The Queen's Fool: A Novel (Boleyn) by Philippa Gregory
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Book Reviews of The Queen's Fool: A Novel (Boleyn)
Book Review: Spectacular
Summary: 5 Stars
I couldn't put this book down; it is incredible.
The story follows two fascinating lines of development; the turbulent times in England following the death of Henry VIII, and the growth and development of the heroine Hannah Verde, a young secretly Jewish girl who is endowed with the "sight."
The famous characters of the time are portrayed in unique ways through the perspective of Hannah - the devastatingly handsome and charming rake Robert Dudley, "Bloody Mary" Tudor, who is portrayed as a good, sympathetic character who becomes unhinged and does horrendous things due to her precarious position, the constant threats to her throne, her childhood suffering and her husband's conduct. (And in the end, her legacy is to have a nasty-tasting cocktail named after her!) Elizabeth is portrayed as a young character who is charming, intelligent, confident, something of a slut (Hannah sees her in a vision as "the virgin queen who is not a virgin"), flawed, frightened at times, and very clever. She is not as good a person as Mary, but her common sense sympathy with her people make her, in the end, a much better queen. Even minor characters such as Amy Dudley are well portrayed, as Hannah foresees a glimpse of her bitter end.
Hannah herself is fascinating. She begins as a young, uncertain, frightened child with horrible memories of her mother's death and a girlish crush on Dudley. The book shows how she grows and develops in the royal court, and keeps her innate goodness even as other characters crumble. Through the book she develops and matures, and in the end she triumphs: her rather obtuse betrothed learns that he must treat her with respect, and she turns down Robert Dudley's proposition in order to be a good wife.
This book is an exciting, unique, fresh look at history, and one of the best books I have read.
Book Review: Just Wonderful
Summary: 5 Stars
This is another book by Philippa Gregory that occurs in the Tudor era. I won't really explan the plot because other reviewers already have quite well. I will just add my ten cents. I have always sympathized with Mary I because of how maligned she is. She had a horrible childhood. Raised believing that she would be Queen of England, then a little baby, Elizabeth takes her place. She is bastardized, disgraced and motherless by the end of Anne Boleyn's queenship. Everyone always just assumes that she was a cruel person because of how many people she burned. In this book, Mary is given a sympathetic look as well. She is kind and Hannah is devoted to her. She loves her husband, but her younger, beautiful sister takes all of his love.
Lots of books show Elizabeth as a virgin. I have always wondered, what if she weren't? What if she were just not able to conceive? In this wonderful novel, the first chapter shows Elizabeth panting with lust and desire for Thomas Seymour. Elizabeth liked other women's husbands, and she didn't mind becoming Mary's husband's mistress. I think that Elizabeth liked feeling more desirable than other women. Being a wife just wasn't for her. Though Elizabeth does seem likeable in this book, Philippa Gregory makes her seem very much like Anne Boleyn in "The Other Boleyn Girl."
This is a very good novel. I was fixated by it and couldn't stop reading. The author is very good at depicting rivalry between sisters. I hope that Philippa Gregory writes many more Tudor novels. Are there any more sisters to be rivals? It doesn't matter. Any book by the author in the Tudor era would be excellent. "The Other Boleyn Girl," was fabulous. I reread it over and over. When I buy "The Queen's Fool," I plan to do the same. Good job, Philippa Gregory!
Book Review: No Foolin'
Summary: 5 Stars
Right after I finished The Other Boleyn Girl I had to pick this one up and continue, sort of, the story.
I liked Hannah well enough. I could see many traits in her that I see in myself. Surprisingly one situation she has in extremely close to one I had, and it was interesting to see someone elses take on it, even if the person is fictitious. I was a bit bored with her always talking about her mother's death, but I guess it would have to be traumatic to watch someone burn as burnt human flesh isn't a pleasant smell or memory. I did feel like I would have liked to know more about Daniel and his family. I didn't really get a good sense of Robert Dudley like I had hoped, but I guess The Virgin's Lover will possibly fill some things in for me.
I really felt like the author downplayed on Elizabeth a lot. She was an actress all the time; sick, not sick, plotting, not plotting, schemer, like her mother in the last book; and Mary, so much like her mother, so pleasant all the time. For two girls who spent so much time away from their moms I find it weird that they were both so much like their moms from the previous book.
It's a good book. I'd recommend it to others highly. I do say that I did feel for Hannah when she was taken and arrested. I was hoping that she wasn't going to have to endure the torture that she knew others went through. I did, however, wonder when she was going to realize that her Queen Mary wasn't as pleasant as she made herself. She seemed like she was just off on cloud 9 much of the time. Maybe all those years alone, being made, and declared a bastard, touched her more than anyone wanted to admit.
Even though they called her, Hannah, a fool. She's no fool. In fact she's smarter than many of the people she comes across.
Book Review: "I was connected with everyone whose name was danger"
Summary: 5 Stars
Throughout her young life Hannah Green has been forced to hide her true identity for fear of her life. Fleeing Spain in 1553 during the Inquisition after her mother is burned at the stake for being a Jew she must pose as a boy while traveling with her father to safety. Settling down in Protestant England the Greens are relieved to have escaped danger in Spain, but they must continue to hide their religion and their love of books. Political instability and religious warfare plague England and Europe as a whole and threats of heresy and treason deem that nobody is safe, least of all the Greens. After becoming a member of the royal court as a fool, or a constant companion to the king or queen, Hannah continues to wear pants and pass as a fellow Christian. Her time in the royal court is filled with deception, intrigue, and worry, as she becomes a loyal friend and servant to both Catholic Queen Mary and her younger sister, Protestant Princess Elizabeth. Hannah straddles the line between royal foes while risking her own life as a spy and heretic. As time progresses she becomes a static member of the royal court and finds it difficult to return to her ailing father and the life of a commoner.THE QUEEN'S FOOL is a compelling, fast-paced novel that draws the reader in from the first chapter and doesn't let go until the last page. I was fully intrigued with the tale of Hannah Green and the life that she had lived and I had a difficult time putting it down. It is obvious that Philippa Gregory has spent much time and effort researching for this book, which enabled her to create such a convincing tale. THE QUEEN'S FOOL succeeds in giving one a glimpse into the life of the royal court during the 16th century and adds a human face to this distant time. Highly recommended.
Book Review: Off to a galloping start!
Summary: 5 Stars
I should say at the outset that I have only just started this book. And of course, I have never reviewed a book this early. I mean, what's the point, who knows how it will go? But after three highly acclaimed books in a row that were just torturous to get through until a third or halfway into them, I was really ready for a good, old fashioned, can't put it down from the first page read! And this book delivers in spades!! I promise to update this if the book gets worse, but in the meantime, if you want something that pulls you in and is engrossing from page one, read this book!
UPDATE: finished the book and loved it throughout! No disappointments here. The main character, Hannah the fool, is charming and engaging and the way Gregory writes her she comes to life and we really care about what happens to her. Gregory also does a good job of revealing the history that was happening all around Hannah. My only complaint, a minor one, is that Gregory is very biased towards Queen Mary in this book, and clearly doesn't much care for the young Elizabeth. That's her opinion and she is entitled to it. However, she doesn't support her leanings in any way whatsoever from history, rather portarays their personalities in black and white. Not quite good and evil, but almost. It is known that Mary was loved by many of her contemporaries, but so was Elizabeth, so a little more even handed approach would have been better. Or maybe it was that I had just finished Alison Weir's "The Lady Elizabeth" which takes just the opposite view.