Lost Roses: A Novel

“To find the Russian contingent, I simply listened for raised voices, since they were a refreshingly raucous bunch, prone to heated discussions in a mix of French, English, and their native tongue at any time of day.”

This social flexibility and Cross-Cultural Understanding become an underlying thread throughout the novel. French, English, and Russian are all languages that come into play within the story, and the blend of Russian culture with American social practices foreshadows the same dynamic later in the novel. In this way this moment serves as a microcosm of the larger story.

“How unfair it was, to die so young, just so a spoiled woman from Moscow could have her flowers.”

In the early chapters, Sofya is often willfully ignorant of the rampant inequality around her. Here, however, she shows her first glimmers of social awareness. Later, her own flower will become a symbol of survival as she grows to understand more about herself and the world around her.

“Though a dedicated ruler, the tsar was not at all suited to the monarch’s life of high-pressure decisions. He was happiest in the country at his beloved Alexander Palace, with the tsarina and their five children, playing tennis or dominoes.”

The narrator here lists tennis and dominoes as family activities, two things which are intrinsically associated with leisure and wealth. This highlights the emotional distance the tsar’s family has from its people. The image of hiding away in the palace foreshadows the family’s later exile once ousted from the throne and shows that their defeat was ultimately a result of their selfish choices and lack of care for the lower classes.