Heart of Iron

by Ekaterina Sedia

Overview

In a Russia where the Decembrists’ rebellion was successful and the Trans-Siberian railroad was completed before 1854, Sasha Trubetskaya wants nothing more than to have a decent debut ball in St. Petersburg. But her aunt’s feud with the emperor lands Sasha at university, where she becomes one of its first female students—an experiment, she suspects, designed more to prove female unsuitability for such pursuits than offer them education. The pressure intensifies when Sasha’s only friends—Chinese students—start disappearing, and she begins to realize that her new British companion, Jack, has bigger secrets than she can imagine!

Sasha and Jack find themselves trying to stop a war brewing between the three empires. The only place they can turn to for help is the Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace, newly founded by the Taiping rebels. Pursued by the terrifying Dame Florence Nightingale of the British Secret Service, Sasha and Jack escape across Siberia via train to China. Sasha discovers that Jack is not quite the person she thought he was . . . but then again, neither is she.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940154299050
Publisher:	Prime Books
Publication date:	12/18/2013
Sold by:	Draft2Digital
Format:	eBook
File size:	375 KB

Editorial Reviews

Gr 10 Up—Sedia has created a story replete with often-absurd adventure and excessive complication. Sasha Trubetskaya develops from a 10-year-old girl in 1852 looking forward to her debut in St. Petersburg to a university student who is determined to stop a war among three powers. One of a few women invited to attend, she suspects that they have been set up to fail to prove that women are intellectually inferior, and she is determined to succeed. Sasha's friendship with Chiang Tse and other Chinese students explodes into a life of intrigue and danger for her. Jack Bartram, an English student, becomes a principal player in the story, but, as with so much else in the novel, he is not always what he seems. Sasha is amazed by the supernatural abilities he uses to save her from harm when a Chinese club is invaded by the secret police. Sedia's writing style is rich and colorful and many of her characters are well developed, but the plot is confusing and rambling. The second half of the story concentrates on Sasha's arduous journey to China with Jack. They travel on the trans-Siberian railroad, a Chinese airship, and a submarine to deliver a message that she hopes will result in an alliance between Russia and China against Britain. The author has jammed far too many events and ideas into this sometimes riveting steampunk novel that combines realism with fantasy. Though readers might be compelled to plod through the confusing plot, many of them are likely to give up along the way.—Renee Steinberg, formerly at Fieldstone Middle School, Montvale, NJ

School Library Journal