Swan Song. The Defeated

The book by Irina Vladimirovna Golovkina (1904–1989), granddaughter of the great Russian composer Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov, is a work of rare strength, depth, and sincerity. This is a narrative about people who committed an act of honor, a truly tragic chronicle of several aristocratic families who did not leave Russia after the revolution and the Civil War and fell into the hell of repression.
The novel is permeated with the bitter poetry of the defeated (hence its second title), but not surrendered — in the most difficult circumstances, they maintain their dignity and ideals, their almost mystical love for the Motherland. It is not just a testimony of the past, but a story of feelings, fidelity, betrayal, resilience — a living life with all its joys and sorrows. The novel was first published in the early 1990s, after the author's death, and became a true bibliographical rarity. This bitter and majestic family saga will undoubtedly capture the hearts and souls of millions of readers. I consider this novel a masterpiece of Russian literature! It moved me to tears, to the depths of my soul. And as for the love described in the novel… God grant each one to experience such a love!