The House of Special Purpose

[The House of Special Purpose]
Year: 
2009
Type: 
Public: 
Publisher: 
Doubleday
Year of publication: 
2009
Pages: 
432
Moral assessment: 
Type: Literature
Nothing inappropriate.
Some morally inappropriate content.
Contains significant sections contrary to faith or morals.
Contains some lurid passages, or presents a general ideological framework that could confuse those without much Christian formation.
Contains several lurid passages, or presents an ideological framework that is contrary or foreign to Christian values.
Explicitly contradicts Catholic faith or morals, or is directed against the Church and its institutions.
Literary quality: 
Recommendable: 
Transmits values: 
Sexual content: 
Violent content: 
Vulgar or obscene language: 
Ideas that contradict Church teaching: 
The rating of the different categories comes from the opinion of Delibris' collaborators

A book set in three moments of the 20th century; one before 1917, another around that year and a third, years later, until 1981. Georgi is a young man from a Russian village. The passing of a nobleman, a relative of the Tsar, is a source of interest in the village. Unexpectedly, a young man pulls out a pistol with the intention of shooting Duke Nicholas. Georgi, on impulse, stands protecting the nobleman with his body. This event changes his life; he is taken to the palace and is put in charge of taking care of the only male member of Nicholas II's family. The character of the Tsarina, the role played by Rasputin in the court, the development of the First World War, the first revolution, the falling in love with Anastasia, daughter of the Tsar and Georgi... Over the years, he lives in London and takes care of his wife Zoya. The grief for the loss of his daughter Arina, is one of the aspects that are treated in the story.

He describes well the years at the Russian court, especially the last two. The ending is like a mosaic that makes sense when the final piece is placed and the whole makes full sense. It is a book written with ability to conjugate diverse planes, in characters and times. Entertaining and interesting, because the suspense of the story is almost permanent. It is preferable to describe it as a novel, because although it has a good historical setting, its content is more typical of the novel genre than of a historical novel.

Author: José Manuel Mañú, Spain
Update on: Aug 2024

Other review

Moral Assessment: 

While accompanying his wife Zoya, who is in the throes of death in a London hospital, Georgi Danilovich Yáchmenev reminisces about the life they have shared for sixty-five years, a life marked by a great secret that has never come to light. Memories flood in a succession of indelible images, starting from that distant day when Georgi left his miserable hometown to join the personal guard of Alexis Romanov, the only son of Tsar Nicholas II.

History and fiction blend seamlessly, resulting in a perfectly crafted narrative. The era and the story carry a strong component of violence, though without morbidities. Furthermore, the conduct of the characters is impeccable.

C.L. (España, 2009)