The Empress and the English Doctor

‘Informative, enthusiastically written and based on thorough research.’

‘This gripping account of her deep friendship with an English doctor – and their battle to save the Russian people from the scourge of smallpox – shows [Catherine the Great] in an entirely different light.’

‘Entertaining and well-researched.’

‘Mirroring so many of the vaccination issues of our modern age, as well as those of bodily autonomy, feminism, and power…a must-read.’

‘Timely and engaging… A truly fascinating book that reads like a thriller.’

‘Lucy Ward has zoomed in on one of the more dramatic episodes in that dramatic century… vivid.’

‘A deft and captivating chronicle.’

‘Lively and informative.’

‘An enthralling tale of two remarkable personalities who risked all for the benefit of mankind, and of a struggle between medical science and human instinct that could not be more relevant today.’

‘A rich and wonderfully urgent work of history which engagingly recounts one of the greatest moments in modern science and public health: a story of Enlightenment conviction, Court intrigue, Anglo-Russian relations, and timeless, personal bravery.  An expertly recounted eighteenth-century tale of political leadership and medical progress with obvious insights for today.’

‘So meticulously researched, well-paced and finely written is this tale of medical drama and royal daring that one quickly forgets that it is Lucy Ward’s first book. Her story is a remarkable one, full of contemporary resonance, but fascinating in its own right… a real page-turner.’

‘In this fluent and enlightening account of the fight to eradicate the terrifying scourge of smallpox, Ward deftly describes how an English Quaker doctor, Thomas Dimsdale, played a crucial role as a pioneer of the new technique of inoculation… The Empress and the English Doctor is a gripping read and all the more timely and extraordinary for having been written in the midst of the Covid pandemic.’