Customer Reviews
Philippa Gregory you have my heart just not my head!!! - By: A. Lalor, 24 Jul 2008 
I only discovered Philippa Gregory a month ago & I am already a big fan. Having read 'The Other Boleyan Girl' & 'The Queen's Fool' & thoroughly enjoyed them I was quite excited to read 'The Virgin's Lover' & I am pleased to say that although not as good as it's predessesors it is still a very worthwhile read.
Previous reviewers have summarised the story so I won't repeat what's already been said but let me just state that this book is excellently written & definitely deserves to be on the bestseller list.
Perhaps other reviews have been a bit mixed about this book. I think this is because this book is bound to suffer from comparisions to it's predessors. Arguably it isn't as addictive but it is still good although at times it is a bit slow-paced especiallly Cecil's parts, which seemed like more of a history lesson than a historical novel. It is at best brilliant, at worst mediocre. I don't think this has anything to do with the author's ability to write but more that she chose a relatively short time period (two years in fact)so there's an absence of material to write about. However on a seriously critical note the ending is somewhat abrupt & unexpected leaving the reader feeling agitated & wondering why the final part of the story is rushed by so hastily. It is mainly for this reason that I give this novel 4* instead of 5.
The only reason I can give for the mixed reviews is that perhaps people don't like the way Gregory changed her style with this novel. In her previous books she writes in the first person a technique that I myself felt worked incredibly well helping to draw us straight into the action & reallly making us empathise with the character. However in this book the author writes from the point of view of four characters: Elizabeth, Robert, Amy & Cecil. This approach works well in that it does show us the bigger picture & gives us a more objective view of events but on the other hand it suffers in that it lacks the personal style we have come to associate with Gregory's books. That was the only slightly debatable problem with this novel & is more of a personal preference than a serious fault. Perhaps four characters was a bit too adventurous. Three would have been sufficient.
What I liked about this book in particular is that the characters appear very human & are therefore easier to relate to. What also is very interesting is that it is very difficult to discern from reading what side Gregory was on. The characters are in many ways not very likable; whether this was Gregory's intention or not remains ambiguous. Despite Gregory's attempts to portray Amy as a pious, strong woman desperately clinging to her faith & her straying husband during a time of great political & religious upheaval I still couldn't help but find her a weak, whining & abovealll irritating character. I always sighed with agitation when I came to reading Amy's parts. Undoubtedly she is critical to the story but I felt there wasn't enough story to keep one interested especiallly when you compare her with the glamour of court. I liked the portrayal of Elizabeth. Too many history books depict Elizabeth as this fierce woman. It was refreshing to see a more human & vulnerable side to her although I found her inability to perform her role as Queen without the presence of Robert rather irritating as the story progressed. As for Robert: well what can I say? Of alll the characters Robert is the best progressed from The Queen's Fool. In fact he was probably my favourite character in the book. He had great presence (some very good one-liners might I add & the romance scenes are excellently executed) & even towards the end when his true intentions are revealed one cannot help but feel sorry for him. I think that's what made this book truly great: characters that irritate & annoy you but yet you wanted them to happy.
Overalll I would highly recommend this novel though it is advised to read 'The Other Boleyan Girl' & 'The Queen's Fool' beforehand as it does put the story into perspective.
Love it!!! - By: A. S. Clement, 22 Jul 2008 
I loved this book!!
After going to the cinema to watch The Other Boleyn Girl I hurried home to buy the book & after reading it ran to the computer as fast as my legs could carry me to buy PG's other books!
This book was exceptional - easy to read, easy to follow & easy to falll in love with the characters that PG portrays!
It's not just about Hannah the Fool, poor Queen Mary & nasty little Elizabeth - it's also a portrayal of Hannah growing up & facing her own problems & fears... I fell in love with Hannah & her life, & as always with PG books I feel genuine warmth & affection for the character - always reaching the end of the book & saying - "But what happened next?!"
One thing I have found with PG books is that I increasingly dislike Princess Elizabeth... Not necessarily a bad thing but be prepared for it!
I think she does a fantastic job of portraying Queen Mary in a more sympathetic light - as is right in my view. The woman had had some terrible experiences throughout her life & it is my view that she is very misunderstood - lets add up how many people were burned by Henry VIII & Elizabeth I before we go throwing the name "Bloody Mary" around shalll we?
A great read - a joy to absorb yourself in! If you loved The Other Boleyn Girl then you will love this - Buy it!!
mmm not the best - By: R. L. Araujo, 11 Jun 2008 
this is my least favourite of Philippa Gregorys work, for one I could not relate to Hannah's character & felt her constant flipping of sides through out the book to reallly eat away at my patience I also felt she did not do much & that her character was pretty pointless & that if she wanted to do a book on the tudor court in its later years perhaps a book being told from Mary & Elizabeth's points of view would have been better . I liked her portrayal of Mary I felt it was a nice little spin on her but I disliked Elizabeth immensely so much so that I avoided the Virgins lover for fear of how she could destroy my own thoughts on our great queen as being nothing more then a cruel nasty piece of work, which I felt was a very bad portrayal on Gregory's side as I now can not stand any thing to do with Elizabeth.
The Queens Fool 4 me! - By: Ms. C. Muirhead, 28 Mar 2008 I have read this book 3 times,months apart & never tire of it.
The story is gripping from beginning to end,a story of triumph for the leading character hannah.
I love brittish history,which is a bonus when it came to reading Phillipa Gregory,s story.
This book has encouraged me to read more from this very talented author.
Well done Phillipa!!!!
Great intro to Gregory's novels - By: Ikula Nappa, 15 Mar 2008 I read this book a while ago & can still remember it in detail. I was engrossed in it & reallly involved in the lives of the characters, genuinely afraid for the lead character & the dangers of her naivety in a Tudor court.
Gregory's novel based around this period are always reallly well written, full of well researched details which adds extra dimensions to the story. As such, & as the first novel by the author that I had read, I felt it was a great recommendation to her other works which I am making my way through currently....
