Rasputin (1871-1916), a disreputable Russian peasant, had a magnetic personality before which many women of high and low station succumbed-and of this power he took every advantage. He became an itinerant monk, preying on the superstitious credulity of women to whom he presented himself as a holy man and healer. Gradually he sought higher game among the more prosperous classes and eventually made his way to the inner circle of the Russian Court. Originally published in 1927 in the author's larger "Twelve Monstrous Criminals," this paperback edition explores the miscreant's cunning, the miracles he allegedly performed, and his hypnotic hold over Nicholas II and Alexandra, the Czar and Czarina of Russia.