The Virgin's Lover (Boleyn) by Philippa Gregory
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Book Reviews of The Virgin's Lover (Boleyn)
Book Review: Wonderful novel, interesting bias
Summary: 5 Stars
It is interesting to see from reading the books chronologically (The Constant Princess, The Other Boleyn Girl, The Boleyn Inheritance, The Queen's Fool, The Virgin's Lover) that Ms. Gregory is, contrary to most of the historical fiction novels or movies I have seen, a sympathizer of the "rightful" Tudor Queens and not much a fan of Anne Boleyn or her daughter, Elizabeth I. Though, through reading her novels, I came to be a huge fan of each of the queens in their own right, I find that this novel trivializes Elizabeth somewhat more than I expected (in the same manner that The Other Boleyn Girl paints Anne in such a distasteful and desperate light). I am not upset or saddened to be reading from this perspective, however. On the contrary, taken together with other movies and writings about Elizabeth (and Anne, for that matter), I am glad to have seen the (perceived) weaknesses of each of these women. So many historical works focus on the strengths and the great things they did. This novels makes Elizabeth appear to be "just another girl in love" in the first year of her reign, with all of the lack of judgement that goes along with such an emotional state. Although, to soothe the critics, in the end she becomes the triumphant and strong monarch we all know her to have been.Book Review: A great read
Summary: 5 Stars
Here's one for the many fans of the Tudor period in English history. Gregory's novel depicts the notorious love affair between Robert Dudley and Elizabeth I. In reality whether the two were technically lovers is unknown, but the relationship scandalized the Court nevertheless. Gregory does an excellent job of depicting the complexity of the two main characters. She portrays Elizabeth at times as emotional, indecisive and far too easily influenced, but at the same time clever, manipulative and fiercly protective of her perogatives as Queen. Dudley truly loves her, but is also engaged in a brutal power game played by the many factions at court. In the end, Elizabeth's sense of her own destiny wins out, as she realizes that marriage to almost anyone would necessarily mean a lessening of her own power. She also astutely realizes that her availability as a marriagable woman is a potent political tool to keep the monarchs of Europe off-balance and perpetually guessing. Gregory deftly lets us see glimpses of the woman Elizabeth will become--she truly was her father's daughter. Gregory's style is vivid and fast-paced--I lost a few hours' sleep as I was engrossed in this one. Highly recommended.Book Review: SPELLBINDING!! I COULD NOT PUT T HIS BOOK DOWN!
Summary: 5 Stars
History comes alive and wraps you into the many intrigues and glamourous personalities in the court of Queen Elizabeth I. The infamous romance between the married but wildly ambitious Sir Robert Dudley and the Queen is the focus of this novel. Dudley could be deemed the Elizabethan version of the "Comeback Kid". At one point, he was part of a lost military campaign in France and came back penniless, but he rose again to greater heights than anyone would have imagined. Dudley was also imprisoned in the Tower for treason, but once again..came out swinging and triumphant.
His anticipated coupe de grace was the romance and hopeful marriage to "The Virgin Queen", except for the inconvenient presence of his estranged wife Amy. The mystery of Amy's accidental death remains unsolved to this day.
I love Philippa Gregory's novels because she has a way of drawing you into the characters of the book, making it very easy reading. This is because she bases them on often little known, but fascinating historical characters. This book is no exception. She's done her research.
Book Review: AMAZING!
Summary: 5 Stars
This book was utterly amazing. I started reading Phillpa Gregory's works with "The Other Boleyn Girl" and have ravenously devoured all the series since. This was one of my favorite books, someone you feel for all three characters (Amy, Robert, and Elizabeth). It is amazingly well written as always, although I will say Elizabeth's "I'm sooo afraid of war! Someone save me! We'll fight! Wait no, I take it back! No, wait, we will fight! Oh, I'm so afraid!" routine. It kind of makes you want to grab her and shake her around! But, all in all, this book is wonderful, and if you are a fan of this author, you should enjoy it as much as I did!
By the way, buy it from Amazon, I'd never thought to check here, and I was super mad at myself when I saw that it's only $4.00 here...I paid $18.00 after taxes from Barnes and Nobles! It was worth it, but if you have the choice, order from here!
Book Review: The Virgin's Lover
Summary: 5 Stars
Elizabeth is made queen, and her long time friend Robert Dudley, is at her side day and night. Lord Robert has risen from scandal and now wants nothing more than to be part of the Queen's court. He leaves his own wife, Amy, with relatives, while he seduces the Queen. Elizabeth cannot resist Robert, and the two begin a scandalous love affair.
This book had me hooked from page one. I found it hard to put down. This is the book I was up late at night reading, gladly losing sleep just to get one more page read. Philippa Gregory writes historical fiction like nobody's business. I've also read The Constant Princess and enjoyed that one too. I've read some mixed reviews about this one, but as for myself, I really liked it. This won't be my last Philippa Gregory novel.