The Summer Garden: A Love Story (The Bronze Horseman, 3)

Just a warning: remember this is the third book of The Bronze Horseman Series. It may give you an idea of what's to come, even though I'll try my best to keep it spoiler-free, but I can't promise anything. So, if you haven't read the previous two books, you might want to think twice before reading this.The last book. I don't even know how to start this review. This was awful and it was beautiful and it was heartbreaking and it was heart warming. It was everything. It had everything.A while ago, my dear friend LeAnn told me I should read this series, that I needed to read this series. Why it took me so long to finally get to it... I don't know. I still ask myself that same question every single day. But, anyway, here I am, writing my review for one of the most heartbreaking and beautiful stories I've read. It's hard to review a book that made me feel so many things at once, and one that was so horrible and so beautiful, all at the same time. It's hard, but I'll do my best.This is the conclusion of a swoon-worthy, gut-wrenching story. By now we've met and fallen in love with Tatiana Metanova and Alexander Belov-Barrington. Their story hasn't been an easy one, pretty far from it, actually. They've gone from meeting, to going to war, to starving to death, to going to prison, to being tortured, to going to America. They've gone through everything life could throw at them, and then some. No couple should go through that much, not even a fictional one. And they kept fighting and they kept going. That's the beauty of Tatiana and Alexander. They fight and they do everything that's in their power to be with each other, to save each other. This is by far the hardest book of the series. You can't possibly imagine what's going to happen next, but you have this feeling that something is not right.Now, let me tell you a bit of the story. Alexander is back. He's back to his real motherland with Tatiana and their beautiful, and curious, and amazing little boy, Anthony. The bad is behind them, it's in another country, it's in another continent, for that matter. Or at least that's what Tatiana and Alexander are trying to believe, but they know better, and even so, they won't talk about it. They just keep everything in and pretend everything is ok. Which it is, sort of, because they're together and they can work it out.It's not easy, for Alexander or Tatiana to live this new life. They've fought so hard in the past, and now that the enemy is far behind, they don't know what to do. They only have the broken pieces of themselves to pick up, but every day it keeps getting harder and harder to do so. Alexander is constantly lost in his thoughts, he flies away in his mind, remembering what it was like back then, what he saw and experienced, what he lost. Tatiana, on the other hand, keeps trying to make their life something it clearly isn't. Yes, her intentions are good, she only does it to bring him back, but she doesn't really know how to do that. How to do whatever made him happy, to be what made him happy. They're both lost in a different place, and they can't seem to find each other.Oh, but they do. They always do.“I love you. I'm blind for you, wild for you. Sick with you. I told you that our first night together when I asked you to marry me, I am telling you now. Everything that's happened to us, everything, is because I crossed the street for you. I worship you. You know that through and through...”Tatiana is the same she's always been, only she's stronger, if that's even possible. She fights, she falls, she crumbles, and she gets up to keep fighting. Her way of seeing life is so different, full of innocence, and reality, and beauty. She sees life in a completely different way we're all used to read. Of course, she's lived through the hardest times and experienced the hardest situations and has learned the hardest of truths. And somehow she keeps moving, she keeps going, and she keeps hoping everything will turn out just fine. Sometimes, it was so hard for me to understand why she did the things she did, and why she didn't do the things she didn't. She's frustrating, and stubborn and everything in between. But I love her. She's the strongest girl and I love her, and now I miss her.“Alexander, you broke my heart. But for carrying me on your back, for pulling my dying sled, for giving me your last bread, for the body you destroyed for me, for the son you have given me, for the twenty-nine days we lived like Red Birds of Paradise, for all our Naples sands and Napa wines, for all the days you have been my first and last breath, for Orbeli- I will forgive you. ”(Can you hear my heart breaking? No? Well, it is. Again, after reading this)Alexander Barrington. He's a Barrington again. Oh how you broke my heart. I was so, so, so mad at you. I was so angry I even thought about dropping the book. I couldn't take that much, my heart couldn't take it anymore. I can't even think about it without my heart breaking. In this book, he's put in some situations that will test him, that will tempt him, that will destroy him, and Tatiana, and me, and possibly (most likely) you too. He's not an easy guy. He's not the typical moody and mysterious guy. No. Alexander, Shura, is a temperamental man. He's strong, he's passionate, he's jealous, he's stubborn, he's a macho. He's dominant. But he loooooves, and he cares and he fights for what's right, and he knows he's not okay. He knows there's a lot that's wrong in him, and he knows the only way he can be saved is by Tatiana's side. He knows that the only one that can love him, and save him, and do him any kind of good, is Tatiana. So he will fight her, and he will fight for her until he gets her.“I was blinded by stupidity for a brief moment in our life, for a flicker in the eternity in which you and I live, and I stumbled.”You have to love them, suffer with them, hate them, be them, to read this series properly. You live these books, you don't just read them. They'll pull you in from page one and you will experience everything as if it were happening to you. There's no other way. I cried, and punched my pillows, and silent-screamed my frustration and hurt with this book. I needed time to process everything that was happening, and not only that, but I needed time to breathe, to find by breath again, because I kept losing it between sobs.This book was really hard for me. I considered dropping it because it was breaking me. I felt everything they were going through was happening to me, too. So, just a little piece of advice: be patient. Remember why you fell in love with the book in the first place, and keep those memories close, so you have the strength to keep going.But just so you know, just so we're clear... I loved everything about it, except for a few things, but overall... damn. This was so good. The characters are all amazing. The pace of the story is particularly fast in this book, but it's so well explained and detailed, you can't miss anything. The story is beautifully written and it's well beyond perfect. It makes you think, and it makes you feel a thousand things."To cross the street. To follow her. And she will give your life meaning, she will save you. Yes, yes- to cross."

The spectacular, emotional conclusion to my all-time favorite love story! Exhaustingly intense, piercingly agonizing, achingly beautiful, enduringly romantic. I FELT EVERY MOMENT! 6++++ stars!"To cross the street. To follow her. And she will give your life meaning, she will save you. Yes, yes-to cross."How does one get past this series? How can you even begin to compare other love stories to the one of Tatiana and Alexander? You just cannot, I think. The three books will forever sit on a shelf all their own, for what they imparted is an unforgettable story of love and survival... come what may.Book 3, The Summer Garden, is quite different from book 2, which is different from book 1. Each book tells a unique part of their story, of their struggles, of their love. The Bronze Horseman is about Tatiana and Alexander coming together, believing their love is real, unstoppable, forever... alive and burning despite war and starvation. Book 2, Tatiana and Alexander, is about fiercely fighting fate and finding each other in a sea of impossible circumstances... it's about being relentless and unforgiving in your pursuit of happiness. The Summer Garden is a tough read. It's about survival, but this time it's not only about surviving war, it's about surviving time, change, insecurities, pride, betrayal... and all without giving up when it all just seems like too much to bear. Sometimes, I think it's almost easier to survive something tangible like war or hunger, than something as deeply cutting and intangible as a broken heart. A disappointed heart. An angry heart. Matters of the heart consume voraciously, tilting the world on its axis until you don't know what's wrong and what's right... where the blurry line solidifies to become one moment too many to keep enduring before calling it quits. Or is there really an uncrossable line when it comes to your soul mate?"Where was he, her Alexander, of once? Was he truly gone? The Alexander of the Summer Garden, of their first Lazarevo days, of the hat in his hands, white toothed, peaceful, laughing, languid, stunning Alexander, had he been left far behind?Well, Tatiana supposed that was only right.For Alexander believed his Tatiana of once was gone, too. The swimming child Tatiana of the Luga, of the Neva, of the River Kama.Perhaps on the surface they were still in their twenties, but their hearts were old."Coming back from the pulse-pumping experience of Alexander's almost life-claiming liberation, I felt an overwhelming sense of relief. But that feel-good feeling quickly vanishes as we realize that Alexander struggles to adjust to civilian life, retreating into himself and becoming a hard, cold, callous person."His eyes, once like caramel, were now hard copper, nothing liquid or flowing in them. He turned his polite face to hear, and she turned her polite face back. He wanted quiet, she gave him plenty. He wanted to go for a walk, she was ready. He wanted newspapers, magazines, cigarettes, she brought them all. He wanted to sit mutely in his chair; she sat mutely on the ground by his side. Anything he wanted, she was ready at any moment to give him."For me, being so invested in their relationship, this part of the book was really painful and heartbreaking to read and it felt very REAL. Their closeness and intensity became a frigid façade... a widening chasm that continued to expand. This was a chasm widened by pride, insecurities, fear and even love, because if they didn't love each other so ardently, they wouldn't have shattered hearts. Their relationship thrived in the violent throes of war and the pressing intensity of their struggles, so suddenly, when they begin a new life in the quiet of everyday trifles, everything comes apart."That's the chasm. You go through something that changes you. You see things you can't unsee. Then you are sleepwalking through your actual life, shell-shocked."Then, on top of that, their safety comes into question again, and the stress I thought I left behind in book 2 emerged again, and I was fearful that they were never going to have peace."What if this little life, us, is all just an illusion and will soon be gone."And then LIFE... FATE... continue to push and push and it all begins to unravel even after some possibly unforgivable choices. I felt so betrayed, crushed and saddened. I just FELT and FELT and FELT EVERYTHING. I found it quite interesting that at this point, I am SO deeply connected with these characters, so understanding of what they've been through, that I no longer saw their faults... I saw their humanity. I love Tatiana and Alexander... for every flaw, for their fighting spirit, for their fiercely stubborn love and even for their unwavering pride."Alexander, you broke my heart. But for carrying me on your back, for pulling my dying sled, for giving me your last bread, for the body you destroyed for me, for the son you have given me, for the twenty-nine days we lived like Red Birds of Paradise, for all our Naples sands and Napa wines, for all the days you have been my first and last breath, for Orbeli- I will forgive you."The Summer Garden spans years, and you really see their life unfold moment by moment, year by year. Their memories were my memories... I LIVED IT. I FELT IT. I was so emotional during this book, so vulnerable, so impacted by everything that happened. I was a big, fat, ugly mess of tears the last 30% or so of the book and by the end I was sobbing. It's incredibly difficult to summarize my thoughts on this book and the series, but there's a few important things I want to impart. First off, the writing is stellar. Stunning. Amazing. Perfection. Poetic. Throw every praising adjective you can at it... it's brilliant. Secondly, because of the writing, because of the story, I just FELT the entire series. I was deeply, emotionally moved... so much so, that I know for a fact that I will never forget this story. It's an instant classic, belonging in the ranks of all the greats. Thirdly, Tatiana has become my favorite female character... her strength and selflessness is inspiring. I was in awe at her uncrushable spirit and her limitless capacity for love. Lastly, this is the most amazing love story ever told. What else can I say? I'm so sad to have come to the end of this experience... exhaustingly intense, piercingly agonizing, achingly beautiful and enduringly romantic. My all-time favorite series. Numero 1. A million bright, shining stars!"I don't want this life to end," said Alexander. "The good, the bad, the everything, the very old, to ever end."

Warning - this review contains some details of plot (but I can't write it without including them).Having finally got to the end of the 'Bronze Horseman' trilogy, I can safely say that it deteriorated sharply from book to book. 'The Bronze Horseman' was pretty gripping if light (yes, even despite the Siege of Leningrad) fiction, a good romantic ripping yarn. 'Tatiana and Alexander' had some interesting historical material, but was spoilt by the characters seemingly being transformed into super-heroes, who spent most of their time accomplishing unbelievable feats. As for 'The Summer Garden' - I really struggled to work out why Simons felt the need to write the book at all after bringingTatiana and Alexander's story to a happy conclusion with an epilogue in 'Tatiana and Alexander'. To begin with I wondered if it was because she felt she'd made the couple's future sound far too rosy in 'Tatiana and Alexander', bearing in mind that Tatiana lost all her family and could never go back to Russia, and Alexander had been in horrific camps and in the worst combat of World War II. And indeed, the opening chapters of 'The Summer Garden' were more subtle than much of 'Tatiana and Alexander', promising an interesting examination of post-traumatic stress disorder, the long-term effects of loss and the effects of the Cold War.The trouble is that Simons never developed either theme. Apart from a weird plot strand in which Tatiana persuades Alexander to chase all round America for two years not telling him why, because she's worried the US officials will send him back to Russia (all sorted when Alexander finally realizes what's going on, gets his full US citizenship and moves everyone to tears with his American patriotism), some unpleasantness in the opening chapters when Alexander admits to an employer that he lived in Russia for years, some mentions of the Korean War, and the Vietnam War scenes (in which the Americans all behave with great nobility and the Communists are all Evil Villains) the Cold War barely features until a weird bit about Reagan and the arms race in the final section. The death of Stalin, the reign of Krushchev, the Middle East crises, the Cuban Missile Crisis. Hungary in 1956, the Prague Spring, Polish solidarity - none of these seem to register with the couple. And as Tatiana and Alexander become experts at posing as Americans born and bred (sorry, this is silly, Tatiana would certainly have still had a Russian accent, having only learnt English at 17) they never encounter hostility either. And as Simons portrays all Russians as straightforwardly 'bad' and all Americans as 'good' (apart from a few villainous criminals) there is no sense of Alexander or Tatiana ever having conflicted loyalties. As for Alexander and Tatiana's post-war trauma: Tatiana's largely consists of refusing to live anywhere at all like Russia (which rules out anywhere near rivers, the sea, forests or mountains, so means they have to settle in Phoenix, Arizona, where Tatiana cleverly bought land in 'Tatiana and Alexander') and occasionally lamenting her family (beatified since 'The Bronze Horseman', when most of them were pretty nasty); and Simons uses Alexander's primarily to excuse his often appalling behaviour - we're clearly meant to think he 'can't help it, because he had such a terrible war'. Well, fine - but didn't he ever think of getting help? Clearly not, as it appears that for most of the time Alexander's unaware there's anything wrong with him, and only refers to being 'a dead man' or terribly mentally scarred when he's behaved badly and needs an excuse. One gets no sense of this increasingly bizarre couple trying to come to terms with their grief or get help, and therefore the 'post-traumatic stress disorder' strand of the plot never takes off.Instead, we get about 500 pages of marital misery, tearful reconciliations and lots and lots of sex, followed by 200 pages of Vietnam War (well, Alexander needed to accomplish another amazing military feat at some point, and his son Anthony had to prove himself a chip off the old block) and a closing section that reads a bit like those sections of the Old Testament listing how everyone is related, in which we learn all about Alexander and Tatiana's dynasty (lots of tall men, pretty women, and all the men work in the US Army as It's The Best Place To Be) and are reminded what a wonderful marriage Tatiana and Alexander have. Bearing in mind the facts that Alexander at one point decides on marital infidelity because he thinks Tatiana's too caught up in her work as a hospital nurse and therefore must be having an affair, that he wants to prevent his wife working because it means she doesn't pay him enough attention (even though she also cooks, cleans and has sex on demand whenever he wants) and in one confrontation hits Tatiana so hard she falls over, one might doubt this - but Paullina Simons clearly doesn't. There are a few ludicrously melodramatic scenes such as the one where a rapist breaks into the house intent on possessing Tatiana, until Alexander obligingly blows his head off. There are the usual ridiculous feats of heroism (Alexander's son loses an arm in Vietnam, but still manages to carry two men on his back across a battlefield and shoot many Vietnamese soldiers, while Alexander mows down a whole lot of Vietnamese and saves his son when the whole US army in Vietnam couldn't). There is way too much sex, described in a repetitive and unappealing way (at times this felt like a more romantic, sentimental version of the lamentable 'Fifty Shades'). There is a long, rambling subplot about an incident in Tatiana's childhood which - though better written than the rest, and containing some interesting Russian history - only seems to be there to bulk out the story and remind us that Tatiana Always Comes Out on Top (oh - and a character gets rabies from flying bat saliva without being bitten, and dies within three days, which I don't think is medically accurate). There are innumerable lists of all the things that Alexander and Tatiana buy for their house, being of course good capitalists. And there are many reminders of how brilliant and beautiful Alexander and Tatiana are (he so manly, brilliant and strong, she 'golden delicious' with the breasts of a twenty-year-old in her late thirties, a 21-inch waist (bizarre bearing in mind the amount of sweet food she eats)) and flawless golden hair and beautiful skin.As this list shows, the book is pretty boring - it's also full of conundrums, strange shifts of plot and unexplained mysteries. For example, at one point Alexander's told his mother is probably still alive in Russia - his reaction is along the lines of 'Oh - fine, but I won't go back to find her' and then this plot strand appears to be forgotten about. At one point we're told Alexander is studying to be an architect - but we never see him studying, and later, he appears to have switched from being a successful self-made housebuilder (whose business of course takes off within weeks) to a fulltime American army official. Tatiana appears to have got US citizenship with no trouble, despite being an illegal immigrant, and gets a top nursing job with no qualifications, other than having been a volunteer during World War II. At one point we're led to believe that Anthony has been 'turned' by the Vietcong and is now on their side - but soon after it appears he was kidnapped and is totally innocent (this seems as though Simons changed her mind about the plot halfway through writing). Although Alexander has suffered so terribly in an army career, all the children seem to believe that the military is the best place to be, and that fighting is the only career for a man. When Tatiana loses her temper with Alexander in one scene, she puts on a recording of an aria from an opera that wouldn't have been recorded in the 1950s (it's by Vivaldi, and the 1950s was prior to the revival of baroque opera). In the Russian flashbacks, Tatiana reads books she'd have been almost certainly unable to source in Russia (such as L. Frank Baum's 'Wizard of Oz'). And there's a lot more, including some very silly typos.Even more than all this though, my main objection to the book was that Alexander and Tatiana have become so boring. In 'The Bronze Horseman', they may have been idealized but they were two fundamentally likeable and interesting young people, passionate about literature and the arts, with lots of ambitions. By 'The Summer Garden', Tatiana has morphed into a parody 1950s housewife and sex goddess (with the occasional burst of saintliness, as in her hospital work) and Alexander into a loutish slob who spends all his spare time when he's not making money watching rubbish blockbuster movies, drinking or having sex - and swearing a lot. They appear to have no intellectual or cultural interests whatsoever, and no interest in the world beyond Phoenix, Arizona, Las Vegas and the US army. This - coupled with the ceaseless rightwing reactionary propaganda with which the book is full (some passages read like a Republican party manifesto) made me completely lose my interest in the novel by about Page 400. It was rather like reading a mixture of a sentimental romance and Ayn Rand (on a bad day). Only my feeling I had to finish the trilogy kept me going.I've enjoyed some of Paullina Simons's other books ('Tully', 'Red Leaves', 'The Girl in Times Square') though she has a tendency to over-the-top plots. But in this case, I think she let this trilogy go on far too long, ended up using it to prove far too simplistically that America Is a Great Place and essentially ran out of ideas. A very disappointing end to a would-be epic that began promisingly.

9-5-12. I've just started and already this book is breaking my heart!10-05-12. Still reading. I never thought the day would come when I disliked Alexander Barrington but right now I want to smash his face in!12-05-12. FINISHED! Phew! So where to start! Honestly it like the end of an era. I first read The Bronze Horseman (TBH)...I want to say, 10 years ago, but really? Was it 10 years?! Unbelievable, and Tatiana and Alexander (T&A)as soon as it was released after that; I'm not ashamed to admit that at the time I re-read both books at least 6 times if not more. I don't know how I missed the fact that there was a 3rd book in the series until last week but somehow....I suppose when you no longer go to bookstores (WHSmith) to buy books and Amazon only recommends books similar to what you've previously bought? Because I know I sure as hell haven't "stopped" reading so...Anyway whatever; when I excitedly downloaded Summer Garden onto my iPad I thought it best to go back and re-read the first two books to reacquaint myself with the characters, not that I needed it really, it was just a excuse to re-read those book. Tatia and Shura have stayed with me throughout the time that has past. The fact that they are still on my bookshelf when so many others have been donated away is testament to my enduring love of their story. I read again the blurb at the back of the TBH and thought "why did I buy this book?" at first glance nothing about it would have been of interest to that 10 year younger me....The Summer Garden on the other hand speaks to me as I am now so maybe there's a reason it's taken so long to find me....I understand other reviewer's unhappiness with the way the characters develop in this book, Alexander in particular, and I too felt a bit sucker punched at times (see above) but in retrospect the truth is the Alexander of SG is a very different man to the Alexander of TBH, Alexander of TBH hadn't yet gone through the horrors of latter Alexander; I don't think post traumatic stress quiet covers it! I'd have imagined that for Paullina Simon's to have written Alexander in such a (and I don't want to give too much away here..)"contradictory" way makes the point that Alexander wasn't infallible, that if you live surrounded by dark matter for long enough it can seep into your soul, that love cannot always miraculously and instantaneously conquer all and I give her credit for at times making him quite the villain of the story, it's a brave thing to do, to take a character so widely loved and turn it on it's head. In the end the Alexander that we are left with we either love, warts and all, or we don't, but it least it's an "human", honest portrayal of Alexander. And Tatiana(blessed girl),he was all she knew; yes there were plenty of times I wanted to shake a back-bone into her and for her not give in to his every mercurial mood but, he. was. all. she. knew. Her strengths lie in the fact that she never gave up, never stop fighting for the man she fell in love with before she was even old enough to know what love is and we cannot judge her with our 21st century "everything-is-disposable" ethics.The book has a series of the flashbacks which give another dimension of Tatiana's life before it all went to hell in 1941; it's a joy to read about Pasha and Dasha and Deda. I cried at her father's presentation of the white dress with it's red roses (a dress that would go on to symbolise both joy and heartbreak) and her families walk down the streets of Leningrad knowing that in a blink they would all be gone.Paullina Simons wrote an amazing trilogy. She has given us a story with as much strength and grace as ever was written (every time I hear "Nature Boy" by Nat King Cole I shall think of this love story and tear up a little). It is a story that will wring you out like a sodden dishcloth but that also lifts the spirit and makes you laugh out loud. It is a story that I would recommended to anyone, you will not be sorry.

I have thought long and hard about what to write and I simply cannot find the words to do this book and the trilogy justice it is just simply an epic love story which takes you through some extraordinary times with heart in your mouth moments as well as your heart hitting the put of your stomach as u cannot help but get brought into the story. I love how this book takes on the whole new generations of Tatiana and Alexander's family and how it shows that no matter how much u believe you may have met your soul mate there are still many obstacles and hills to climb in order to try and achieve your happy ever after and it is by no means an easy journey, especially when u come from where Tatiana and Alexander have and gone throughout what they have. The best compliment to give the author is that I can't wait to finish this review so I can start the whole trilogy again from the very beginning! Quite simply exquisite

What can I say about this final book in the trilogy. Again, nearly put off by some of the reviews but I found it fascinating. Some people have said the second and third book repeats things but I didn't think either did. Both of these books gave insights into our main characters early lives which I found very interesting. Also, a few comments about things not being 100% accurate concerning war things - if I want 100% fact I will read a history book! This is historical fiction and as such I don't think it matters so long as the main facts are correct. Yes, it is a bit far fetched sometimes but you get so engrossed in the story it doesn't matter. The only thing I found a bit boring was one small part near the end about the Cold War. Apart from that I loved it and was sorry it came to an end - will be reading all three books again in the future.

I really liked The Bronze Horseman and Tatiana and Alexander. Some of this was just as good, but it's very patchy. I enjoyed the flashbacks, but felt they would have been better in one of the earlier books. In the first half there was simply too much sex. There's only so much description you ever need and this was just boring. The characters didn't seem true at times and the ending sped up too much. Better to have left it in the 70s or 80s than to have covered 40 years in just a few chapters. There was just no need to introduce about 20 random characters at the end. Certainly better than a lot of books, but a disappointment after the much better first too.Also, forgive the pickyness, but there seemed more typos in this one. Maybe it just needed a better editor.