On the red staircase

"On the Red Staircase" by Mary Imlay Taylor is a captivating historical novel set in Russia after Czar Feodor's death, a time riddled with political unrest. The book introduces key characters like Patriarch Joachim, who is in charge of choosing the next czar, the power-hungry Czarevna Sophia, and Zénaïde, a young girl whose father was killed, throwing her into a world of court secrets and family feuds. A Frenchman named Philippe de Brousson gets pulled into the chaos, seeing the nobility's schemes as young Peter Alexeivitch rises in power. Drawn to Zénaïde and her dangerous situation, Philippe journeys through the treacherous Russian political world, seeking justice and love while dark events threaten to engulf the Kremlin.