The Mirrored World

Dean, Debra

ISBN 10: 0061231452 / ISBN 13: 9780061231452

Published by Harper Collins, New York, New York, 1912

About this Item

Hardcover. A fine copy in a fine dust jacket. The book is signed on the title page by the writer, Debra Dean. She is the writer of The Madonnas of Leningrad. Ms Dean is a member of the Creative Writing School at the University of Florida International in Miami.

Seller Inventory # 006756

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Mirrored World
• Publisher: Harper Collins, New York, New York
• Publication Date: 1912
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0061231452
• ISBN 13: 9780061231452
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Fine
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

Set in the royal court in 18th-century St. Petersburg, a sweeping historical novel follows Xenia, who, after tragedy strikes her family, undergoes a profound transformation that radically alters the course of her life and instills fear in the heart of the new empress, Catherine. 75,000 first printing.

From the Back Cover

The bestselling author of The Madonnas of Leningrad returns with a breathtaking novel of love, madness, and devotion set against the extravagant royal court of eighteenth-century St. Petersburg.

Born to a Russian family of lower nobility, Xenia, an eccentric dreamer who cares little for social conventions, falls in love with Andrei, a charismatic soldier and singer in the Empress's Imperial choir. Though husband and wife adore each other, their happiness is overshadowed by the absurd demands of life at the royal court and by Xenia's growing obsession with having a child—a desperate need that is at last fulfilled with the birth of her daughter. But then a tragic vision comes true, and a shattered Xenia descends into grief, undergoing a profound transformation that alters the course of her life. Turning away from family and friends, she begins giving all her money and possessions to the poor. Then, one day, she mysteriously vanishes.

Years later, dressed in the tatters of her husband's military uniform and answering only to his name, Xenia is discovered tending the paupers of St. Petersburg's slums. Revered as a soothsayer and a blessed healer to the downtrodden, she is feared by the royal court and its new Empress, Catherine, who perceives her deeds as a rebuke to their lavish excesses. In this evocative and elegantly written tale, Dean reimagines the intriguing life of Xenia of St. Petersburg, a patron saint of her city and one of Russia's most mysterious and beloved holy figures. This is an exploration of the blessings of loyal friendship, the limits of reason, and the true costs of loving deeply.