Queens and drama (The Virgin's Lover - Philippa Gregory)

Member Name: mizzy

Product:	The Virgin's Lover - Philippa Gregory
Date:	29/03/09 (110 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Really well written, great story

Disadvantages: Nothing really

This is the last in the series of tudor period books by Philippa Gregory. I started off reading The Other Bolyen Girl, as my mum bought it for me for my birthday, then read the Bolyen Inheritance.

Unfortunately being a student, I have had to borrow these books from the local library instead of buying the whole series and reading them in the right order. They only have a few in at a time as they seem to be very popular, so now Im on the last one in the series, having missed out a few Im sure.

The book is about Queen Elizabeth taking the throne when her sister Mary dies. She is presented as being a bit naive and is quite young. I always thought that Elizabeth was supposed to be really powerful but they do the opposite in this book, with her advisers basically making all her decisions for her. This is a them throughout all of the series really.

There is a love story as well, with Robert Dudley flirting with her all the time. He already has a wife, but Elizabeth becomes head of the church and so has the power to grant divorce. Il leave it at that as dont want to spoil the story.

The book is well written, and is also quite historically accurate, as Gregory has a big interest in history and getting her facts right. I also like the fact that all her books are based around scandel, and cover large periods of time, so you get to see a good long section of each king and queen.

Its not just for history buffs, there really is a good story, and they are hard to put down. I think they cost around £8 each, but in the library obviously they are free to borrow. Hopefully I will get some that I havent read for my birthday which is coming up soon!

Summary: I love her books