Red Hands - by Colin W Sargent (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A deeply compelling tale of a woman caught inside the destruction of a Communist regime.

Iordana is a normal girl, brought up with all the perks of Romania's corrupt communist regime. Then she falls in love and marries the eldest son of her parents' arch-rival, Romania's monstrous dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. They become the in-laws from hell, but she brings them their only grandson. And then there's the 1989 revolution, when crowds will kill anyone with the Ceausescu name. In all the blood and chaos, can Iordana keep her little son alive?

Drawn from eighty hours of unique interviews and told in Iordana's own voice; this true-life tale spins readers into the pleasures, excesses and horrors of late twentieth-century Europe.

Review Quotes

"Sargent's work reads like memoir, written in Iordana's voice. But Sargent's skilled writing provides vivid
images, lively character studies, a portrait of a brutal, controlling regime, insights into the nature of love, friendship and courage, and tension maintained at such a pitch, that it was almost a relief when the blood eventually began to spill. In an era of books geared to gendered markets, there's more than enough of both romance and political intrigue to satisfy both groups." - Historical Novel Society." - Historical Novel Society

"A very personal story of love and loss amidst senior political families. Sargent's description of the street battles and looting in Bucharest are palpitatingly told, fully engaging the reader in the narrowness of their survival. This is a fine book and an excellent read." - Morning Star, UK

"Sargent's depiction restores her as a luminescent and resilient whole set against a turbulent background." Midwest Book Review