The Diamond Secret (Once upon a Time Series)

Loved it!

I loved this book! I've seen the movie many times and it's definitely one of my favorite animations. So when I saw this book, I got pretty excited! Some of the reviews said they were disappointed because it was too much like the movie, but I think that's why I partly liked it so much. They were simillar for the story line with the con men, the falling in love part, the grandmother, but the details made it it's own story. The characters were wonderful. They each had their own personality and seemed very real. I loved the whole thing with the diamond and overall I think it's a great book. I've read it more than once and will probably read it again! :)

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

the diamond secret

Great book! I have read several of the once upon a time books and this is my favorite so far!

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

So..

I liked this book! I though it was going to be more like the movie Anastasia from my childhood but not soo much, which is okay because I still like the book anyway. Nadya and Ivan were cute together and I'm gald they ended up together.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

AMAZING

this is my favorite book by Weyn. she spins a thrilling web of a story. she has made a masterpiece. you really should read it!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

a retelling of a fabulous tale

Nadya works in the kitchen for a tavern in the cold of Russia She doesn't remember anything from her past, but one day two men enter the tavern for lunch. They take one look at her and think she's perfect for their scam. They plan to take a girl and turn her into the Grand Duchess Anastasia, who's rumor to still be alive after the Russian Revolution. Her grandmother would give anything to have her back - and the men are out for the reward. Together they approach her and make her an offer - not telling her about the reward. Instead they confide that they're private detectives and she might belong to a family. Nadya longs to belong somewhere and with little hesitation, follows them. They make the journey to Germany, where they run across an old friend from the Russian aristocracy. He has no doubt of Nadya's true identity once he sees her dressed in the part. In fact, he's so convinced that he holds a ball in her honor announcing her to his other Russian friends. When the empress hears of this night, she sends a car for Anastasia from Paris. Now, Nadya must learn the truth about her family, if she really is royalty. She's scared to learn the truth and even more angry when she discovers her friends have lied to her. Will she ever find a family and a place to call home?

Anastasia stories intrigue me. The secret of the diamonds is both fascinating and an ingenious idea. I love the heart warming scenes between the empress and Nadya. The cover is gorgeous and it's a perfect tale for those wanting a romantic historical novel.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Okay but not Amazing.

The Diamond Secret was basically the retelling of Anastasia. I thought it was okay but nothing special. When I read the book I was excited but as I read on I realized that the author just wrote the cartoon movie making a few small changes. Like when Nadya(Anastasia)met these two con men who were out to make some money never really realizing that Nadya was Anastasia and you knew that she and one of the men were going to fall inlove. The point is I think the author plagerized the movie but put different parts in it like that whole thing about the Diamond in the Doll that saved Anastasia's life and the story didn't have all the magic in it. But other than that this book was very much like the movie. Which the movie is good(I love it) but I was expecting something different and better. I am a little disappointed with writing. Suzanne Weyn needs to do better she did well with that book The Night Dance but right now her books are sucking. So please if this is a first time reading from Suzanne Wyen read the Night Dance.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Okay...

I have always loved the story of Anastasia, and so naturally I jumped at the chance to read this book. I have o admit I was disappointed.
It was a bad book or anything, it had just enough story to keep me interested, but when I finished it, I had a feeling of wasted hours instead of the "WOW! What a great book!" that you would expect.
It was too slow, and not memorable enough for me.
Even though sometimes a story can make for that with a great ending, this didn't do that either.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Amazing! I loved this book sooooo much! I've been obsessed with

Amazing! I loved this book sooooo much! I've been obsessed with Anastasia's tale forever. I'm glad that Suzanne Weyn was able to bring it to life. Even though, DNA testing proved it impossible for Anastasia to survive, I love the way that this book makes it happen.

Bradi

Looks really good

Amazing

This book is truely an amzing story that makes you feel like youre in another world. You will love it so much that you wish they had a sequel to this book. Now those are the truely wonderful novels in the world.=]

Perfect for a quick read!

"The Diamond Secret" by Suzanne Weyn is a quick retelling of "Anastasia" a wonderful and timeless classic. After had watching Anastasia, the Disney movie, I thought no book nor any other version of the story would compare, but this book comes quite close! This book's main character is Nadya who works in a kitchen of a tavern, knowing nothing of her past except that she has come from an asylum before arriving here, and her only companion was her little doll. One day, two men enter the tavern for lunch, and looking at Nadya, they think that she is the perfect counterpart of the real Grand Duchess Anastasia (little do they know that she's really her.) There's a rumor that the Duchess is still alive after the Russian Revolution, and her grandmother is paying a hefty price for her return. She believes that she has wandered her whole life without any final destination and longs to belong somewhere, and so she follows them. But throughout the story, she encounters danger, a new life, and a love like no other. This story is a wonderful retelling of "Anastasia" and the romance in this story, although, very predictable is refreshing at the same time! "The Diamond Secret" is woven intricately with many surprising turns of the plot, but it's an extremely interesting retell because the characters are substantially developed enough for the readers to fall in love with their characters, the turn in the plot keeps you wanting more and more, and also, the emotion that is conveyed when a sacrifice has to occur in the ending warms hearts!

A Re-Telling of Anastasia

I loved this book! I felt that this was a beautifully re-told version of Anastasia filled with love, adventure, and a bit of mystery that made it a great read filled with interesting twists that kept me reading non-stop till the very end.

The Diamond Secret

I was pleasantly surprised with this retelling of Anastasia,I have watched the Fox animated movie and it was so beautiful and unforgettable.I had hopes that the novel would hold on to that too and i was not disappointed.This novel along with many of the Once Upon A Time series have a fairytale like quality and feel that readers can't help being attracted to,I mean,who does not want to relive those fun childhood memories of those times where your mom told you stories and you just let your adolescent mind wonder? These novels balance the fairy tale like feeling with realistic characters and real historical facts for some novels, like this one.I loved Nadya and Ivan's relationship process from utter dislike to pure simple love. Romance always plays a key factor in these novels and I loved that!!Their squabbles were so funny and Sergei was such a great accompanying characters and a peace maker.The plot was intriguing but light and I just truly enjoyed it.My taglines for The Diamond Secret would be : Love,identity, laughter, friendship, betrayal and intrigue.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A Yearning to Read Review

I was happy with this book, as much as I was disappointed. I enjoyed it for what it was (it only took me a few hours, too, which was a relief amongst the many classics I'm reading), but it had several flaws. A few of them are:
One - the characters were underdeveloped and immature. Nadya had a temper that flared up at the most random times, which cut off the flow of the story. Ivan, too, was a confusing character. You never really knew what he wanted and why.
Two - the love story was choppy and slightly unresolved. Ivan's feelings for Nadya are up in the air the whole time. In fact, their love story is so thrown together and choppy that I can't really say when they first started falling in love. In fact, his first affections for her, and vice versa, aren't even shown. And when they are finally together, there is no explanation of why they treated each other the way they did...
and that brings me to my third flaw - the form of the novel. I felt like a lot of it was seperate chapters that were merely thrown together when it was time to publish the book. There were hasty explanations for certain actions of the characters after the fact, when it would have been much more smooth and interesting to build up the reason beforehand. Her writing itself wasn't too bad; that, and the fact that I am extremely fascinated with Anastasia Romonov's story, kept me into the book. If it had been written badly and I hadn't cared about the characters, I would have put the book down early on. I did care about the characters, however, despite the many flaws in the way Suzanne Weyn built them (or rather threw them together). Ever since I first read about the Russian revolution, I've often wondered whether or not Anastasia managed to escape. In fact, I've hoped she did. Therefore, in this story, I wanted her to escape, find her grandmother, fall in love, and live a normal life.
And don't get me wrong. Like I said before, I enjoyed this book for what it was. It had it's moments, yes, and big flaws that almost anyone can recognize, but it was a good story, and made me smile, laugh, and feel for the characters. I would recommend it to someone looking for an easy and fun read. Because that's exactly what it was.

Very Calming Book

I just finished this book a couple days ago. I read it right before I went to bed and it was a calming book to fall asleep to. I do admit that the talking about the russian history was a little difficult to follow otherwise its a pretty easy read.

ok

I liked this book, but wished there were more details. I felt the story was rushed. but it was good.

the diamond secret

I absolutely loved this book. I couldn't put it down. The plot was amazing and the romance was adorable. I was grinning half the time. Do not judge this book by its cover. It may seem like an aristocrat but it truly is not. I think anyone who loves romance and suspense would like this book.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Love the Story

Well when I bought this book I didnt see the title on the back saying "A Retelling of Anastasia" until I got home, but I did read the back and thought it sounded good. I have always found the story of anastasia and interesting one and this book was definitly an amazing retelling. I loved how the author explained and uncovered how Anastasia survived. definitly will read again!

I LOVE THIS BOOK IT IS SOOOO AMAZING!!!!!!

I love books that are all about magic and the impossible. Witches, werewolves, vampires, the works. So when I saw this book in the store I was skeptical about whether or not I would like it. Once I started reading it though I couldn't put it down, literally! I read for a solid two and a half hours and at the end of that time period I was done with the book. I picked it up in the store because I liked the title and when I read the synopsis I realized that it was the story of Anastasia. Like I said I was skeptical. I bought it because I had liked the Disney princess movies growing up, but I would have rather read Beauty and the Beast or Mulan or Sleeping Beauty. But now that I have read the book I do not regret that it was not one of those three. This book was so well written and capturing. I loved that (spoiler alert) I knew that Nadya was Anastasia but that everyone else in the book, including Nadya didn't. This is definetly a book I would and will recomend to anyone and everyone. Again I say that I lllllooooovvvveeee this book!!!!!!!!!

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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