a rich Russian countess who leads a easy and luxurious life at St. Petersburg. When the Bolshevik revolution started, her guardians sent her away from Russia. She travelled in Europe and then landed up in the United States, where she found her long-lost peace and settlement.
Plot Revealed:
The countess was related to the CZAR, and anyone, who knows anything about the Bolshevik revolution knows that the it was directed against the rule of CZar in Russia. In the revolution, her mantion is stormed and her brothers are killed. She and her grandmother survives that attack, but is traumatized. The skill of the author is clear in the way the reaction of the grandmother is described, when she sees her dead son. It is poignant and heart-touching.
Zoya flees to Paris, along with her grandmother, pet dog and a servant. The name of the dog is Sava. At Paris, in a ballet, Zoya meets Captain Clayton, they fall in love and marry. She has 2 children in that marriage. Again, a great tragedy befell her, when her husband dies and she is penniless again, and this time, with 2 children to take care of.
Eventually, Zoya opens a store ''Countess Zoya'', and meets another person called Simon. They marry, and Zoya became expectant again. Her 2 children, Nicky and Shasha are young adults now. Then, world war2 breaks out, and Simon dies in that. Heart-broken Zoya realized that she lost a lot of people who were indeed close to her.
I will not detail out the middle, but in the end, Zoya makes a trip to her homeland with Zoe, her granddaughter from Shasha. Her daughter's marriage to an useless husband is dealt with rather sharply.
This is amazing: Zoya left Russia with her grandmother, and now, she has her granddaughter and she is the grandmother.
I urge all to read the book.
Thanks for reading through.
