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Rasputin
- Author
- Antony Beevor
- Narrator
- Rob Heaps
- Publisher
- Orion
- Publish Date
- 12 March 2026
- Run Time
- 11 hours 15 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
- Genre
- General and world history, Animism / Shamanism, Slavic religion and mythology, Biography: historical, political and military
- Rating
- 4.0 (1 review)
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What to expect
THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
'THE GOLD STANDARD OF NARRATIVE HISTORY' DAN SNOW
'ONE OF THE GREAT STORIES OF HISTORY, TOLD BY ONE OF OUR GREATEST HISTORIANS' SIMON SEBAG MONTEFIORE
'THIS EXTRAORDINARY STORY HAS NEVER BEEN BETTER TOLD' ANTHONY HOROWITZ
'A STUNNING BANQUET OF A BOOK' ROSE TREMAIN
How could a barely literate peasant from Siberia determine the fate of the world? Undoubtedly, the so-called 'mad monk' Rasputin bewitched Tsar Nicholas II and his wife, Alexandra. Yet their strange and scandalous relationship conceals a riddle, one that casts an intriguing light on the controversial 'great man' theory of history.
Rasputin was a devoted monarchist, not a revolutionary. He had no official position, no forces at his command. Nevertheless, he contributed more to the fall of the Romanov dynasty than any other individual. So demoralised was the Tsarist officer corps by stories of corruption, to say nothing of the rumours of his debauchery with the Empress - and even her daughters - that when the February Revolution broke out, not a sword was raised in defence of the regime.
Just as Rasputin cast a spell over the Romanovs, his legend has bewitched historians. More than a century later, we still fail to comprehend fully the collapse of the greatest autocracy on Earth. Was there any truth to the wild tales that brought down the empire? Or was his true legacy an unsettling lesson on the potency of myth?
From the bestselling author of Stalingrad comes a fascinating and deeply insightful historical post-mortem
Critics Review
-
Beevor is one of our finest narrative historians, with sharp judgment, a sweet pen and a deep understanding of the world in which he works... [A] beautifully written, clear-eyed biography of a very Russian tragedy. Rasputin is a meditation on history as well as a masterclass in smooth, judicious prose
THE TIMES
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Beevor finds a fresh angle . . . An exceptionally well-sourced, morally serious and often darkly comic account of how a barely literate peasant from Siberia came to precipitate the collapse of one of the greatest autocracies in the world
SPECTATOR
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A fantastic, vivid portrait not only of Rasputin but of the twilight of imperial Russia. And if the story sometimes reads like dark political farce - a drunken peasant advising an empress while ministers tumble from office - that is because, as Beevor demonstrates so convincingly, it very nearly was
INDEPENDENT
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There have been many books written about [Rasputin], but none as well-honed as this one. Beevor, arguably Britain's greatest living historian, has a remarkable capacity to make complex topics comprehensible and downright fun. Simple sentences convey complicated ideas mellifluously. The author mixes intelligent analysis with bizarre anecdote, never quite camouflaging his fondness for gossip. His narrative is packed with bizarre characters-a cross-dressing assassin, a minister afflicted with syphilitic insanity, a gaggle of grand ladies in thrall to a narcissistic charlatan. The drama builds to a crescendo as Rasputin shatters a brittle autocracy
AIR MAIL
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-
A marvellously readable account
IRISH INDEPENDENT
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A stunning achievement of psychological insight, deep research, and evocative prose that adds to his illustrious career as a chronicler of the 20th century, Antony Beevor's Rasputin not only captures the mysterious Siberian holy man in all his bizarre complexity - the feverish religiosity, the preening ambition, the drunken lust as well as the sincere concern for the peasantry and fear of war - but also paints a vivid portrait of tsarist Russia hurtling toward the abyss. A must read for understanding the epic downfall of the Romanov dynasty
DOUGLAS SMITH, author, Rasputin: Faith, Power, and the Twilight of the Romanovs
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Totally fascinating, compelling and beautifully written. In its deep political and psychological understanding of Rasputin, the Romanovs and Russia itself, it's intriguing and original. One of the great stories of history, told by one of our greatest historians
SIMON SEBAG MONTEFIORE
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We have come to expect narrative clarity from Antony Beevor, and in his latest book, he doesn't disappoint. Pushing away the myths and legends that surround Rasputin, Beevor brings us a plausible psychological portrait, a very readable account of an extraordinary life, and a tale of autocratic decline with plenty of contemporary analogies, for readers who care to see them
ANNE APPLEBAUM
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Who was Grigory Rasputin? Shaman, healer, abuser of women, favourite of the Tsaritsa, this is the peasant who altered Russian history. In this stunning banquet of a book, Antony Beevor gives us the rich and ripe flavour of his shape-shifting powers
ROSE TREMAIN
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From Antony Beevor's scrupulous history, Rasputin emerges as even more bizarre and fascinating than the creature of popular myth
SEBASTIAN FAULKS
-
Incisive and illuminating. This extraordinary story has never been better told
ANTHONY HOROWITZ
-
For well over a generation, Beevor has been the gold standard of narrative history
DAN SNOW
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A wonderful book. Beevor has written a brilliant and vivid account of how a barely literate peasant beguiled the Romanovs, and helped plunge imperial Russia into chaos and revolution. Rasputin's fantastical story anticipates our own truth-challenged times, when myth and fake news can be more potent than reality
LUKE HARDING, Orwell Prize-shortlisted author of Invasion: Russia's Bloody War and Ukraine's Fight for Survival
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An unputdownable account of a unique figure in history
SHORTLIST
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Scrupulously documented, erudite and entertaining history
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD
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A great read for anyone who, like me, is fascinated by cult-like figures, aristocratic decadence, corruption, and the spectacular downfalls of the powerful
DAZED
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Beevor blends arresting imagery, bizarre details, and mordant observation . . . Brisk, engaging history. An informative page-turner
KIRKUS
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Superb
DAILY MAIL
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There are fewer finer English-writing historians than Antony Beevor, and there are few more fascinating life stories than Rasputin's . . . Beevor's beguiling story explains the Romanov dynasty's downfall and the violent birth throes of communism
IRISH EXAMINER
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Beevor's book pulls at the threads of history
IRISH TIMES
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Antony Beevor cuts through the myth-making to give us a fascinating, evidence-based biography that absorbs throughout . . . This readable and wonderfully informative biography opens a window on to the fantasy world of the Russian royal couple
NEW STATESMAN, Best Non-fiction of 2026
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Crisply written and swiftly narrated: it tells a very good story
TELEGRAPH
User Reviews
Book 4.0
Narration 4.0
-
4.0 4.0
Very informative about a period of history I am now more informed than I was before listening
ring01 2026-08-18
Details
- Author
- Antony Beevor
- Narrator
- Rob Heaps
- Duration
- 11 hours 15 minutes
- Release Date
- 12 March 2026
- ISBN
- 9781399617659
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Orion
- Genre
- General and world history, Animism / Shamanism, Slavic religion and mythology, Biography: historical, political and military
- Rating
- 4.0(1 review)
- Narration
- 4.0(1 review)
Synopsis
Rasputin: visionary, fraud or victim of history? THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'THE GOLD STANDARD OF NARRATIVE HISTORY' DAN SNOW'ONE OF THE GREAT STORIES OF HISTORY, TOLD BY ONE OF OUR GREATEST HISTORIANS' SIMON SEBAG MONTEFIORE'THIS EXTRAORDINARY STORY HAS NEVER BEEN BETTER TOLD' ANTHONY HOROWITZ'A STUNNING BANQUET OF A BOOK' ROSE TREMAINHow could a barely literate peasant from Siberia determine the fate of the world? Undoubtedly, the so-called 'mad monk' Rasputin bewitched Tsar Nicholas II and his wife, Alexandra. Yet their strange and scandalous relationship conceals a riddle, one that casts an intriguing light on the controversial 'great man' theory of history.Rasputin was a devoted monarchist, not a revolutionary. He had no official position, no forces at his command. Nevertheless, he contributed more to the fall of the Romanov dynasty than any other individual. So demoralised was the Tsarist officer corps by stories of corruption, to say nothing of the rumours of his debauchery with the Empress - and even her daughters - that when the February Revolution broke out, not a sword was raised in defence of the regime.Just as Rasputin cast a spell over the Romanovs, his legend has bewitched historians. More than a century later, we still fail to comprehend fully the collapse of the greatest autocracy on Earth. Was there any truth to the wild tales that brought down the empire? Or was his true legacy an unsettling lesson on the potency of myth?From the bestselling author of Stalingrad comes a fascinating and deeply insightful historical post-mortem
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