Reviews

This book was very enjoyable, as the life of Elizabeth I is interesting because we don't hear much of her we only hear of her father Henry VIII and his many wives, but it was very intriguing to find out new things about one of the three of Henry's children. The character Robert Dudley was one that I relished, I felt a need to read on just to see if his and Elizabeth's love would flourish. The history in this book to me was very realistic which made the book a more entertaining read. The author did such a good job with the book I just was desperate to find out if she had written anymore because I adored Traitor's Kiss. I thought the ending of the book was the best way to finish a great novel and that the way the author explained the different places was really well done because you could visualise the places like they were there in front of you. The reason I was even enticed to pick up this book to read was because of the blurb and the fiery red hair the girl on the front has.

by Rachael, Year 9

 

Set in the 1500s, young Elizabeth I is captive in her own home trying to prove her innocence of a terrible crime. During the story she has many flashbacks of what happened over the past few years, who she meets and who's lying...

An intriguing blend of mystery and history, wrapped up in a terrible crime. Characters have a mind of their own, you can imagine them as real people - amazing! Stunningly written, though flashbacks may be slightly confusing to start with but as soon as you begin you just can't stop.

Rating: 8/10

Comments: Mesmerising - great story  

by Lily

 

This book is set in the courts of Tudor England following King Henry VIII's death. The young Elizabeth is sent to live with her father's widow, Katherine Parr (who Elizabeth gets along with well) and Katherine's new husband Thomas Seymour, who Elizabeth grows to dislike throughout the book. Additionally, Elizabeth still has her mother's death looming over her- there are malicious whisperings of her mother's affairs, and Elizabeth becomes desperate to find out more about her mother. So when she meets a young stranger on the Thames, she takes every risk and journeys to bedlam, a mental asylum, to speak with her mother's lady in waiting. Meanwhile, Thomas Seymour is making untoward advances towards her and when she is caught being kissed by him, she is banished to Hertfordshire. Her journey spirals onwards from there, but she keeps in her close possession her mother's rosewater. This book is based on the factual story of the Princess Elizabeth at her young age.

Throughout this book, I could relate to Princess Elizabeth, which I thought was very effective because it showed her motives in her actions. I liked how it showed that she was a bold, brave character- she risked being called a traitor by wearing her mother's perfume and thus showing that she did not support the malicious words against her mother. I also liked how they put emphasis on her determination and her necessity to know the truth.

Some of the accuracy in this book was not perfect, and some of the scenes contradicted facts, but the accuracy in general seemed good especially compared to other historical fiction I have read. I would have liked to know more about some the detail in the book which sounded very interesting but which I didn't properly understand because they hadn't gone into depth on many subjects. Bedlam is an example of this.  The conditions were only briefly described, and I feel that for someone who did not previously know anything about Bedlam, it could be a little confusing.

I would definitely recommend this book to everyone who is interested in the Tudor period, and possibly someone wishing to learn about the Tudors. I feel the age range is about 10-17, and either gender, but girls may enjoy it slightly more that boys.

by Kate