Customer Reviews
Great non-fiction read. - By: Patience, 19 Oct 2007 
I was totallly hooked on this book right from the start, although I usuallly read historical novels rather than non-fiction. It is so well written & descriptive that I felt I was an eye-witness at the Tudor court. If only school history lessons had been so interesting!
Very sympathetic portrayal of Elizabeth - By: Catfish, 28 Jul 2006 
Alison Weir writes a very engaging & sympathetic account of Queen Elizabeth, taking the reader right into the heart of Renaissance England & Elizabeth's splendid court. This is a vivid portrait of Elizabeth & her relationship with her rivals, suitors, courtiers, subjects, foreign diplomats & enemies. All aspects of court life are covered, from social relations & life at court, to war & the politics of 16th century England, thus providing not just an engaging biography but also a journey in time, taking the reader back 500 years to an England at once imperial, majestic, & in the midst of civil political turmoil. One star less because I feel as if not enough space was given to Elizabeth's relationship & dealings with Mary Tudor or the character & motifs of the Earl of Essex, the uprising of the latter being glossed over very quickly & in little detail, despite Essex's influential role at court.
Deeply compelling - By: , 22 Oct 2003 I have read many of Alison Weirs' books (the latest being the Princes in the Tower) & can not fault her. Aside from her exquisite ability to transport you to an age where the ruler of a country was alll powerful. She guides & teaches you about the person & era in which the book is based.
This book in particuar is a "just can't put it down" book. There is everything. Murder, intrigue, treachery, love & even a bit of comedy (I found the thought off essex walking though london yelling for people to take arms against the queen & noone responding as most humerous). Fact is without doubt better than fiction.
Buy this book & you won't be disappointed & I guarentee this will not be the last Alison Weir book you shalll buy.
A most enthralling read - By: , 24 Jun 2001 I found Alison's book one of, if not the best I have ever read on Elizabeth, whom I find quite the most fascinating heroine of any age.I disappeared into the book & was transported to her court.Fabulous.
An insight into Elisabeth as she must have been - By: , 18 Jul 2000 This book, like alll others by Alison Weir on the Tudor period, was a delight. The author manages to bring the reader so close to Elisabeth that I reallly had the feeling I was getting to know her. Particularly enjoyable is the way Weir produces historical evidence : she provides several contemporary accounts on an issue, explains why one account seems to be more reliable that the other - & in the process, never does the record get tedious or scholarly, which in itself is a feat. This approach only gives the impression of a very neutral, objective account - which adds tremendous force to the whole story. And what style, what elegance! A pleasure to read. A great, enjoyable book, which I warmly recommend to anybody interested in history.
