I Was Anastasia

**In an enthralling new feat of historical suspense, Ariel Lawhon unravels the extraordinary twists and turns in Anna Anderson's fifty-year battle to be recognized as Anastasia Romanov. Is she the Russian grand duchess, a beloved daughter and revered icon, or is she an imposter, the thief of another woman's legacy?** ***Countless others have rendered their verdict. Now it is your turn.*** ***Russia, July 17, 1918:*** Under direct orders from Vladimir Lenin, Bolshevik secret police force Anastasia Romanov, along with the entire imperial family, into a damp basement in Siberia where they face a merciless firing squad. None survive. At least that is what the executioners have always claimed. ***Germany, February 17, 1920:*** A young woman bearing an uncanny resemblance to Anastasia Romanov is pulled shivering and senseless from a canal in Berlin. Refusing to explain her presence in the freezing water, she is taken to the hospital, where an examination reveals that her body is riddled with countless horrific scars. When she finally does speak, this frightened, mysterious woman claims to be the Russian grand duchess, Anastasia. Her detractors, convinced that hte young woman is only afte