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The Queen's Fool (The Tudor Court, #4)
by Philippa Gregory (Goodreads Author)
by Philippa Gregory (Goodreads Author)
From the back:>
"It is winter, 1553. Pursued by the Inquisition, Hannah Green, a fourteen-year-old Jewish girl, is forced to flee Spain with her father. But Hannah is no ordinary refugee. Her gift of "Sight," the ability to foresee the future, is priceless in the troubled times of the Tudor court. Hannah is adopted by the glamorous Robert Dudley, the charismatic son of King Edward's protector, who brings her to court as a "holy fool" for Queen Mary and ultimately, Queen Elizabeth. Hired as a fool, but working as a spy, promised in wedlock, but in love with her master; endangered by the laws against heresy, treason, and witchcraft, Hannah must choose between the safe life of a commoner and the dangerous intrigues of the royal family that are inextricably bound up in her own yearnings and desires."
My review:
I enjoyed this one - not as much as The Other Boleyn Girl - but much more than The Constant Princess, which I thought was mediocre at best. Gregory has made a franchise out the Tudor era and, I think, has pretty much covered all the bases. I thought this one started and ended strong, but sagged in the middle. "Bloody" Queen Mary comes across as a sad and tragic figure in contrast to her flirtatious and, ultimately more successful sister, Elizabeth. Hannah "The Fool" was an interesting choice as a vehicle for looking at the relationship between these two very different women, but it ultimately left me feeling a little flat.
The story follows Hannah from age 14 through 20 during which she grows into her womanhood, but I had trouble putting myself in her shoes. Maybe I'm too old to remember what life was like at that age, but Gregory wasn't good enough as a writer to remind me. I was "told" (rather than shown) too often how Hannah was a Jew passing as a Christian, a girl in boys clothing, betrothed to one man but in love with another, devoted to Queen Mary but admiring Princess Elizabeth; which left me feeling Hannah was hopelessly divided and weak rather than conflicted.
I still recommend this one, it has a lot going for it, but also a few flaws.
"It is winter, 1553. Pursued by the Inquisition, Hannah Green, a fourteen-year-old Jewish girl, is forced to flee Spain with her father. But Hannah is no ordinary refugee. Her gift of "Sight," the ability to foresee the future, is priceless in the troubled times of the Tudor court. Hannah is adopted by the glamorous Robert Dudley, the charismatic son of King Edward's protector, who brings her to court as a "holy fool" for Queen Mary and ultimately, Queen Elizabeth. Hired as a fool, but working as a spy, promised in wedlock, but in love with her master; endangered by the laws against heresy, treason, and witchcraft, Hannah must choose between the safe life of a commoner and the dangerous intrigues of the royal family that are inextricably bound up in her own yearnings and desires."
My review:
I enjoyed this one - not as much as The Other Boleyn Girl - but much more than The Constant Princess, which I thought was mediocre at best. Gregory has made a franchise out the Tudor era and, I think, has pretty much covered all the bases. I thought this one started and ended strong, but sagged in the middle. "Bloody" Queen Mary comes across as a sad and tragic figure in contrast to her flirtatious and, ultimately more successful sister, Elizabeth. Hannah "The Fool" was an interesting choice as a vehicle for looking at the relationship between these two very different women, but it ultimately left me feeling a little flat.
The story follows Hannah from age 14 through 20 during which she grows into her womanhood, but I had trouble putting myself in her shoes. Maybe I'm too old to remember what life was like at that age, but Gregory wasn't good enough as a writer to remind me. I was "told" (rather than shown) too often how Hannah was a Jew passing as a Christian, a girl in boys clothing, betrothed to one man but in love with another, devoted to Queen Mary but admiring Princess Elizabeth; which left me feeling Hannah was hopelessly divided and weak rather than conflicted.
I still recommend this one, it has a lot going for it, but also a few flaws.
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