Suzanne Massie was involved in many aspects of study and work in the Soviet Union/Russia for over 50 years. Her outstanding ability as an interpreter of Russian culture and bridge builder between the Russian and American people has been acknowledged by both countries. In Russia, she was the subject of a documentary film, the winner of a prestigious literary prize, and an active participant in the cultural and social concerns of the city of St. Petersburg. In the United States, her books Land of the Firebird, Pavlovsk, The Living Mirror, Journey and Nicholas and Alexandra, on which she worked with her former husband Robert K. Massie, have been read by millions. She worked on the development of exhibitions with many of the foremost art museums of both the United States and Russia, including the Hermitage, the Russian Museum, the National Gallery, and the Metropolitan Museum. She lectured widely in the United States before academic, military, business, government, religious, public affairs, civic and cultural groups. She was often interviewed by the press, television and radio in both the US and Russia. She was consulted by many members of Congress and the Senate and from 1984-88 advised President Ronald Reagan, meeting with him 21 times during the critical years of the ending of the Cold War.

A fellow of the Harvard Russian Research Center (now the Davis Center) from 1985-97, she served on the Board of the International League for Human Rights. In 1991 she was appointed as the only lay member of the Permanent Episcopal-Orthodox Coordinating Committee which involved bi-annual discussions in Russia and the United States with the hierarchs of the church, including Patriarch Aleksy II, which gave her a unique perspective on the life and role of the Orthodox Church in Russia.

The tri-lingual Ms. Massie was the daughter of a Swiss diplomat. Born in New York, she graduated from Vassar College, and also studied at the Sorbonne and the Ecole des Sciences Politiques in Paris. She lived for many years in Blue Hill, Maine and died on January 26, 2025 in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, the home of her oldest daughter.